BlackRock Inc. Makes New Investment in Intercontinental Exchange Inc. $ICE

Key Points

• BlackRock acquired 50.7 million shares of Intercontinental Exchange in the second quarter, worth approximately $6.25 billion and representing a 9.04% stake. Institutional investors collectively own 89.3% of ICE.
• ICE reported quarterly earnings of $1.90 per share, exceeding the $1.84 analyst consensus, while revenue rose 4.8% year over year to $3.61 billion.
• Analyst sentiment remains positive, with a consensus “Moderate Buy” rating and an average price target of $183.33 versus the stock’s reported price of $154.62, despite some recent rating downgrades and insider selling.

BlackRock Inc. acquired a new stake in Intercontinental Exchange Inc. (NYSE:ICE - Free Report) in the 2nd quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The fund acquired 50,727,686 shares of the financial services provider's stock, valued at approximately $6,245,085,000. BlackRock Inc. owned about 9.04% of Intercontinental Exchange as of its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission.

Other institutional investors have also recently made changes to their positions in the company. ICONIQ Capital LLC increased its position in shares of Intercontinental Exchange by 2.2% in the second quarter. ICONIQ Capital LLC now owns 2,621 shares of the financial services provider's stock valued at $481,000 after acquiring an additional 56 shares during the period. Mission Wealth Management LP raised its stake in shares of Intercontinental Exchange by 2.4% during the fourth quarter. Mission Wealth Management LP now owns 2,611 shares of the financial services provider's stock valued at $423,000 after acquiring an additional 62 shares during the last quarter. Evergreen Capital Management LLC boosted its holdings in shares of Intercontinental Exchange by 1.5% during the fourth quarter. Evergreen Capital Management LLC now owns 4,207 shares of the financial services provider's stock worth $681,000 after purchasing an additional 63 shares during the period. Johnson Financial Group LLC boosted its holdings in shares of Intercontinental Exchange by 4.0% during the fourth quarter. Johnson Financial Group LLC now owns 1,710 shares of the financial services provider's stock worth $277,000 after purchasing an additional 65 shares during the period. Finally, Cornerstone Planning Group LLC grew its stake in shares of Intercontinental Exchange by 33.5% in the first quarter. Cornerstone Planning Group LLC now owns 271 shares of the financial services provider's stock worth $42,000 after purchasing an additional 68 shares during the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 89.30% of the company's stock.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other Intercontinental Exchange news, Director Sharon Bowen sold 667 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction on Friday, May 22nd. The stock was sold at an average price of $151.28, for a total transaction of $100,903.76. Following the completion of the transaction, the director owned 15,077 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $2,280,848.56. This trade represents a 4.24% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through this link. Also, Director William Jefferson Hague sold 1,333 shares of the business's stock in a transaction on Friday, June 12th. The shares were sold at an average price of $139.46, for a total transaction of $185,900.18. Following the sale, the director owned 20,132 shares in the company, valued at approximately $2,807,608.72. This trade represents a 6.21% decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale is available in the SEC filing. Insiders have sold 18,376 shares of company stock valued at $2,746,946 in the last 90 days. Corporate insiders own 0.84% of the company's stock.

Intercontinental Exchange Stock Down 0.1%

ICE stock opened at $154.62 on Tuesday. Intercontinental Exchange Inc. has a fifty-two week low of $121.79 and a fifty-two week high of $181.72. The company has a market capitalization of $86.80 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 21.84, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.52 and a beta of 0.92. The business's 50 day moving average price is $140.90 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $151.97. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.63, a quick ratio of 1.01 and a current ratio of 1.01.

Intercontinental Exchange (NYSE:ICE - Get Free Report) last released its earnings results on Thursday, July 30th. The financial services provider reported $1.90 EPS for the quarter, beating analysts' consensus estimates of $1.84 by $0.06. Intercontinental Exchange had a return on equity of 14.95% and a net margin of 30.08%.The company had revenue of $3.61 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $2.63 billion. During the same quarter last year, the business posted $1.81 EPS. The firm's revenue for the quarter was up 4.8% compared to the same quarter last year. As a group, analysts forecast that Intercontinental Exchange Inc. will post 8.1 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of research analysts recently issued reports on the company. Wall Street Zen downgraded Intercontinental Exchange from a "hold" rating to a "sell" rating in a report on Saturday, August 1st. TD Cowen reiterated a "buy" rating and issued a $177.00 price objective (up from $159.00) on shares of Intercontinental Exchange in a report on Friday, July 31st. Weiss Ratings lowered Intercontinental Exchange from a "hold (c+)" rating to a "hold (c)" rating in a research report on Tuesday, August 11th. UBS Group reissued a "buy" rating and set a $195.00 target price (up from $190.00) on shares of Intercontinental Exchange in a research note on Friday, July 31st. Finally, The Goldman Sachs Group decreased their target price on Intercontinental Exchange from $208.00 to $180.00 and set a "buy" rating for the company in a report on Tuesday, June 30th. One research analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, nine have assigned a Buy rating and two have issued a Hold rating to the company's stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the company has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus target price of $183.33.

Intercontinental Exchange Company Profile

Intercontinental Exchange NYSE: ICE is a global operator of exchanges, clearing houses and data services that provides infrastructure for the trading, clearing, settlement and information needs of financial and commodity markets. Founded in 2000 by Jeffrey C. Sprecher as an electronic energy trading platform, the company has grown through organic expansion and acquisitions to operate a broad portfolio of assets spanning listed equities, futures and options, fixed income, and over-the-counter derivatives.

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