MarketAxess (NASDAQ:MKTX) Hits New 52-Week Low - What's Next?

Key Points

• MarketAxess Holdings Inc. (NASDAQ: MKTX) has hit a new 52-week low, trading as low as $165.17, reflecting a significant drop from its previous close of $170.50.
• Recent reports indicate that several brokerages have downgraded their price objectives for MarketAxess, with Morgan Stanley lowering theirs from $274 to $253, while UBS Group adjusted theirs from $295 to $255, but maintaining a "buy" rating.
• The company announced a quarterly dividend of $0.76, translating to an annualized dividend yield of 1.8%, with a payout ratio of 51.18%.

Shares of MarketAxess Holdings Inc. (NASDAQ:MKTX - Get Free Report) hit a new 52-week low during trading on Monday . The stock traded as low as $165.17 and last traded at $165.81, with a volume of 86466 shares. The stock had previously closed at $170.50.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of brokerages have recently weighed in on MKTX. Morgan Stanley cut their price objective on MarketAxess from $274.00 to $253.00 and set an "overweight" rating for the company in a research report on Wednesday, October 1st. Jefferies Financial Group reduced their price objective on MarketAxess from $217.00 to $208.00 and set a "hold" rating on the stock in a research note on Monday, August 11th. Barclays lowered their target price on MarketAxess from $237.00 to $200.00 and set an "equal weight" rating for the company in a research report on Thursday, August 7th. Argus raised shares of MarketAxess from a "hold" rating to a "buy" rating and set a $212.00 price target on the stock in a research note on Monday, August 25th. Finally, UBS Group lowered their price objective on shares of MarketAxess from $295.00 to $255.00 and set a "buy" rating for the company in a research report on Thursday, August 7th. Five research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, seven have assigned a Hold rating and one has issued a Sell rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat, the stock presently has a consensus rating of "Hold" and an average price target of $226.18.

MarketAxess Stock Performance

The stock has a market cap of $6.19 billion, a PE ratio of 27.84, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 3.32 and a beta of 0.89. The company has a 50 day moving average of $186.80 and a two-hundred day moving average of $207.34.

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

MarketAxess Dividend Announcement

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Wednesday, September 3rd. Shareholders of record on Wednesday, August 20th were issued a $0.76 dividend. This represents a $3.04 annualized dividend and a yield of 1.8%. The ex-dividend date was Wednesday, August 20th. MarketAxess's payout ratio is presently 51.18%.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other news, Director Stephen P. Casper sold 1,600 shares of the business's stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, September 8th. The shares were sold at an average price of $186.59, for a total value of $298,544.00. Following the sale, the director directly owned 43,208 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $8,062,180.72. The trade was a 3.57% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this hyperlink. Also, CRO Kevin M. Mcpherson sold 1,494 shares of the company's stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, September 12th. The stock was sold at an average price of $185.32, for a total transaction of $276,868.08. Following the completion of the transaction, the executive owned 67,681 shares in the company, valued at approximately $12,542,642.92. This represents a 2.16% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Corporate insiders own 2.66% of the company's stock.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On MarketAxess

Several institutional investors and hedge funds have recently modified their holdings of the company. Comerica Bank boosted its holdings in MarketAxess by 0.9% during the 1st quarter. Comerica Bank now owns 5,181 shares of the financial services provider's stock valued at $1,121,000 after acquiring an additional 48 shares during the period. DekaBank Deutsche Girozentrale boosted its stake in shares of MarketAxess by 1.0% in the second quarter. DekaBank Deutsche Girozentrale now owns 5,080 shares of the financial services provider's stock valued at $1,105,000 after purchasing an additional 51 shares during the period. Federated Hermes Inc. grew its holdings in shares of MarketAxess by 13.0% in the first quarter. Federated Hermes Inc. now owns 522 shares of the financial services provider's stock valued at $113,000 after purchasing an additional 60 shares in the last quarter. Exchange Traded Concepts LLC increased its stake in MarketAxess by 1.6% during the 2nd quarter. Exchange Traded Concepts LLC now owns 4,157 shares of the financial services provider's stock worth $928,000 after buying an additional 64 shares during the period. Finally, Claret Asset Management Corp lifted its holdings in MarketAxess by 6.6% during the 2nd quarter. Claret Asset Management Corp now owns 1,059 shares of the financial services provider's stock worth $236,000 after buying an additional 66 shares in the last quarter. 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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