Keefe Bruyette & Woods Comments On BGC Partners After Reporting In-Line Earnings

BGC Partners BGCP 1Q11 EPS was in-line with ests and at the high end of guidance of $0.20-0.22 due to solid expense control as non-comp expenses declined QoQ even as revenue increased 14%. Mgmt raised the quarterly dividend to $0.17 from $0.14. Keefe Bruyette & Woods lowers ests on 2Q11 EPS guidance of $0.18-0.20 and maintains a $9 PT and Market Perform rating. Risks to the target price include: regulatory driven market structure changes, marked changed in OTC derivatives activity, unforeseen lawsuits, and interest rate increases further away than expected. BGCP is trading higher at $8.93