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XMarket Axess ® MarketAxess Reports Record First Quarter 2021 Revenues of $ 195.5 Million , Operating Income of $ 103.5 Million and Diluted EPS of $ 2.11 April 22 , 2021 First Quarter Financial Highlights * • Record revenues of $ 195.5 million , up 16 % • Operating income of $ 103.5 million , up 14 % • Diluted EPS of $ 2.11 , up 8 % from $ 1.96 • Record Open Trading TM credit volume of $ 246.3 billion , up 20 % • Estimated U.S. high - grade market share of 20.5 % , up from 20.0 % • Estimated U.S. high - yield market share of 15.6 % , up from 12.2 % * All comparisons versus first quarter 2020 . NEW YORK , April 22 , 2021 ( GLOBE NEWSWIRE ) -- MarketAxess Holdings Inc. ( Nasdaq : MKTX ) , the operator of a leading electronic trading platform for fixed - income securities , and the provider of market data and post - trade services for the global fixed - income markets , today announced results for the quarter ended March 31 , 2021 . " MarketAxess started the new year on a strong note with record quarterly credit trading volume and record revenue , " said Rick McVey , Chairman and CEO of MarketAxess . " Market share gains are driving the volume and revenue growth as electronic trading continues to advance in fixed - income markets around the world . We are seeing positive signs in new product areas , and in all geographic regions , as we invest to support long - term growth . Trading automation continues to accelerate with both our investor and dealer clients . " First Quarter Results Total revenues for the first quarter of 2021 increased 15.7 % to $ 195.5 million , compared to $ 169.0 million for the first quarter of 2020. Operating income was $ 103.5 million , compared to $ 91.1 million for the first quarter of 2020 , an increase of 13.6 % . Operating margin was 52.9 % , compared to 53.9 % for the first quarter of 2020. Net income totaled $ 80.5 million , or $ 2.11 per share on a diluted basis , compared to $ 74.8 million , or $ 1.96 per share , for the first quarter of 2020 . Commission revenue for the first quarter of 2021 increased 12.7 % to $ 175.8 million , compared to $ 156.0 million for the first quarter of 2020. Variable transaction fees increased 14.9 % to $ 148.4 million for the first quarter of 2021 , compared to variable transaction fees of $ 129.2 million for the first quarter of 2020. U.S. high - grade trading volume as a percentage of FINRA's high - grade TRACE trading volume increased to an estimated 20.5 % for the first quarter of 2021 , compared to an estimated 20.0 % for the first quarter of 2020 . All other revenue , which consists of information services , post - trade services and other revenue , increased to $ 19.6 million , compared to $ 13.0 million for the first quarter of 2020. The increase in all other revenue was principally due to $ 4.0 million of regulatory trade reporting revenue generated by Regulatory Reporting Hub , which was acquired from Deutsche Börse Group in November 2020 , and $ 0.7 million of revenue due to the weaker U.S. dollar to U.K. pound sterling exchange rate . Total expenses for the first quarter of 2021 increased 18.1 % to $ 92.0 million , compared to $ 77.9 million for the first quarter of 2020. The increase in total expenses was largely due to higher employee compensation and benefit costs of $ 6.9 million , mainly due to an increase in headcount ; higher professional and consulting fees of $ 4.0 million , mainly attributable to acquisition related costs of $ 1.5 million and self - clearing consulting fees of $ 0.8 million ; and higher depreciation and amortization of $ 3.7 million ; which was partially offset by a decrease in marketing and advertising expenses of $ 1.5 million on lower travel and entertainment spend . Expenses in the first quarter of 2021 reflect costs associated with the Regulatory Reporting Hub transaction totaling $ 3.6 million , including non - recurring integration costs of $ 1.3 million and amortization of acquired intangibles expense of $ 1.4 million . Excluding the Regulatory Reporting Hub transaction related costs , total expenses for the quarter were up 13.5 % . The effective tax rate for the first quarter of 2021 was 21.0 % , compared to 18.4 % for the first quarter of 2020. The income tax provision for the first quarter of 2021 and 2020 reflected $ 4.0 million and $ 6.3 million , respectively , of excess tax benefits related to share - based compensation awards . Employee headcount was 610 as of March 31 , 2021 compared to 536 as of March 31 , 2020. The increase in headcount was due to the continued investment in the Company's growth initiatives , including geographic expansion , trading automation , new trading protocols and the transition to self - clearing . Dividend The Company's board of directors declared a quarterly cash dividend to $ 0.66 per share of common stock outstanding , to be paid on May 26 , 2021 to stockholders of record as of the close of business on May 12 , 2021 . Share Repurchases A total of 1,050 shares were repurchased in the first quarter of 2021 at a cost of $ 0.5 million . In January 2021 , the Board of Directors authorized a new