Intercontinental Exchange, Inc. (NYSE:ICE) Given Consensus Rating of “Moderate Buy” by Analysts

Intercontinental Exchange, Inc. (NYSE:ICE) has earned a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” from the fourteen ratings firms that are presently covering the company, Marketbeat.com reports. Two equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold recommendation, eleven have issued a buy recommendation and one has given a strong buy recommendation to the company. The average twelve-month target price among brokers that have covered the stock in the last year is $148.29.

A number of research analysts have commented on ICE shares. Barclays lowered their price target on Intercontinental Exchange from $155.00 to $150.00 and set an “overweight” rating for the company in a research report on Friday, May 3rd. Argus reaffirmed a “buy” rating and issued a $153.00 price target on shares of Intercontinental Exchange in a research note on Tuesday, May 21st. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods cut their price target on shares of Intercontinental Exchange from $156.00 to $155.00 and set an “outperform” rating on the stock in a report on Friday, May 3rd. Citigroup upped their price objective on shares of Intercontinental Exchange from $155.00 to $160.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a report on Thursday, April 4th. Finally, JPMorgan Chase & Co. lifted their target price on shares of Intercontinental Exchange from $147.00 to $151.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research note on Friday, May 3rd.

Intercontinental Exchange Stock Performance

NYSE:ICE opened at $137.39 on Thursday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.76, a quick ratio of 1.01 and a current ratio of 1.01. Intercontinental Exchange has a fifty-two week low of $104.49 and a fifty-two week high of $140.43. The firm has a market cap of $78.81 billion, a PE ratio of 31.51, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.56 and a beta of 1.06. The business has a 50 day moving average price of $134.14 and a 200-day moving average price of $132.51.

Intercontinental Exchange (NYSE:ICE) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, May 2nd. The financial services provider reported $1.48 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, hitting analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.48. The business had revenue of $2.29 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $2.31 billion. Intercontinental Exchange had a net margin of 24.24% and a return on equity of 12.76%. The company’s revenue was up 20.8% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter last year, the firm earned $1.41 EPS. Equities research analysts predict that Intercontinental Exchange will post 5.96 earnings per share for the current year.

Insider Buying and Selling at Intercontinental Exchange

In other news, CEO Jeffrey C. Sprecher sold 58,388 shares of the stock in a transaction on Wednesday, April 3rd. The stock was sold at an average price of $137.21, for a total value of $8,011,417.48. Following the sale, the chief executive officer now directly owns 1,179,895 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $161,893,392.95. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available at this hyperlink. In other news, CEO Jeffrey C. Sprecher sold 58,388 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, April 3rd. The shares were sold at an average price of $137.21, for a total transaction of $8,011,417.48. Following the sale, the chief executive officer now owns 1,179,895 shares in the company, valued at $161,893,392.95. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available at this link. Also, Director Judith A. Sprieser sold 2,267 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, May 28th. The stock was sold at an average price of $134.57, for a total transaction of $305,070.19. Following the completion of the transaction, the director now owns 28,849 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $3,882,209.93. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Over the last 90 days, insiders sold 60,996 shares of company stock worth $8,361,411. 1.10% of the stock is owned by insiders.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Intercontinental Exchange

Several institutional investors have recently modified their holdings of the business. Wellington Management Group LLP lifted its stake in Intercontinental Exchange by 219.8% during the 3rd quarter. Wellington Management Group LLP now owns 12,146,620 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $1,336,371,000 after acquiring an additional 8,348,126 shares during the period. Norges Bank purchased a new stake in Intercontinental Exchange in the fourth quarter worth approximately $839,259,000. Vanguard Group Inc. grew its position in Intercontinental Exchange by 7.5% in the 1st quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 50,776,525 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $6,978,218,000 after purchasing an additional 3,536,913 shares during the period. Capital World Investors raised its stake in Intercontinental Exchange by 35.6% during the 4th quarter. Capital World Investors now owns 9,643,762 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $1,238,559,000 after buying an additional 2,530,119 shares during the last quarter. Finally, DZ BANK AG Deutsche Zentral Genossenschafts Bank Frankfurt am Main lifted its holdings in shares of Intercontinental Exchange by 303.1% during the 4th quarter. DZ BANK AG Deutsche Zentral Genossenschafts Bank Frankfurt am Main now owns 2,381,314 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $305,832,000 after buying an additional 1,790,493 shares during the period. 89.30% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

About Intercontinental Exchange

Intercontinental Exchange, Inc, together with its subsidiaries, engages in the provision of market infrastructure, data services, and technology solutions for financial institutions, corporations, and government entities in the United States, the United Kingdom, the European Union, Singapore, India, Abu Dhabi, Israel, and Canada.