Interactive Brokers’ fourth quarter was characterized by steady performance across its core brokerage and trading services, with results that met market expectations and left the stock largely unchanged. Management attributed the quarter’s growth to a combination of strong account additions, increased client equity balances, and higher trading activity across equities, options, and futures. CEO Milan Galik highlighted that the company added over one million net new accounts during 2025, representing record growth, and emphasized the expansion of client assets above $780 billion. The firm’s focus on offering broad market access, competitive pricing, and advanced trading tools drove higher client engagement and trading volume, especially as investors became more active in a volatile interest rate environment.
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Interactive Brokers (IBKR) Q4 CY2025 Highlights:
- Revenue: $1.67 billion vs analyst estimates of $1.63 billion (17.3% year-on-year growth, 2.8% beat)
- Adjusted EPS: $0.65 vs analyst estimates of $0.59 (11% beat)
- Adjusted EBITDA: $1.33 billion vs analyst estimates of $1.27 billion (79.3% margin, 4.2% beat)
- Operating Margin: 79.2%, up from 74.3% in the same quarter last year
- Market Capitalization: $33.56 billion
While we enjoy listening to the management's commentary, our favorite part of earnings calls are the analyst questions. Those are unscripted and can often highlight topics that management teams would rather avoid or topics where the answer is complicated. Here is what has caught our attention.
Our Top 5 Analyst Questions From Interactive Brokers’s Q4 Earnings Call
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Brennan Hawken (BMO Capital Markets) asked about the impact of declining benchmark rates on net interest income. CFO Paul Brody explained that strong margin lending balances offset lower rates, and a repricing lag on asset yields preserved net interest margins.
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Patrick Moley (Piper Sandler) inquired about the future of prediction markets and the company’s appetite for M&A in that space. Founder Thomas Peterffy and Brody stated that Interactive Brokers is focused on organic growth in prediction markets and has no interest in sports betting acquisitions.
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James Yaro (Goldman Sachs) questioned progress toward a European banking license. CEO Milan Galik indicated that while it is not urgent, Ireland is a likely location for future expansion, leveraging existing regulatory relationships.
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Craig Siegenthaler (Bank of America) asked about crypto adoption across client segments. Galik noted that while revenues are currently small, the focus is on expanding offerings in Europe and supporting advisors and multi-asset clients.
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Dan Fannon (Jefferies) sought clarity on expense growth. Galik responded that expense increases have been steady, with future growth driven by technology investments and headcount additions, particularly for AI projects.
Catalysts in Upcoming Quarters
In the upcoming quarters, our analyst team will be watching (1) the pace of international account growth as new markets are added, (2) the adoption and engagement levels with new AI-powered platform features, and (3) progress toward securing U.S. and potential European banking licenses. Expansion of crypto and prediction market offerings, as well as disciplined cost management, will also be important markers for sustained performance.
Interactive Brokers currently trades at $75.40, up from $71.51 just before the earnings. Is there an opportunity in the stock?See for yourself in our full research report (it’s free).
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