MarketAxess Sees Slump in Q2 Revenue and Earnings

MarketAxess Holdings Inc. (Nasdaq: MKTX) has published its financial results for the second quarter of 2021, reporting a clump in its business performance. The company operates an electronic trading platform for fixed-income securities and also provides market data and post-trade services.

The company generated total revenue of $176.3 million between April and June, which is 4.6 percent lower year-over-year. Operating income also plummeted to $87.2 million from $104.1 million for the second quarter of 2020. 

The operating margin for the period dropped to 49.4 percent from 56.4 percent achieved in the same quarter a year ago. The net income of the public company followed other metrics and came in at a total of $67.3 million or $1.77 per share on a diluted basis.

“Second quarter results were heavily impacted by low levels of credit market volatility in a very tough year over year comparison for MarketAxess,” Rick McVey, Chairman and CEO at MarketAxess, explained. “We believe the Company’s long-term revenue and earnings growth rates remain on track.”

Non-Commission Business Is Gaining Steam

The company detailed that its revenue from the commissions dropped 9.1 percent to $156.4 million, which includes $1.1 million generated by subsidiary MuniBrokers. 

Interestingly, the non-commission revenue of the company, which is generated from information services, post-trade services, and a few other streams, increased to $19.9 million, compared to $12.7 million for Q2 2020. Meanwhile, the total expense of the firm also increased by 10.5 percent.

“We are excited about the progress we are making in our international business, emerging markets, municipal bonds, and new trading protocols,” McVey added. “We believe our investments are creating a much broader foundation for future growth that will be evident when more normal levels of volatility return to fixed income markets.”

Source: Read Full Article