Intercontinental Exchange Inc. $ICE Shares Bought by Mirae Asset Global Investments Co. Ltd.

Key Points

• Mirae Asset Global Investments raised its stake in Intercontinental Exchange by 12.7%, buying 11,645 shares to hold 103,096 shares worth about $16.7 million at quarter-end.
• ICE beat expectations for the quarter, reporting $1.71 EPS vs. $1.67 expected and revenue of $3.14 billion (up 7.8% year-over-year and above analyst estimates).
• Company insiders sold heavily last quarter — a total of 348,418 shares valued at about $54.2 million — while institutional investors own roughly 89.3% of the stock.

Mirae Asset Global Investments Co. Ltd. boosted its position in shares of Intercontinental Exchange Inc. (NYSE:ICE - Free Report) by 12.7% during the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the SEC. The firm owned 103,096 shares of the financial services provider's stock after buying an additional 11,645 shares during the quarter. Mirae Asset Global Investments Co. Ltd.'s holdings in Intercontinental Exchange were worth $16,697,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Several other hedge funds and other institutional investors also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Quadrant Private Wealth Management LLC grew its position in Intercontinental Exchange by 11.0% during the fourth quarter. Quadrant Private Wealth Management LLC now owns 1,539 shares of the financial services provider's stock valued at $249,000 after buying an additional 152 shares during the period. MBM Wealth Consultants LLC grew its position in Intercontinental Exchange by 2.1% during the fourth quarter. MBM Wealth Consultants LLC now owns 10,003 shares of the financial services provider's stock valued at $1,620,000 after buying an additional 210 shares during the period. Nicholson Wealth Management Group LLC grew its position in Intercontinental Exchange by 11.4% during the fourth quarter. Nicholson Wealth Management Group LLC now owns 10,847 shares of the financial services provider's stock valued at $1,757,000 after buying an additional 1,106 shares during the period. CWM LLC grew its position in Intercontinental Exchange by 40.9% during the fourth quarter. CWM LLC now owns 24,291 shares of the financial services provider's stock valued at $3,934,000 after buying an additional 7,047 shares during the period. Finally, Sather Financial Group Inc grew its position in Intercontinental Exchange by 4.7% during the fourth quarter. Sather Financial Group Inc now owns 1,440 shares of the financial services provider's stock valued at $233,000 after buying an additional 64 shares during the period. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 89.30% of the company's stock.

Intercontinental Exchange Stock Down 1.7%

Shares of NYSE ICE opened at $161.00 on Friday. The company's 50-day simple moving average is $159.84 and its 200-day simple moving average is $160.13. Intercontinental Exchange Inc. has a 52-week low of $143.17 and a 52-week high of $189.35. The firm has a market cap of $91.20 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 27.90, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.72 and a beta of 1.03. The company has a quick ratio of 1.02, a current ratio of 1.02 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.64.

Intercontinental Exchange (NYSE:ICE - Get Free Report) last announced its earnings results on Thursday, February 5th. The financial services provider reported $1.71 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $1.67 by $0.04. Intercontinental Exchange had a net margin of 26.23% and a return on equity of 13.99%. The business had revenue of $3.14 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $2.51 billion. During the same quarter last year, the business earned $1.52 earnings per share. The company's revenue for the quarter was up 7.8% compared to the same quarter last year. Equities analysts predict that Intercontinental Exchange Inc. will post 6.73 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Intercontinental Exchange Announces Dividend

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, December 31st. Stockholders of record on Wednesday, December 16th will be paid a $0.52 dividend. This represents a $2.08 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 1.3%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Wednesday, December 16th. Intercontinental Exchange's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 36.05%.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

ICE has been the topic of several analyst reports. Royal Bank Of Canada restated an "outperform" rating and set a $180.00 price target on shares of Intercontinental Exchange in a research report on Tuesday, January 6th. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft upgraded shares of Intercontinental Exchange from a "hold" rating to a "buy" rating and set a $188.00 target price on the stock in a research report on Friday, March 6th. UBS Group reiterated a "buy" rating and issued a $200.00 target price on shares of Intercontinental Exchange in a research report on Monday, February 9th. Raymond James Financial reiterated a "strong-buy" rating and issued a $211.00 target price on shares of Intercontinental Exchange in a research report on Tuesday, January 6th. Finally, Morgan Stanley lifted their target price on shares of Intercontinental Exchange from $183.00 to $187.00 and gave the company an "equal weight" rating in a research report on Friday, April 10th. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, nine have given a Buy rating and one has given a Hold rating to the company's stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the stock has a consensus rating of "Buy" and a consensus price target of $193.80.

Insider Transactions at Intercontinental Exchange

In other news, insider Lynn C. Martin sold 13,456 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction dated Friday, February 20th. The shares were sold at an average price of $153.86, for a total value of $2,070,340.16. Following the transaction, the insider directly owned 54,319 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $8,357,521.34. This trade represents a 19.85% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available at this link. Also, CTO Mayur Kapani sold 15,213 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, February 18th. The stock was sold at an average price of $155.02, for a total transaction of $2,358,319.26. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief technology officer directly owned 64,869 shares in the company, valued at approximately $10,055,992.38. This represents a 19.00% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The SEC filing for this sale provides additional information. In the last quarter, insiders sold 348,418 shares of company stock valued at $54,196,631. Company insiders own 0.84% of the company's stock.

Intercontinental Exchange 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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