MarketAxess (NASDAQ:MKTX) Price Target Cut to $185.00 by Analysts at Bank of America

MarketAxess (NASDAQ:MKTX) had its price target reduced by equities research analysts at Bank of America from $193.00 to $185.00 in a report issued on Thursday, Benzinga reports. The firm presently has an “underperform” rating on the financial services provider’s stock. Bank of America‘s target price would suggest a potential downside of 31.84% from the stock’s previous close.

Several other research analysts have also commented on the company. StockNews.com upgraded MarketAxess from a “sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report on Wednesday, August 7th. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods boosted their price objective on MarketAxess from $222.00 to $225.00 and gave the company a “market perform” rating in a research report on Wednesday, August 7th. Barclays reduced their price objective on MarketAxess from $225.00 to $215.00 and set an “equal weight” rating for the company in a research report on Wednesday, July 10th. The Goldman Sachs Group boosted their price objective on MarketAxess from $204.00 to $233.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a research report on Monday. Finally, Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft boosted their price objective on MarketAxess from $218.00 to $223.00 and gave the company a “hold” rating in a research report on Thursday, August 15th. Two equities research analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, seven have given a hold rating and three have assigned a buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the stock currently has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $238.00.

MarketAxess Stock Performance

Shares of MKTX traded up $16.50 during mid-day trading on Thursday, hitting $271.42. The stock had a trading volume of 355,239 shares, compared to its average volume of 414,711. The company has a market cap of $10.29 billion, a PE ratio of 39.82, a PEG ratio of 6.04 and a beta of 1.08. The company’s fifty day simple moving average is $242.98 and its two-hundred day simple moving average is $220.61. The company has a quick ratio of 2.91, a current ratio of 2.91 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.01. MarketAxess has a fifty-two week low of $192.42 and a fifty-two week high of $297.97.

MarketAxess (NASDAQ:MKTX) last issued its earnings results on Tuesday, August 6th. The financial services provider reported $1.72 EPS for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $1.68 by $0.04. The company had revenue of $197.70 million during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $198.07 million. MarketAxess had a return on equity of 20.43% and a net margin of 33.71%. The business’s revenue was up 9.9% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter last year, the firm earned $1.63 EPS. On average, equities analysts expect that MarketAxess will post 7.06 earnings per share for the current year.

MarketAxess announced that its Board of Directors has authorized a stock repurchase plan on Tuesday, August 6th that allows the company to buyback $250.00 million in outstanding shares. This buyback authorization allows the financial services provider to buy up to 2.8% of its shares through open market purchases. Shares buyback plans are generally a sign that the company’s board of directors believes its shares are undervalued.

Insider Buying and Selling at MarketAxess

In other news, insider Christophe Pierre Danie Roupie sold 617 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction on Thursday, August 8th. The stock was sold at an average price of $231.63, for a total value of $142,915.71. Following the sale, the insider now owns 7,409 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $1,716,146.67. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this link. 2.66% of the stock is owned by company insiders.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On MarketAxess

A number of institutional investors and hedge funds have recently modified their holdings of MKTX. Vanguard Group Inc. grew its holdings in shares of MarketAxess by 0.3% during the first quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 4,539,440 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $995,272,000 after buying an additional 13,018 shares in the last quarter. GUARDCAP ASSET MANAGEMENT Ltd grew its stake in MarketAxess by 30.3% in the first quarter. GUARDCAP ASSET MANAGEMENT Ltd now owns 2,425,897 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $531,878,000 after purchasing an additional 564,820 shares in the last quarter. Van ECK Associates Corp grew its stake in MarketAxess by 10.3% in the second quarter. Van ECK Associates Corp now owns 1,828,055 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $366,580,000 after purchasing an additional 170,095 shares in the last quarter. Primecap Management Co. CA grew its stake in MarketAxess by 18.2% in the second quarter. Primecap Management Co. CA now owns 1,330,880 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $266,881,000 after purchasing an additional 204,960 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Marshall Wace LLP lifted its position in shares of MarketAxess by 53.5% in the second quarter. Marshall Wace LLP now owns 820,060 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $164,447,000 after buying an additional 285,665 shares during the last quarter. 99.01% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

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.