MarketAxess Holdings Inc. (MKTX) Stock Analysis — Fair Value, Risk & Moat Rating
NMS · Financial Services · Capital Markets
Is MarketAxess Holdings Inc. a safe investment right now?
Trading at $164.35, MarketAxess Holdings Inc. (MKTX) in the Financial Services sector carries a FairValueLabs fair value estimate of $196.27 — a margin of safety of 16.3%, placing it in the Strong Buy Zone. The Altman Z-Score is not applicable to Financial Services companies. Moat analysis is exempt for this sector. On the income side, MKTX currently pays a dividend with a safety grade of .
Why the Altman Z-Score does not apply to MarketAxess Holdings Inc.
The Altman Z-Score is designed for manufacturing and non-financial companies. It uses ratios like Working Capital / Total Assets and Revenue / Total Assets that produce misleading results for Financial Services companies.
- Banks hold massive assets (loans) that inflate Total Assets, making WC/TA nearly zero — a false distress signal
- Utilities carry high regulated debt by design — the model misreads leverage as risk
- REITs use Funds From Operations (FFO), not Free Cash Flow — standard cash flow analysis doesn't apply
Altman Z-Score is designed for manufacturing companies and does not apply to banks, utilities, or REITs.
Note: A sector-specific financial health model for Financial Services companies is planned for a future update.
What is MarketAxess Holdings Inc. actually worth?
How we calculated this
| Input | Value | Source |
|---|---|---|
| Analyst Consensus Target | $196.27 | 11 Wall Street analysts |
| Analyst High / Low | $250.00 / $172.00 | Range of analyst price targets |
| Price / Book | 5.13x | Current market valuation vs book value |
| Return on Equity | 19.4% | Profitability relative to shareholder equity |
Source: Earnings data from SEC EDGAR filings. Market data via Yahoo Finance.
Why standard moat analysis does not apply to MarketAxess Holdings Inc.
Our standard moat model uses ROIC stability, gross margin trends, and switching costs — metrics designed for product and service companies. Financial Services companies compete on fundamentally different dimensions.
- Banks — moat comes from deposit cost advantage, net interest margin stability, and fee income diversification
- Utilities — moat is a regulatory monopoly with guaranteed rate of return on invested capital
- REITs — moat comes from property portfolio quality, location, tenant mix, and cap rate advantages
Standard moat analysis (ROIC/gross margin/switching costs) does not reliably apply to Financial Services companies. Banks compete on net interest margin, utilities on regulated returns, and REITs on occupancy and cap rates.
Note: A sector-specific competitive analysis for Financial Services companies is planned for a future update.
Is MarketAxess Holdings Inc.'s dividend safe?
Can MarketAxess Holdings Inc. afford its dividend?
Payout ratio is 45.8%. FCF covers the dividend 2.2x. 18 consecutive years of payments.
MarketAxess Holdings Inc.'s key financial metrics
| Metric | Latest | 1Y Ago | 3Y Ago | Trend |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Revenue | $0.8B | $0.8B | $0.7B | Rising |
| Net Income | $0.2B | $0.3B | $0.3B | Stable |
| Free Cash Flow | $0.3B | $0.3B | $0.2B | Rising |
| Gross Margin | 59.4% | 60.1% | 64.8% | Declining |
Common questions about MarketAxess Holdings Inc.
Why doesn't MarketAxess Holdings Inc. have an Altman Z-Score?
The Altman Z-Score was designed for manufacturing companies and uses ratios like Working Capital/Total Assets and Revenue/Total Assets. These ratios produce misleading results for banks, utilities, and REITs, whose balance sheets are structured fundamentally differently. We exclude Z-Score for these sectors to avoid presenting inaccurate data.
What is MarketAxess Holdings Inc.'s estimated fair value?
Our valuation model estimates MarketAxess Holdings Inc.'s fair value at $196.27 per share. The current margin of safety is 16.3%. This estimate uses a PE-based approach with analyst consensus earnings.
Why doesn't MarketAxess Holdings Inc. have a moat rating?
Our standard moat analysis uses ROIC, gross margins, and switching costs — metrics designed for product/service companies. Banks compete on net interest margins and deposit costs, utilities have regulated monopoly moats, and REITs compete on property location and occupancy rates. These require sector-specific models that we plan to add in the future.
Is MarketAxess Holdings Inc.'s dividend safe?
Our dividend safety analysis examines payout ratio, free cash flow coverage, and the company's streak of consecutive dividend payments to determine whether the current payout is sustainable.
FairValueLabs Disclaimer
All valuations, scores, ratings, and classifications on this page are produced by the FairValueLabs internal valuation system. They do not represent actual market value, guaranteed outcomes, or professional investment advice. These are analytical estimates for educational and research purposes only.
This is not financial advice. All data is sourced from SEC EDGAR public filings. Always consult a qualified financial advisor before making investment decisions.
Last updated: Apr 20, 2026. Data sources: SEC EDGAR (financial statements), Yahoo Finance (market data, analyst consensus). Data may not reflect the most recent quarter.
MKTX analysis methodology: How we calculate fair value, Z-Scores, and moat ratings