CMC Markets share price crashes after guidance remains unchanged

CMC Markets stock price crashed over 13 per cent today after it failed to upgrade its full-year guidance – a move that was widely expected by investors.

The company’s share price rallied in the run up to its half-year results that were published today, with many investors anticipating a revision to its outlook for the year, Shore Capital analyst Vivek Raja said.

But the trading platform failed to upgrade its full-year guidance, which disappointed investors and sent its share price plummeting to its lowest level in more than five months.

Despite this, the firm, which was founded by Tory peer Lord Peter Cruddas, reported that its net operating income is still forecast to be “in line with external market expectations” of £333m.

Trading (leveraged) revenue rose to £131m during the period, up by 50 per cent on the same time last year, thanks to higher client income and retention, while investing revenue rose by 18 per cent to £20m, driven by higher trading volumes and additional foreign exchange fees.

“Over the last 12 months the business has transitioned away from what was a period of significant investment, to a clear focus on driving operational efficiency within the business,” Cruddas said. “By leveraging our scale and technology to drive top-line growth, alongside operational synergies and cost control measures, we have made significant progress.”

While investors were unimpressed, CMC received broker upgrades from both Peel Hunt and RBC, raising their target share prices for the firm by 30p and 20p, respectively.

CMC issued results that were “in line with guidance and our expectations,” according to Peel Hunt analysts, and gained compliments for its “strong” £50m of profit.

Earlier this year, CMC announced its first-ever fintech partnership with Revolut, integrating its trading platform interface into Revolut’s app.