MKTX vs NDAQ vs ICE Stock Comparison

Marketaxess Holdings, Nasdaq and Intercontinental Exchange Prices as of Nov 2, 2026 Peers: Industry group
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MKTX Marketaxess Holdings Inc
$165.48 +0.8% 1M +3.4% 1Y
Market cap
$5.82B
P/E
19.0x
Revenue (TTM)
$870.03M
Div. yield
1.87%
Exchanges Financial Services
6 wins
NDAQ Nasdaq, Inc.
$108.62 +20.2% 1M +27.1% 1Y
Market cap
$60.66B
P/E
29.1x
Revenue (TTM)
$9.15B
Div. yield
1.07%
Exchanges Financial Services
2 wins

Head to Head

12 decided of 12

Marketaxess Holdings leads on 6 of the 12 questions below (Marketaxess Holdings 6, Intercontinental Exchange 4, Nasdaq 2). Which ones matter depends on what you are buying for; a cheap multiple and slow growth often come together.

QuestionMKTXNDAQICELeader
Larger companyMarket capitalisation $5.82B $60.66B $96.65B ICE
Cheaper on earningsLower P/E, profitable companies only 19.0x 29.1x 23.3x MKTX
Cheaper on forward earningsLower price / next fiscal year consensus EPS 20.3x 27.0x 19.8x ICE
Faster revenue growthRevenue growth, trailing twelve months +3.9% +11.5% +12.1% ICE
More profitableNet margin, trailing twelve months 35.2% 22.8% 29.6% MKTX
Better return on capitalReturn on invested capital 21.3% 10.5% 8.5% MKTX
Less leveragedLower net debt / EBITDA -0.3x 2.4x 2.9x MKTX
Higher dividend yieldTrailing dividend yield 1.87% 1.07% 1.18% MKTX
Better 1-year returnPrice return, last 12 months +3.4% +27.1% +17.8% NDAQ
Better 5-year returnAnnualised price return, 5 years -16.4%/yr +9.2%/yr +4.7%/yr NDAQ
Less volatileAnnualised volatility, 1 year 36.3% 28.4% 26.0% ICE
Higher overall scoreMean of the five percentile scores vs peers 55/100 53/100 54/100 MKTX

Percentile Scorecard

MKTXNDAQICE

Each axis is the mean percentile of its metrics against the company's industry group. 100 is the best in the group, 50 the middle.

Scores by Axis

AxisMKTXNDAQICE
Valuation 54 #45 of 96 40 #58 of 96 56 #43 of 96
Growth 18 #56 of 68 40 #41 of 68 46 #37 of 68
Profitability 86 #11 of 70 75 #18 of 70 83 #13 of 70
Financial Health 84 #17 of 99 47 #53 of 99 36 #64 of 99
Shareholder Returns 33 #28 of 41 63 #16 of 41 50 #21 of 41
Overall 55 53 54
  • MKTX ranked among 110 companies in Capital Markets
  • NDAQ ranked among 110 companies in Capital Markets
  • ICE ranked among 110 companies in Capital Markets

Price Performance

Price return, split-adjusted, before dividends. Click a name to hide or show it.

Returns

PeriodMKTXNDAQICESPY
1 month +0.8%+20.2%+14.7% -2.3%
3 months +2.0%+15.4%+13.5% -0.7%
6 months +6.8%+19.0%+10.1% +4.8%
Year to date -8.7%+11.8%+6.4% +10.3%
1 year +3.4%+27.1%+17.8% +10.3%
3 years -24.8%+116.3%+59.7% +73.0%
3 years, per year -9.1%+29.3%+16.9% +20.1%
5 years -59.1%+55.6%+25.6% +61.9%
5 years, per year -16.4%+9.2%+4.7% +10.1%
10 years +12.0%+411.1%+224.8% +258.6%
10 years, per year +1.1%+17.7%+12.5% +13.6%

Risk

MeasureMKTXNDAQICESPY
Volatility, 1Y 36.3%28.4%26.0% 12.8%
Downside volatility, 1Y 27.7%29.9%27.1% 12.8%
Beta vs S&P 500, 1Y 0.160.550.09 1.00
Return / volatility, 1Y 0.090.950.68 0.80
Max drawdown, 5Y -73.7%-33.4%-34.8% -25.4%
From 52-week high -14.5%0.0%-1.6% -3.5%
52-week high $193.61$108.62$175.10 $779.14
52-week low $109.09$76.85$122.91 $631.97

Valuation History

Weekly multiples on trailing twelve-month fundamentals. Negative or extreme readings (a loss year, a collapsed denominator) are left out so the chart stays readable.

MultipleMKTXNDAQICE
P/E now vs peer median 19.0xmedian 29.1x 29.1xmedian 29.1x 23.3xmedian 29.1x
P/S now vs peer median 6.7xmedian 2.5x 6.6xmedian 2.5x 6.9xmedian 2.5x
EV/EBITDA now vs peer median 13.2xmedian 13.6x 20.3xmedian 13.6x 16.2xmedian 13.6x
P/FCF now vs peer median 30.0xmedian 16.8x 26.9xmedian 16.8x 18.3xmedian 16.8x
P/B now vs peer median 4.7xmedian 2.2x 5.1xmedian 2.2x 3.2xmedian 2.2x
PEG now vs peer median 2.10median 0.52 1.59median 0.52 1.18median 0.52

Financial History

Reported figures by fiscal period, placed on the calendar year (or quarter) each period ended in, so companies with different fiscal years line up.

Trailing twelve monthsMKTXNDAQICE
Revenue $870.03M $9.15B $14.05B
Gross profit – $5.78B –
Operating income $352.39M $2.73B $5.70B
Net income $307.10M $2.08B $4.23B
Free cash flow $194.30M $2.26B $5.28B
EPS (diluted) $8.69 $3.70 $7.35
Cash & equivalents $245.79M $365.00M $936.00M
Total debt $115.91M $8.74B $23.30B
Shares (diluted) 35.24M 563.31M 566.00M
Enterprise value $4.22B $58.10B $89.60B

All Metrics

58 metrics · best in bold

Bold marks the best reading: the lowest positive value for multiples, leverage and payout, the highest for everything else. The bar under each value is its percentile against that company's own peers. Hover a value for its rank and the peer median.

Valuation

12 metrics
MetricMKTXNDAQICE
P/E 19.0x 29.1x 23.3x
P/FCF 30.0x 26.9x 18.3x
P/Operating cash flow 29.1x 23.8x 16.8x
P/S 6.7x 6.6x 6.9x
P/B 4.7x 5.1x 3.2x
P/Tangible book 5.1x 10.3x 6.3x
EV/EBITDA 13.2x 20.3x 16.2x
EV/EBIT 16.2x 25.2x 20.7x
EV/Revenue 6.5x 7.5x 8.4x
EV/FCF 29.3x 30.5x 22.4x
EV/Operating cash flow 28.4x 27.1x 20.5x
PEG (3Y EPS CAGR) 2.10 1.59 1.18

Growth

14 metrics
MetricMKTXNDAQICE
Revenue growth (1Y) 3.9% 11.5% 12.1%
Revenue CAGR (3Y) 5.9% 15.1% 13.5%
Gross profit growth (1Y) – 13.7% –
Gross profit CAGR (3Y) – 16.2% –
Operating income growth (1Y) 1.5% 23.1% 19.6%
Operating income CAGR (3Y) 2.7% 20.1% 16.2%
Net income growth (1Y) 37.8% 28.2% 31.3%
Net income CAGR (3Y) 6.8% 23.6% 19.3%
EPS growth (1Y) 45.5% 31.8% 33.5%
EPS CAGR (3Y) 9.0% 18.3% 19.7%
Operating cash flow growth (1Y) -50.5% 9.0% 17.7%
Operating cash flow CAGR (3Y) -15.5% 12.8% 16.3%
Free cash flow growth (1Y) -51.5% 7.6% 17.5%
Free cash flow CAGR (3Y) -15.4% 11.6% 15.1%

Profitability

14 metrics
MetricMKTXNDAQICE
Gross margin – 63.2% –
EBITDA margin 49.4% 37.0% 51.7%
Operating margin 40.5% 29.8% 40.6%
Pretax margin 42.2% 28.5% 39.1%
Net margin 35.2% 22.8% 29.6%
FCF margin 22.3% 24.7% 37.6%
Operating cash flow margin 23.0% 27.8% 41.0%
Return on equity 25.3% 17.4% 14.2%
Return on assets 13.0% 7.6% 2.4%
Return on invested capital 21.3% 10.5% 8.5%
Return on capital employed – 12.0% 10.5%
Asset turnover 0.4x 0.3x 0.1x
Cash conversion (OCF / net income) 0.7x 1.2x 1.4x
Stock comp / revenue 4.1% 1.9% 2.0%

Financial Health

11 metrics
MetricMKTXNDAQICE
Debt / assets 4.8% 31.9% 13.2%
Debt / equity 0.1x 0.7x 0.8x
Net debt / EBITDA -0.3x 2.4x 2.9x
Debt / FCF 0.6x 3.9x 4.4x
Liabilities / assets 48.9% 56.2% 83.1%
Equity / assets 51.1% 43.8% 16.9%
Interest coverage 59.9x 7.9x 6.8x
Current ratio – 1.0x 1.0x
Quick ratio – 0.4x 0.0x
Cash ratio – 0.1x 0.0x
Altman Z-score – 3.57 0.78

Shareholder Returns

7 metrics
MetricMKTXNDAQICE
Dividend yield 1.9% 1.1% 1.2%
Net buyback yield 5.9% 2.4% 2.1%
Shareholder yield 7.8% 3.5% 3.3%
Payout ratio (earnings) 36.9% – 27.4%
Payout ratio (FCF) 58.4% – 21.9%
Dividend growth (1Y) 0.2% – 6.2%
Dividend CAGR (3Y) 1.7% – 7.7%

Analyst Estimates

Solid lines are reported fiscal-year results; dashed lines are the consensus for the years ahead. Hover a year for the analysts' high and low, and how each result compared with its estimate.

ConsensusMKTXNDAQICE
Forward P/E 20.3xFY2026 27.0xFY2026 19.8xFY2026
EPS, next fiscal year $8.17FY2026 $4.03FY2026 $8.69FY2026
EPS growth, next FY +10.6%FY2026 +15.8%FY2026 +25.0%FY2026
EPS growth, the year after +10.0% +11.2% -3.2%
Revenue, next fiscal year $944.60MFY2026 $6.10BFY2026 $10.54BFY2026
Revenue growth, next FY +11.7%FY2026 +16.1%FY2026 +6.1%FY2026
Revenue growth, the year after -2.0% +13.7% +16.0%

Institutional Ownership

13F filings, quarter ended Jun 30, 2026
HoldersMKTXNDAQICE
Held by institutions 100.0% 83.8% 92.5%
Institutions holding 394 1,084 1,655
Change in shares held, QoQ +2.3% +1.0% +1.4%
Institutions buying 189 539 736
Institutions selling 164 398 695
Buyers to sellers 1.15 1.35 1.06

Return Correlation

Daily returns, last 12 months

1.00 means two stocks move in lockstep, 0 that they move independently. Pairs below about 0.5 diversify each other.

MKTXNDAQICE
MKTX 1.00 0.25 0.33
NDAQ 0.25 1.00 0.63
ICE 0.33 0.63 1.00

Add a Peer

Largest companies in the same industry

Related Comparisons

Frequently Asked Questions

Which is bigger, MKTX, NDAQ and ICE?

Intercontinental Exchange (ICE) is the largest by market capitalisation: Marketaxess Holdings (MKTX) $5.82B, Nasdaq (NDAQ) $60.66B, Intercontinental Exchange (ICE) $96.65B.

Which stock is cheaper, MKTX, NDAQ and ICE?

Marketaxess Holdings (MKTX) trades on the lowest price-to-earnings ratio (Marketaxess Holdings (MKTX) 19.0x, Nasdaq (NDAQ) 29.1x, Intercontinental Exchange (ICE) 23.3x). On next year's consensus earnings, Intercontinental Exchange (ICE) is cheapest (Marketaxess Holdings (MKTX) 20.3x, Nasdaq (NDAQ) 27.0x, Intercontinental Exchange (ICE) 19.8x). A lower multiple can reflect slower expected growth, so read it next to the growth figures.

Which company is growing faster?

Intercontinental Exchange (ICE) grew revenue fastest over the trailing twelve months: Marketaxess Holdings (MKTX) +3.9%, Nasdaq (NDAQ) +11.5%, Intercontinental Exchange (ICE) +12.1%.

Which company is more profitable?

Marketaxess Holdings (MKTX) has the highest net margin (Marketaxess Holdings (MKTX) 35.2%, Nasdaq (NDAQ) 22.8%, Intercontinental Exchange (ICE) 29.6%). On return on invested capital, Marketaxess Holdings (MKTX) leads (Marketaxess Holdings (MKTX) 21.3%, Nasdaq (NDAQ) 10.5%, Intercontinental Exchange (ICE) 8.5%).

Which stock has performed better?

Over the past year Nasdaq (NDAQ) returned the most: Marketaxess Holdings (MKTX) +3.4%, Nasdaq (NDAQ) +27.1%, Intercontinental Exchange (ICE) +17.8%. Over five years, Nasdaq (NDAQ) compounded fastest (Marketaxess Holdings (MKTX) -16.4%/yr, Nasdaq (NDAQ) +9.2%/yr, Intercontinental Exchange (ICE) +4.7%/yr). Returns are price only, before dividends.

Which pays a higher dividend?

Marketaxess Holdings (MKTX) has the highest dividend yield: Marketaxess Holdings (MKTX) 1.87%, Nasdaq (NDAQ) 1.07%, Intercontinental Exchange (ICE) 1.18%.

Which stock is riskier?

By one-year price volatility, Intercontinental Exchange (ICE) has been the steadiest (Marketaxess Holdings (MKTX) 36.3%, Nasdaq (NDAQ) 28.4%, Intercontinental Exchange (ICE) 26.0%). Volatility measures how widely the price swings, not the risk of the business.

Which is the better stock, MKTX, NDAQ and ICE?

There is no single answer; it depends on what you are buying for. On the 12 head-to-head measures on this page, Marketaxess Holdings (MKTX) leads on 6. Business Quant does not give investment advice; use the comparison as a starting point for your own research.

Data from SEC filings, exchange prices and consensus estimates, via Business Quant. Percentile scores compare each company with its own peer group, so two companies' scores are each relative to different peers unless you rank against the whole market. Price returns exclude dividends. Nothing on this page is investment advice.