It’s been a phenomenal run for investors holding shares of AI chipmaker Nvidia (NVDA +1.67%). The company has enjoyed an unprecedented demand boom, helping its stock soar last year and rise even more in 2026.
But what happens if this demand boom goes through a period of consolidation as the market for AI data centers matures? When supply catches up, or if hyperscalers pull back on their massive capital expenditures, Nvidia’s pricing power could erode — and margin compression could follow.
That’s why, when I look out over the next decade, I’m drawn to a very different kind of growth stock — one with persistent market share gains, a structural low-cost advantage, and arguably less cyclical risk to its long-term profit margins.
That stock is Interactive Brokers (IBKR +2.94%) — and believe it or not, it actually outperformed Nvidia last year and is posting returns far ahead of the AI chipmaker this year as well.
Here is why I think this electronic brokerage firm could outperform Nvidia over the next 10 years.
Image source: Getty Images.
A low-cost operator taking market share
Interactive Brokers’ recent business momentum is staggering.
In 2025, the company saw its total client accounts grow by an impressive 32%. And that momentum seems to be carrying into 2026. Earlier this month, the company reported its March metrics, revealing that its daily average revenue trades (DARTs) jumped 25% year over year to 4.33 million.
But what really makes Interactive Brokers special is its highly automated, low-cost operating model.
In its fourth quarter of 2025, the company posted an impressive 79% pre-tax margin. Because the platform is heavily automated, it doesn’t need to drastically scale its expenses when trading volumes or account sign-ups surge. This provides the company with exceptional operating leverage: when revenue rises sharply, a large share of it flows directly to the bottom line.
Further, because Interactive Brokers is already the low-cost operator in its industry, it arguably faces far less risk of margin compression over time than a hardware manufacturer like Nvidia. For Nvidia, maintaining its sky-high gross margin of around 75% requires staying years ahead of well-funded competitors. Interactive Brokers’ margins, on the other hand, are the result of decades of software iteration and automation, which allows the company to grow while still maintaining a reputation as a low-cost broker that offers incredible value, including some of the lowest margin rates in the industry.
A new regulatory tailwind
And there could be even more growth on the horizon.
Just this month, the SEC approved a Financial Industry Regulatory Authority (FINRA) proposal to eliminate the $25,000 minimum equity requirement for pattern day traders, which had been in place since 2001.
As an electronic brokerage favored by active traders, Interactive Brokers is uniquely positioned to benefit from this regulatory shift, as it would remove friction for some retail traders with smaller accounts and could help provide a tailwind to DARTs growth.
Valuation check
Of course, you have to consider what the stock is already pricing in.
As of this writing, Interactive Brokers trades at a price-to-earnings ratio of about 37. A valuation like this prices in consistent, strong double-digit growth in customer accounts and revenue. But that is exactly what the company has been delivering for shareholders.
Interactive Brokers Group
Today’s Change
(2.94%) $2.33
Current Price
$81.71
Key Data Points
Market Cap
$35B
Day’s Range
$80.89 – $82.87
52wk Range
$38.10 – $82.88
Volume
205K
Avg Vol
5.1M
Gross Margin
95.08%
Dividend Yield
0.39%
Sure, there are some key risks.
First, Interactive Brokers’ earnings could face near-term pressure if interest rates fall, as part of the company’s business model is to earn significant net interest income on client cash and margin balances — a model that works better when the Federal Reserve has interest rates set higher. But lower rates could also spur more trading activity and margin borrowing, offsetting some of the pressure that could ensue if the Fed cuts rates further.
Second, any major decline in the stock market could hurt Interactive Brokers because it would likely not only adversely affect trading activity but also client equity balances.
Ultimately, however, I think Interactive Brokers offers investors a more enduring growth story than Nvidia, since the company’s model is built on competitive pricing and interest rates rather than premium pricing — and I wouldn’t be surprised if this low-cost operator quietly outperforms it over the next decade.
