MarketAxess (NASDAQ:MKTX) Cut to Sell at Wall Street Zen

MarketAxess (NASDAQ:MKTX - Get Free Report) was downgraded by equities researchers at Wall Street Zen from a "hold" rating to a "sell" rating in a research note issued on Friday.

Other equities analysts have also issued research reports about the company. William Blair began coverage on MarketAxess in a research report on Friday, April 4th. They issued an "outperform" rating for the company. Citigroup raised their target price on shares of MarketAxess from $250.00 to $265.00 and gave the stock a "buy" rating in a report on Thursday, May 8th. Bank of America lifted their target price on shares of MarketAxess from $189.00 to $191.00 and gave the stock an "underperform" rating in a research report on Wednesday, April 2nd. Morgan Stanley upped their price target on shares of MarketAxess from $263.00 to $283.00 and gave the company an "overweight" rating in a research report on Thursday, May 8th. Finally, The Goldman Sachs Group lowered their price objective on shares of MarketAxess from $235.00 to $210.00 and set a "neutral" rating on the stock in a research report on Monday, February 10th. Two analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, five have assigned a hold rating and four have issued a buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the stock presently has a consensus rating of "Hold" and a consensus price target of $241.78.

MarketAxess Trading Down 1.7%

Shares of NASDAQ MKTX traded down $3.91 during midday trading on Friday, reaching $222.22. The company's stock had a trading volume of 460,002 shares, compared to its average volume of 500,633. MarketAxess has a one year low of $186.84 and a one year high of $296.68. The company has a market cap of $8.33 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 30.57, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 3.89 and a beta of 0.84. The company has a 50 day moving average price of $218.37 and a 200 day moving average price of $219.95.

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

Institutional Investors Weigh In On MarketAxess

Institutional investors have recently modified their holdings of the stock. Global X Japan Co. Ltd. raised its holdings in shares of MarketAxess by 179.5% during the fourth quarter. Global X Japan Co. Ltd. now owns 109 shares of the financial services provider's stock worth $25,000 after acquiring an additional 70 shares in the last quarter. Geneos Wealth Management Inc. increased its position in MarketAxess by 200.0% in the 1st quarter. Geneos Wealth Management Inc. now owns 120 shares of the financial services provider's stock worth $26,000 after purchasing an additional 80 shares during the last quarter. Allianz SE purchased a new stake in shares of MarketAxess during the 4th quarter worth about $27,000. Smartleaf Asset Management LLC lifted its holdings in shares of MarketAxess by 495.2% during the 4th quarter. Smartleaf Asset Management LLC now owns 125 shares of the financial services provider's stock valued at $28,000 after buying an additional 104 shares during the last quarter. Finally, SRS Capital Advisors Inc. grew its stake in shares of 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 buying an additional 139 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 99.01% of the company's stock.

About MarketAxess

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.

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