Intercontinental Exchange Inc. $ICE Shares Purchased by Ascent Wealth Partners LLC

Key Points

• Ascent Wealth Partners LLC boosted its stake in Intercontinental Exchange by 40.1% in Q4 to 32,528 shares, valued at about $5.27 million.
• CEO Jeffrey C. Sprecher sold 150,000 shares for roughly $23.25 million (an 8.33% reduction in his holding), part of insider sales totaling 348,418 shares valued at about $54.2 million over the past three months.
• ICE beat Q1 expectations with adjusted EPS of $2.35 and revenue of $3.67 billion (up 20.4% YoY), and the board approved an 8% higher quarterly dividend of $0.52 per share.

Ascent Wealth Partners LLC boosted its stake in Intercontinental Exchange Inc. (NYSE:ICE - Free Report) by 40.1% during the 4th quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The firm owned 32,528 shares of the financial services provider's stock after buying an additional 9,308 shares during the period. Ascent Wealth Partners LLC's holdings in Intercontinental Exchange were worth $5,268,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Other large investors have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Ares Financial Consulting LLC acquired a new stake in Intercontinental Exchange in the fourth quarter worth $25,000. Holos Integrated Wealth LLC acquired a new stake in Intercontinental Exchange in the fourth quarter worth $28,000. Steph & Co. increased its position in Intercontinental Exchange by 104.7% in the fourth quarter. Steph & Co. now owns 174 shares of the financial services provider's stock worth $28,000 after buying an additional 89 shares during the period. Dorato Capital Management acquired a new stake in Intercontinental Exchange in the fourth quarter worth $29,000. Finally, Caitlin John LLC bought a new position in shares of Intercontinental Exchange in the third quarter worth $32,000. 89.30% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Insider Buying and Selling at Intercontinental Exchange

In related news, CEO Jeffrey C. Sprecher sold 150,000 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, February 18th. The stock was sold at an average price of $155.00, for a total transaction of $23,250,000.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief executive officer owned 1,651,705 shares of the company's stock, valued at $256,014,275. This trade represents a 8.33% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available through the SEC website. Also, 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 $8,357,521.34. This represents a 19.85% decrease in their position. Additional details regarding this sale are available in the official SEC disclosure. Over the last three months, insiders have sold 348,418 shares of company stock valued at $54,196,631. Corporate insiders own 0.84% of the company's stock.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several research analysts have recently issued reports on the company. Royal Bank Of Canada reissued an "outperform" rating and issued a $180.00 price target on shares of Intercontinental Exchange in a research note on Tuesday, January 6th. TD Cowen reissued a "buy" rating on shares of Intercontinental Exchange in a research note on Friday, February 6th. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods assumed coverage on Intercontinental Exchange in a research note on Wednesday, April 8th. They issued an "outperform" rating and a $190.00 price target for the company. Wall Street Zen raised Intercontinental Exchange from a "sell" rating to a "hold" rating in a research note on Saturday, February 7th. Finally, Raymond James Financial reissued a "strong-buy" rating and issued a $211.00 price target on shares of Intercontinental Exchange in a research note on Tuesday, January 6th. One analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, nine have issued a Buy rating and one has issued a Hold rating to the company's stock. According to MarketBeat, the stock currently has an average rating of "Buy" and a consensus price target of $194.10.

Intercontinental Exchange Trading Up 0.2%

Shares of ICE stock opened at $155.04 on Monday. The stock has a 50-day simple moving average of $160.21 and a 200 day simple moving average of $160.01. Intercontinental Exchange Inc. has a fifty-two week low of $143.17 and a fifty-two week high of $189.35. The stock has a market capitalization of $87.82 billion, a P/E ratio of 22.57, a P/E/G ratio of 1.60 and a beta of 0.96. The company has a quick ratio of 1.01, a current ratio of 1.01 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.63.

Intercontinental Exchange (NYSE:ICE - Get Free Report) last announced its earnings results on Thursday, April 30th. The financial services provider reported $2.35 earnings per share for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $2.23 by $0.12. Intercontinental Exchange had a return on equity of 14.99% and a net margin of 30.06%.The business had revenue of $3.67 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $2.88 billion. During the same quarter last year, the business posted $1.72 earnings per share. The company's quarterly revenue was up 20.4% on a year-over-year basis. On average, sell-side analysts expect that Intercontinental Exchange Inc. will post 8.11 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Intercontinental Exchange Announces Dividend

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, December 31st. Investors of record on Wednesday, December 16th will be paid a dividend of $0.52 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Wednesday, December 16th. This represents a $2.08 annualized dividend and a yield of 1.3%. Intercontinental Exchange's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 30.28%.

Intercontinental Exchange News Roundup

Here are the key news stories impacting Intercontinental Exchange this week:

• Positive Sentiment: Q1 results beat expectations — ICE reported record revenue and profit with adjusted EPS of $2.35 and revenue well above estimates, driven by broad-based strength across businesses. ICE Q1 deep dive: Record revenue growth and strategic innovation drive Q1 2026 results
• Positive Sentiment: Transaction revenues jumped (notably in mortgage services) and energy trading also boosted the quarter — mortgage unit volumes and transaction revenue surged, helping drive the year‑over‑year revenue increase. ICE sees transaction revenue surge in mortgage unit
• Positive Sentiment: Board approved an 8% higher quarterly cash dividend ($0.52), supporting income-focused holders and signaling management confidence in cash flow. Intercontinental Exchange Approves Second-Quarter Dividend of $0.52 per Share
• Neutral Sentiment: Analyst and media takes: several outlets parsed the earnings and whether ICE remains a buy — coverage mixes valuation, growth outlook and index‑weight implications for passive flows. Is Intercontinental Exchange Stock Worth Watching Right Now
• Neutral Sentiment: Earnings call materials and transcripts are available for details on forward guidance, product launches and margin drivers — useful for investors doing deeper diligence. Intercontinental Exchange, Inc. Q1 2026 Earnings Call Summary
• Negative Sentiment: Near-term selling pressure / technicals: the stock pulled back below its 50- and 200-day moving averages on lighter-than-average volume, suggesting profit-taking and short-term momentum weakness despite the fundamentals (this dynamic helps explain today’s decline).

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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