Intercontinental Exchange (NYSE:ICE) Sets New 12-Month High – Still a Buy?

Intercontinental Exchange, Inc. (NYSE:ICE) reached a new 52-week high during mid-day trading on Thursday . The company traded as high as $175.67 and last traded at $175.50, with a volume of 674783 shares changing hands. The stock had previously closed at $173.69.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of analysts have recently issued reports on ICE shares. JPMorgan Chase & Co. lowered their price objective on shares of Intercontinental Exchange from $190.00 to $189.00 and set an “overweight” rating on the stock in a report on Friday, January 17th. Barclays lifted their price objective on shares of Intercontinental Exchange from $179.00 to $189.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a report on Friday, February 7th. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods lifted their price objective on shares of Intercontinental Exchange from $178.00 to $186.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a report on Friday, February 7th. UBS Group raised their target price on shares of Intercontinental Exchange from $185.00 to $195.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research note on Friday, February 7th. Finally, Royal Bank of Canada reissued an “outperform” rating and issued a $200.00 target price on shares of Intercontinental Exchange in a research note on Tuesday, January 7th. Three investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and thirteen have issued a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat, Intercontinental Exchange presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $178.80.

Intercontinental Exchange Stock Up 1.1 %

The firm’s fifty day moving average price is $163.08 and its 200-day moving average price is $159.89. The company has a market capitalization of $100.94 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 36.74, a P/E/G ratio of 2.10 and a beta of 1.08. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.63, a current ratio of 0.99 and a quick ratio of 0.99.

Intercontinental Exchange (NYSE:ICE) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, February 6th. The financial services provider reported $1.52 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $1.53 by ($0.01). Intercontinental Exchange had a return on equity of 12.95% and a net margin of 23.42%. Sell-side analysts expect that Intercontinental Exchange, Inc. will post 6.73 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Intercontinental Exchange Dividend Announcement

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, December 31st. Stockholders of record on Tuesday, December 16th will be issued a dividend of $0.48 per share. The ex-dividend date is Tuesday, December 16th. This represents a $1.92 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 1.09%. Intercontinental Exchange’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 40.17%.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other Intercontinental Exchange news, insider Christopher Scott Edmonds sold 601 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on Wednesday, January 15th. The shares were sold at an average price of $147.73, for a total transaction of $88,785.73. Following the sale, the insider now owns 12,922 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $1,908,967.06. This represents a 4.44 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. Also, insider Lynn C. Martin sold 4,155 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Thursday, February 6th. The shares were sold at an average price of $165.60, for a total transaction of $688,068.00. Following the transaction, the insider now owns 57,376 shares in the company, valued at $9,501,465.60. This represents a 6.75 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders have sold a total of 66,563 shares of company stock valued at $10,998,990 over the last 90 days. 1.10% of the stock is owned by insiders.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Intercontinental Exchange

Institutional investors have recently made changes to their positions in the stock. Wealth Enhancement Advisory Services LLC raised its holdings in shares of Intercontinental Exchange by 1.1% during the fourth quarter. Wealth Enhancement Advisory Services LLC now owns 35,151 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $5,647,000 after purchasing an additional 366 shares during the period. Kestra Private Wealth Services LLC raised its holdings in shares of Intercontinental Exchange by 6.9% in the 4th quarter. Kestra Private Wealth Services LLC now owns 73,970 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $11,022,000 after acquiring an additional 4,787 shares during the last quarter. M&T Bank Corp raised its holdings in shares of Intercontinental Exchange by 33.2% in the 3rd quarter. M&T Bank Corp now owns 46,689 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $7,500,000 after acquiring an additional 11,648 shares during the last quarter. Avantra Family Wealth Inc. acquired a new stake in shares of Intercontinental Exchange in the 4th quarter worth about $702,000. Finally, Dixon Mitchell Investment Counsel Inc. raised its holdings in shares of Intercontinental Exchange by 9.2% in the 4th quarter. Dixon Mitchell Investment Counsel Inc. now owns 728,133 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $108,515,000 after acquiring an additional 61,110 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 89.30% of the company’s stock.

Intercontinental Exchange Company Profile

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.