Shares of Interactive Brokers (IBKR +1.08%) popped 45.6% in 2025, according to data from S&P Global Market Intelligence. The technology-focused investing brokerage is gaining customers much faster than the competition, leading to rising revenues and profits. With its custom-built automated systems, the company has some of the highest profit margins in the world.
Interactive Brokers was a fast riser in 2025, but is it a buy today?
NASDAQ: IBKR
Key Data Points
New customers, record margins
Stock investing is becoming more popular globally, as well as focused on mobile devices. Both trends are a rising tide that has enabled Interactive Brokers to gain more customers for its investing brokerage while also taking market share in deposits from the competition.
In December, Interactive Brokers had 4.4 million active client accounts, which was up 32% year-over-year. More clients mean more deposits and more trading activity across stocks, bonds, options, and commodities around the world, which means more revenue opportunities for the company. In the third quarter, revenue grew 21% year-over-year to $1.655 billion.
Most impressive is Interactive Brokers' margin expansion. Pre-tax profit margin was 79% last quarter, which is better than virtually every single operating business in the world, even Visa and Mastercard. This extreme efficiency, combined with strong growth, is why Interactive Brokers' stock experienced significant gains in 2025.
Image source: Getty Images.
Time to buy Interactive Brokers stock?
After its recent rise, Interactive Brokers now trades at a price-to-earnings ratio (P/E) of 34. This is a premium valuation, especially when you consider that we are in a raging bull market for stocks. When stock trading activity rises, so does revenue for Interactive Brokers. In a down market, it will face a revenue headwind even if it keeps gaining market share (at least temporarily).
Overall, Interactive Brokers and its 4.4 million active clients can probably keep growing over the next decade. This will help grow its earnings power and lower this P/E ratio. The stock trades at a reasonable price when considering its growth potential, but it is not a slam-dunk buy for investors today.
