Illinois Municipal Retirement Fund Acquires 4,428 Shares of Intercontinental Exchange, Inc. (NYSE:ICE)

Illinois Municipal Retirement Fund boosted its holdings in Intercontinental Exchange, Inc. (NYSE:ICE) by 30.4% during the fourth quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The fund owned 19,012 shares of the financial services provider’s stock after acquiring an additional 4,428 shares during the quarter. Illinois Municipal Retirement Fund’s holdings in Intercontinental Exchange were worth $2,442,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Other institutional investors have also added to or reduced their stakes in the company. OFI Invest Asset Management bought a new position in Intercontinental Exchange in the 3rd quarter worth about $25,000. Jones Financial Companies Lllp bought a new position in Intercontinental Exchange in the 3rd quarter worth about $26,000. Fortitude Family Office LLC bought a new position in Intercontinental Exchange in the 4th quarter worth about $28,000. BKM Wealth Management LLC bought a new position in Intercontinental Exchange in the 4th quarter worth about $31,000. Finally, Rakuten Securities Inc. bought a new position in shares of Intercontinental Exchange during the 4th quarter valued at about $39,000. 89.30% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Insider Transactions at Intercontinental Exchange

In other news, major shareholder Intercontinental Exchange, Inc bought 2,762,009 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Monday, March 4th. The stock was purchased at an average price of $0.87 per share, with a total value of $2,402,947.83. Following the transaction, the insider now owns 7,476,345 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $6,504,420.15. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available through this hyperlink. In related news, President Benjamin Jackson sold 27,970 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, February 13th. The stock was sold at an average price of $134.74, for a total transaction of $3,768,677.80. Following the completion of the transaction, the president now owns 138,487 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $18,659,738.38. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through this link. Also, major shareholder Intercontinental Exchange, Inc acquired 2,762,009 shares of Intercontinental Exchange stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, March 4th. The shares were bought at an average cost of $0.87 per share, with a total value of $2,402,947.83. Following the transaction, the insider now owns 7,476,345 shares in the company, valued at $6,504,420.15. The disclosure for this purchase can be found here. In the last quarter, insiders sold 157,491 shares of company stock valued at $21,454,204. Corporate insiders own 1.10% of the company’s stock.

Intercontinental Exchange Trading Down 0.6 %

Shares of ICE stock opened at $131.81 on Friday. Intercontinental Exchange, Inc. has a 1-year low of $103.81 and a 1-year high of $140.43. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.80, a current ratio of 1.00 and a quick ratio of 1.00. The business has a 50-day moving average of $135.97 and a 200 day moving average of $125.05. The stock has a market capitalization of $75.48 billion, a PE ratio of 31.38, a P/E/G ratio of 2.17 and a beta of 1.02.

Intercontinental Exchange (NYSE:ICE) last released its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, February 8th. The financial services provider reported $1.33 earnings per share for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $1.29 by $0.04. Intercontinental Exchange had a return on equity of 12.91% and a net margin of 23.91%. The business had revenue of $2.20 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $2.20 billion. During the same quarter last year, the business posted $1.25 EPS. The business’s revenue was up 24.5% on a year-over-year basis. As a group, sell-side analysts anticipate that Intercontinental Exchange, Inc. will post 5.97 earnings per share for the current year.

Intercontinental Exchange Increases Dividend

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, March 29th. Stockholders of record on Friday, March 15th were given a $0.45 dividend. The ex-dividend date was Thursday, March 14th. This represents a $1.80 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 1.37%. This is a positive change from Intercontinental Exchange’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.42. Intercontinental Exchange’s dividend payout ratio is currently 42.86%.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

ICE has been the topic of several recent research reports. JPMorgan Chase & Co. increased their price objective on Intercontinental Exchange from $142.00 to $151.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research report on Friday, February 9th. Bank of America reduced their price objective on Intercontinental Exchange from $156.00 to $153.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a research report on Friday, April 19th. Rosenblatt Securities increased their price objective on Intercontinental Exchange from $154.00 to $164.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research report on Friday, February 9th. Raymond James increased their price objective on Intercontinental Exchange from $135.00 to $145.00 and gave the company a “strong-buy” rating in a research report on Friday, January 5th. Finally, Keefe, Bruyette & Woods reiterated an “outperform” rating and set a $152.00 price objective on shares of Intercontinental Exchange in a research report on Thursday, April 4th. Three investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, ten have assigned a buy rating and one has given a strong buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat.com, the company currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $148.08.

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.