MarketAxess (NASDAQ:MKTX) Hits New 52-Week Low - Time to Sell?

Key Points

• MarketAxess Holdings Inc. shares reached a new 52-week low of $186.14 during trading, significantly lower than its previous close of $207.81.
• Equities analysts have mixed opinions on the stock, with two rating it as a sell, five as a hold, and four as a buy, resulting in a consensus rating of "Hold" and an average price target of $240.67.
• Despite recent struggles, MarketAxess reported an EPS of $2.00 for the last quarter, beating estimates and reflecting a revenue increase of 11% compared to the same quarter last year.

Shares of MarketAxess Holdings Inc. (NASDAQ:MKTX - Get Free Report) reached a new 52-week low during mid-day trading on Thursday . The stock traded as low as $186.14 and last traded at $186.80, with a volume of 1901663 shares traded. The stock had previously closed at $207.81.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several equities research analysts have recently issued reports on the stock. Piper Sandler reissued a "neutral" rating and set a $204.00 target price (up from $202.00) on shares of MarketAxess in a research note on Tuesday, July 15th. Wall Street Zen lowered shares of MarketAxess from a "hold" rating to a "sell" rating in a research note on Sunday, July 20th. Barclays decreased their price target on shares of MarketAxess from $240.00 to $237.00 and set an "equal weight" rating on the stock in a research note on Thursday, July 10th. Citigroup raised their price target on shares of MarketAxess from $250.00 to $265.00 and gave the company a "buy" rating in a research note on Thursday, May 8th. Finally, UBS Group reaffirmed a "buy" rating and issued a $295.00 price target on shares of MarketAxess in a research note on Tuesday, July 8th. Two investment analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, five have assigned a hold rating and four have issued a buy rating to the company's stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the stock has a consensus rating of "Hold" and an average price target of $240.67.

MarketAxess Stock Performance

The firm has a market capitalization of $7.01 billion, a PE ratio of 32.49, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.74 and a beta of 0.84. The stock's 50 day simple moving average is $216.77 and its two-hundred day simple moving average is $214.05.

MarketAxess (NASDAQ:MKTX - Get Free Report) last released its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, August 6th. The financial services provider reported $2.00 EPS for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $1.94 by $0.06. The firm had revenue of $219.46 million for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $218.05 million. MarketAxess had a net margin of 26.57% and a return on equity of 19.93%. The business's revenue for the quarter was up 11.0% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter in the previous year, the company earned $1.72 EPS. Equities research analysts expect that MarketAxess Holdings Inc. will post 7.79 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Institutional Trading of MarketAxess

A number of institutional investors and hedge funds have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Mitsubishi UFJ Asset Management Co. Ltd. raised its position in MarketAxess by 4.5% in the second quarter. Mitsubishi UFJ Asset Management Co. Ltd. now owns 39,054 shares of the financial services provider's stock valued at $8,722,000 after purchasing an additional 1,697 shares during the period. AGF Management Ltd. grew its stake in shares of MarketAxess by 1.3% in the second quarter. AGF Management Ltd. now owns 14,314 shares of the financial services provider's stock worth $3,197,000 after acquiring an additional 181 shares in the last quarter. True Wealth Design LLC grew its stake in shares of MarketAxess by 992.9% in the second quarter. True Wealth Design LLC now owns 153 shares of the financial services provider's stock worth $34,000 after acquiring an additional 139 shares in the last quarter. Fox Run Management L.L.C. grew its stake in shares of MarketAxess by 358.3% in the second quarter. Fox Run Management L.L.C. now owns 5,018 shares of the financial services provider's stock worth $1,121,000 after acquiring an additional 3,923 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Metis Global Partners LLC acquired a new position in shares of MarketAxess in the second quarter worth $200,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors 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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