This Growth Stock Is Crushing the Market This Year, and Its Fresh Earnings Report Only Bolsters the Bull Case
Key Points
Interactive Brokers is still growing customer accounts, client equity, and trading activity at an unusually fast pace.
Commission revenue accelerated sequentially in the first quarter even as the company faced some pressure from lower interest rates.
While shares aren't cheap, they're arguably worth paying up for.
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Up about 21% in 2026 as of this writing, Interactive Brokers (NASDAQ: IBKR) has been crushing the market this year.
But this strong performance raised the stakes going into the company's earnings report this week. For the most part, however, the broker delivered. While revenue came in just shy of analysts' expectations, it was arguably still a strong enough figure to justify the stock's current valuation.
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The growth story still looks intact
Interactive Brokers' non-GAAP (adjusted) earnings per share rose to $0.60 from $0.47 in the year-ago quarter, and adjusted net revenues climbed to $1.68 billion from $1.40 billion.
Driving these results, commission revenue increased 19% to $613 million, net interest income rose 17% to $904 million, and Interactive Brokers' adjusted pre-tax profit margin came in at 77% -- up from 73% a year earlier.
That is not the sort of report that weakens a bull case.
But what really stands out is how broad-based the company's growth drivers are.
Customer accounts increased 31% to 4.75 million, customer equity rose 38% to $789.4 billion, daily average revenue trades (DARTs) increased 24% to 4.37 million, and customer credit balances and margin loans both rose 35%.
Providing further evidence of the company's strong customer engagement trends, commission revenue rose from $582 million in the fourth quarter of 2025 to $613 million in Q1 2026. Stocks, futures, and options trading volume all posted double-digit year-over-year growth, with stock volume up 25%, futures up 20%, and options up 16%. And March monthly metrics showed much the same thing, with daily average revenue trades up 25% year over year and client accounts up 31%.
Additionally, management noted during the first-quarter earnings call that client equity was actually up sequentially, even though the S&P 500 fell 5% during the quarter. Continued account, management explained, funding offset market weakness.
There may also be a structural tailwind here.
Interactive Brokers CEO Milan Galik said during the company's first-quarter earnings call that the recent SEC change to the Pattern Day Trader rule "will broaden the retail access, increase the trading frequency and engagement and also liquidity in the markets."
With that said, this was not a perfect quarter.
Adjusted earnings per share fell sequentially from $0.65 in the fourth quarter of last year to $0.60 in Q1. Additionally, net interest income also declined from $966 million to $904 million over that same span. Given that net interest income is a larger part of Interactive Brokers' business than commission income, investors should keep an eye on it. The company remains meaningfully exposed to the rate environment. Specifically, management said a 25-basis-point cut in the Fed funds rate would reduce annual net interest income by about $80 million -- and similar cuts in relevant non-U.S. benchmark rates would reduce annual net interest income by another $35 million.
Time to Buy?
Interactive Brokers now trades at about 35 times earnings. That is a rich multiple, indicating the market is already giving the company plenty of credit for its execution and strong growth prospects.
So, while I think this latest report strengthens the long-term case for the stock, investors should also be mindful: the stock isn't the bargain it used to be. A premium price-to-earnings ratio like this leaves less room for error -- especially if rate cuts weigh on net interest income more than trading growth can offset.
Still, if the question is whether this latest earnings report bolsters the bull case, I think the answer is yes. The revenue miss was minor. And the more important story is that customer growth, client funding, and trading activity all remained strong.
I would not call the stock cheap here. But I do think the latest report gave investors another good reason to take the company -- and the stock -- seriously.
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Daniel Sparks and his clients have no position in any of the stocks mentioned. The Motley Fool has positions in and recommends Interactive Brokers Group. The Motley Fool recommends the following options: long January 2027 $43.75 calls on Interactive Brokers Group and short January 2027 $46.25 calls on Interactive Brokers Group. The Motley Fool has a disclosure policy.
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