Swiss National Bank Invests $15.82 Million in MarketAxess Holdings Inc. (NASDAQ:MKTX)

Swiss National Bank bought a new stake in shares of MarketAxess Holdings Inc. (NASDAQ:MKTX - Free Report) in the first quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The fund bought 73,100 shares of the financial services provider's stock, valued at approximately $15,815,000. Swiss National Bank owned 0.20% of MarketAxess at the end of the most recent reporting period.

A number of other institutional investors and hedge funds also recently added to or reduced their stakes in MKTX. Clear Creek Financial Management LLC acquired a new position in shares of MarketAxess during the 1st quarter worth about $280,000. Praxis Investment Management Inc. acquired a new position in shares of MarketAxess during the 1st quarter worth about $376,000. Wilson Asset Management International PTY Ltd. raised its position in shares of MarketAxess by 26.6% during the 1st quarter. Wilson Asset Management International PTY Ltd. now owns 60,492 shares of the financial services provider's stock worth $13,087,000 after purchasing an additional 12,697 shares during the last quarter. Victory Capital Management Inc. raised its position in shares of MarketAxess by 210.8% during the 1st quarter. Victory Capital Management Inc. now owns 17,400 shares of the financial services provider's stock worth $3,764,000 after purchasing an additional 11,801 shares during the last quarter. Finally, First Citizens Bank & Trust Co. raised its position in shares of MarketAxess by 13.6% during the 1st quarter. First Citizens Bank & Trust Co. now owns 24,671 shares of the financial services provider's stock worth $5,338,000 after purchasing an additional 2,947 shares during the last quarter. 99.01% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

MarketAxess Stock Up 1.3%

Shares of MarketAxess stock traded up $2.41 during mid-day trading on Friday, hitting $190.04. The stock had a trading volume of 686,996 shares, compared to its average volume of 568,961. The firm has a 50-day moving average of $212.47 and a two-hundred day moving average of $212.27. MarketAxess Holdings Inc. has a 12-month low of $182.99 and a 12-month high of $296.68. The firm has a market cap of $7.10 billion, a P/E ratio of 31.99, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 3.61 and a beta of 0.84.

MarketAxess (NASDAQ:MKTX - Get Free Report) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, August 6th. The financial services provider reported $2.00 earnings per share for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $1.94 by $0.06. MarketAxess had a net margin of 26.62% and a return on equity of 20.41%. The business had revenue of $219.46 million during the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $218.05 million. During the same quarter in the prior year, the company posted $1.72 EPS. The business's revenue for the quarter was up 11.0% on a year-over-year basis. Sell-side analysts expect that MarketAxess Holdings Inc. will post 7.79 earnings per share for the current year.

MarketAxess Announces Dividend

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, September 3rd. Stockholders of record on Wednesday, August 20th will be issued a $0.76 dividend. This represents a $3.04 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 1.6%. The ex-dividend date is Wednesday, August 20th. MarketAxess's dividend payout ratio is currently 51.18%.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several research analysts recently weighed in on the stock. Piper Sandler restated a "neutral" rating and set a $204.00 price target (up previously from $202.00) on shares of MarketAxess in a research report on Tuesday, July 15th. Morgan Stanley reduced their price target on shares of MarketAxess from $283.00 to $274.00 and set an "overweight" rating for the company in a research report on Tuesday, July 15th. Wall Street Zen raised shares of MarketAxess from a "sell" rating to a "hold" rating in a research note on Saturday, August 9th. Barclays dropped their price objective on shares of MarketAxess from $237.00 to $200.00 and set an "equal weight" rating for the company in a research note on Thursday, August 7th. Finally, Jefferies Financial Group dropped their price objective on shares of MarketAxess from $217.00 to $208.00 and set a "hold" rating for the company in a research note on Monday, August 11th. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, seven have assigned a hold rating and four have issued a buy rating to the company's stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the company presently has an average rating of "Hold" and an average price target of $229.70.

MarketAxess Company Profile

MarketAxess Holdings Inc, together with its subsidiaries, operates an electronic trading platform for institutional investor and broker-dealer companies worldwide. The company offers trading technology that provides liquidity access in U.S. high-grade bonds, U.S. high-yield bonds, emerging market debt, eurobonds, municipal bonds, U.S.