MarketAxess (NASDAQ:MKTX) Downgraded to Sell Rating by Wall Street Zen

Wall Street Zen cut shares of MarketAxess (NASDAQ:MKTX - Free Report) from a hold rating to a sell rating in a research report report published on Friday.

MKTX has been the subject of a number of other research reports. Citigroup upped their price objective on shares of MarketAxess from $250.00 to $265.00 and gave the stock a "buy" rating in a research report on Thursday, May 8th. UBS Group decreased their price objective on shares of MarketAxess from $305.00 to $295.00 and set a "buy" rating for the company in a research report on Monday, April 7th. William Blair started coverage on MarketAxess in a research note on Friday, April 4th. They set an "outperform" rating for the company. Morgan Stanley upped their target price on MarketAxess from $263.00 to $283.00 and gave the stock an "overweight" rating in a research note on Thursday, May 8th. Finally, Piper Sandler reduced their target price on MarketAxess from $213.00 to $202.00 and set a "neutral" rating for the company in a research note on Thursday, May 8th. Two research analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, five have given a hold rating and four have issued a buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat.com, the stock currently has an average rating of "Hold" and an average target price of $241.78.

MarketAxess Stock Performance

NASDAQ MKTX traded up $1.03 on Friday, reaching $223.25. 558,901 shares of the company's stock traded hands, compared to its average volume of 500,827. MarketAxess has a fifty-two week low of $186.84 and a fifty-two week high of $296.68. The stock has a 50 day moving average price of $218.62 and a 200-day moving average price of $219.09. The firm has a market cap of $8.37 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 30.71, a P/E/G ratio of 3.89 and a beta of 0.84.

MarketAxess (NASDAQ:MKTX - Get Free Report) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, May 7th. The financial services provider reported $1.87 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping analysts' consensus estimates of $1.82 by $0.05. MarketAxess had a net margin of 33.56% and a return on equity of 20.23%. The firm had revenue of $208.58 million for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $211.81 million. During the same period in the prior year, the firm posted $1.92 earnings per share. The firm's quarterly revenue was down .8% compared to the same quarter last year. As a group, equities research analysts anticipate that MarketAxess will post 7.79 EPS for the current fiscal year.

MarketAxess Dividend Announcement

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Wednesday, June 4th. Investors of record on Wednesday, May 21st were paid a $0.76 dividend. This represents a $3.04 annualized dividend and a yield of 1.36%. The ex-dividend date was Wednesday, May 21st. MarketAxess's dividend payout ratio is currently 52.87%.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Several hedge funds have recently added to or reduced their stakes in MKTX. Global X Japan Co. Ltd. raised its stake in MarketAxess by 179.5% in the 4th quarter. Global X Japan Co. Ltd. now owns 109 shares of the financial services provider's stock valued at $25,000 after purchasing an additional 70 shares during the last quarter. Geneos Wealth Management Inc. raised its holdings in MarketAxess by 200.0% in the 1st quarter. Geneos Wealth Management Inc. now owns 120 shares of the financial services provider's stock valued at $26,000 after acquiring an additional 80 shares during the last quarter. Allianz SE acquired a new stake in MarketAxess in the 4th quarter valued at about $27,000. Smartleaf Asset Management LLC raised its holdings in MarketAxess by 495.2% in the 4th quarter. Smartleaf Asset Management LLC now owns 125 shares of the financial services provider's stock valued at $28,000 after acquiring an additional 104 shares during the last quarter. Finally, SRS Capital Advisors Inc. raised its holdings in MarketAxess by 13,900.0% in the 4th quarter. SRS Capital Advisors Inc. now owns 140 shares of the financial services provider's stock valued at $32,000 after acquiring an additional 139 shares during the last quarter. 99.01% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

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.