MarketAxess (NASDAQ: MKTX) and Gleacher & Co. Ltd. (OTCMKTS:GLCH) are both finance companies, but which is the better stock? We will compare the two companies based on the strength of their valuation, profitability, earnings, risk, analyst recommendations, institutional ownership and dividends.
Analyst Ratings
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This is a summary of current ratings and target prices for MarketAxess and Gleacher & Co. Ltd., as reported by MarketBeat.com.
| Sell Ratings | Hold Ratings | Buy Ratings | Strong Buy Ratings | Rating Score | |
| MarketAxess | 0 | 6 | 0 | 0 | 2.00 |
| Gleacher & Co. Ltd. | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | N/A |
MarketAxess presently has a consensus price target of $209.80, indicating a potential downside of 0.38%. Given MarketAxess’ higher probable upside, research analysts clearly believe MarketAxess is more favorable than Gleacher & Co. Ltd..
Valuation & Earnings
This table compares MarketAxess and Gleacher & Co. Ltd.’s gross revenue, earnings per share (EPS) and valuation.
| Gross Revenue | Price/Sales Ratio | Net Income | Earnings Per Share | Price/Earnings Ratio | |
| MarketAxess | $397.47 million | 19.73 | $148.08 million | $3.90 | 54.00 |
| Gleacher & Co. Ltd. | N/A | N/A | N/A | N/A | N/A |
MarketAxess has higher revenue and earnings than Gleacher & Co. Ltd..
Dividends
MarketAxess pays an annual dividend of $1.68 per share and has a dividend yield of 0.8%. Gleacher & Co. Ltd. does not pay a dividend. MarketAxess pays out 43.1% of its earnings in the form of a dividend.
Institutional and Insider Ownership
98.7% of MarketAxess shares are owned by institutional investors. 3.5% of MarketAxess shares are owned by company insiders. Comparatively, 29.6% of Gleacher & Co. Ltd. shares are owned by company insiders. Strong institutional ownership is an indication that endowments, hedge funds and large money managers believe a company will outperform the market over the long term.
Risk & Volatility
MarketAxess has a beta of 0.57, suggesting that its stock price is 43% less volatile than the S&P 500. Comparatively, Gleacher & Co. Ltd. has a beta of -0.12, suggesting that its stock price is 112% less volatile than the S&P 500.
Profitability
This table compares MarketAxess and Gleacher & Co. Ltd.’s net margins, return on equity and return on assets.
| Net Margins | Return on Equity | Return on Assets | |
| MarketAxess | 37.61% | 29.82% | 27.00% |
| Gleacher & Co. Ltd. | N/A | N/A | N/A |
Summary
MarketAxess beats Gleacher & Co. Ltd. on 8 of the 10 factors compared between the two stocks.
MarketAxess Company Profile
MarketAxess Holdings Inc., together with its subsidiaries, operates an electronic trading platform that enables fixed-income market participants to trade corporate bonds and other types of fixed-income instruments worldwide. It offers institutional investor and broker-dealer the access to global liquidity in U.S. high-grade corporate bonds, emerging markets and high-yield bonds, European bonds, U.S. agency bonds, municipal bonds, credit default swaps, and other fixed-income securities. The company, through its Open Trading protocol, executes trades in certain bonds between and among institutional investor and broker-dealer clients in an all-to-all trading environment on a matched principal basis. It also offers trading-related products and services, including market data to assist clients with trading decisions; connectivity solutions that facilitate straight-through processing; technology services to optimize trading environments; and execution services for exchange-traded fund managers and other clients. In addition, the company, through its Trax division, offers a range of pre-and post-trade services, including trade matching, trade publication, regulatory transaction reporting, and market and reference data across a range of fixed-income and other products. MarketAxess Holdings Inc. was founded in 2000 and is headquartered in New York, New York.
Gleacher & Co. Ltd. Company Profile
Gleacher & Company, Inc. went out of business. The firm provides strategic and financial advisory services to corporate and institutional clients. It operates through Investment Banking, MBS & Rates, and Credit Products segments. It also invests and manages a fund that holds investments in privately held companies; and offers residential mortgage lending. Gleacher & Company, Inc. was founded in 1952 and is headquartered in Albany, New York.
