Virtu Financial reported a sharp jump in first-quarter earnings today (Wednesday), with net income nearly doubling year over year as elevated trading volumes lifted revenue across its market-making business.
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Virtu Q1 Net Income Margin Widens to 31.6%
The NYSE-listed firm said total revenue climbed 30.7% to $1.1 billion in the three months ended March 31, while net income reached $346.6 million, up from $189.6 million in the same period a year earlier.
The result builds on a strong full-year 2025, when Virtu posted $3.63 billion in revenue and $912.3 million in net income. Diluted earnings per share came in at $1.99 for the latest quarter, compared with $1.08 a year earlier, while normalized adjusted EPS hit $2.24, up from $1.30.
Q1 2026 Key Performance Indicators
Metric | Q1 2026 | Q1 2025 | Change |
Total revenue | $1,095.3M | $837.9M | +30.7% |
Trading income, net | $789.1M | $590.0M | +33.8% |
Net income | $346.6M | $189.6M | +82.8% |
Diluted EPS | $1.99 | $1.08 | +84.3% |
Adjusted Net Trading Income | $786.5M | $497.1M | +58.2% |
Source: Virtu Financial Q1 2026 earnings release
Market-Making Engine Carries the Quarter
The bulk of the year-over-year gain came from the company's core market-making operations. Adjusted Net Trading Income from the segment rose to $637.1 million from $382.0 million, a 66.8% increase, while the Execution Services arm contributed $149.5 million, up 29.9% from $115.1 million.
Trading income, net, climbed 33.8% to $789.1 million, while commissions and technology services revenue grew to $186.6 million from $151.3 million. Interest and dividend income reached $127.5 million, up from $109.1 million.
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Group Adjusted Net Trading Income rose 58.2% to $786.5 million, and Adjusted EBITDA increased 62.7% to $520.6 million. The Adjusted EBITDA margin widened to 66.2% from 64.4%.
The performance follows what was already a strong period for the company, with Virtu's full-year 2025 trading income jumping 33.7% on the back of broad-based market activity.
Operating expenses rose to $685.8 million from $614.1 million, with the increase concentrated in employee compensation and interest and dividend expense. Compensation and payroll taxes climbed to $208.4 million from $119.4 million.
First Full Year Under New CEO
The latest results are the first quarterly print fully under Aaron Simons, who took over as chief executive in mid-2025 from co-founder Douglas Cifu. Simons, a former Virtu CTO who joined the firm in 2008, oversaw the technology integrations that followed the KCG and ITG acquisitions before stepping into the top job.
Since the leadership transition, Virtu has continued to widen its product footprint, including a partnership with Swedish firm Limina on a post-trade platform aimed at T+1 settlement, and the addition of Scotte Moegling, a former Flow Traders and Citigroup executive, to lead digital asset business development.
The firm has also lent its name to newer ventures in the retail execution space. Earlier this year, Optimal Market, a FINRA-approved broker-dealer backed by Virtu and Optiver, said its US execution platform would become commercially available in Q1 2026, targeting brokers serving an active retail options audience.
Capital Returns and Balance Sheet
Virtu's board declared a quarterly cash dividend of $0.24 per share, payable on June 15 to shareholders of record as of June 1. The dividend has been held at that level for several years.
The company ended March with $1.03 billion in cash, cash equivalents and restricted cash, down from $1.13 billion at year-end. Long-term borrowings stood at $2.05 billion in aggregate principal.
Total assets rose to $25.1 billion from $20.2 billion at the end of 2025, reflecting higher trading assets and receivables as positions and balances expanded with activity.
