Tredje AP fonden Reduces Stock Holdings in MarketAxess Holdings Inc. (NASDAQ:MKTX)

Tredje AP fonden reduced its position in MarketAxess Holdings Inc. (NASDAQ:MKTX) by 1.5% in the second quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The fund owned 5,960 shares of the financial services provider’s stock after selling 93 shares during the quarter. Tredje AP fonden’s holdings in MarketAxess were worth $1,195,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC).

Several other hedge funds have also recently made changes to their positions in the company. Parallel Advisors LLC raised its stake in MarketAxess by 155.8% in the 4th quarter. Parallel Advisors LLC now owns 110 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $32,000 after acquiring an additional 67 shares during the period. Principal Securities Inc. bought a new stake in shares of MarketAxess in the fourth quarter valued at approximately $47,000. Larson Financial Group LLC lifted its stake in shares of MarketAxess by 2,428.6% during the 1st quarter. Larson Financial Group LLC now owns 177 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $39,000 after buying an additional 170 shares in the last quarter. Blue Trust Inc. boosted its holdings in MarketAxess by 405.1% in the 2nd quarter. Blue Trust Inc. now owns 197 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $43,000 after buying an additional 158 shares during the period. Finally, CVA Family Office LLC grew its stake in MarketAxess by 47.4% in the 2nd quarter. CVA Family Office LLC now owns 252 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $51,000 after buying an additional 81 shares in the last quarter. 99.01% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of research firms have recently commented on MKTX. StockNews.com raised MarketAxess from a “sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Wednesday, August 7th. Piper Sandler reaffirmed a “neutral” rating and set a $225.00 target price on shares of MarketAxess in a report on Tuesday, August 6th. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods increased their price target on shares of MarketAxess from $222.00 to $225.00 and gave the stock a “market perform” rating in a report on Wednesday, August 7th. Barclays reduced their price objective on shares of MarketAxess from $225.00 to $215.00 and set an “equal weight” rating for the company in a research note on Wednesday, July 10th. Finally, Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft increased their target price on shares of MarketAxess from $218.00 to $223.00 and gave the stock a “hold” rating in a research note on Thursday, August 15th. Two research analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, seven have given a hold rating and three have given a buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the stock presently has an average rating of “Hold” and an average target price of $238.60.

Insider Buying and Selling at MarketAxess

In related news, insider Christophe Pierre Danie Roupie sold 617 shares of the stock in a transaction on Thursday, August 8th. The shares were sold at an average price of $231.63, for a total transaction of $142,915.71. Following the transaction, 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 legal filing with the SEC, which is available through the SEC website. Company insiders own 2.66% of the company’s stock.

MarketAxess Price Performance

Shares of NASDAQ:MKTX opened at $257.27 on Friday. The company’s fifty day moving average price is $237.37 and its 200-day moving average price is $218.39. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.01, a current ratio of 2.91 and a quick ratio of 2.91. The firm has a market capitalization of $9.75 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 37.78, a PEG ratio of 5.99 and a beta of 1.07. MarketAxess Holdings Inc. has a one year low of $192.42 and a one year high of $297.97.

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

MarketAxess Increases Dividend

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Wednesday, September 4th. Investors of record on Wednesday, August 21st were given a $0.74 dividend. This is an increase from MarketAxess’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.20. The ex-dividend date was Wednesday, August 21st. This represents a $2.96 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 1.15%. MarketAxess’s payout ratio is presently 43.47%.

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

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.