Intercontinental Exchange Inc. $ICE Stock Holdings Lessened by William Blair Investment Management LLC

Key Points

• William Blair Investment Management cut its Intercontinental Exchange stake by 30.9% in the fourth quarter, selling 14,982 shares and leaving it with 33,546 shares worth about $5.43 million.
• Despite the trim, institutional ownership remains high at 89.3%, and several other investors increased their positions in ICE during the same period.
• ICE reported strong quarterly results, with EPS of $2.35 beating estimates and revenue rising 20.4% year over year, while analysts currently maintain a Buy consensus and a target price of $194.60.

William Blair Investment Management LLC lowered its stake in Intercontinental Exchange Inc. (NYSE:ICE - Free Report) by 30.9% during the 4th quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the SEC. The institutional investor owned 33,546 shares of the financial services provider's stock after selling 14,982 shares during the period. William Blair Investment Management LLC's holdings in Intercontinental Exchange were worth $5,433,000 as of its most recent filing with the SEC.

Several other institutional investors also recently modified their holdings of the stock. Prospera Financial Services Inc increased its holdings in shares of Intercontinental Exchange by 0.9% in the fourth quarter. Prospera Financial Services Inc now owns 12,083 shares of the financial services provider's stock valued at $1,957,000 after buying an additional 110 shares in the last quarter. Guinness Asset Management LTD increased its holdings in shares of Intercontinental Exchange by 19.0% in the fourth quarter. Guinness Asset Management LTD now owns 335,545 shares of the financial services provider's stock valued at $54,458,000 after buying an additional 53,495 shares in the last quarter. EverSource Wealth Advisors LLC grew its position in Intercontinental Exchange by 2.7% during the 4th quarter. EverSource Wealth Advisors LLC now owns 5,014 shares of the financial services provider's stock worth $812,000 after purchasing an additional 132 shares in the last quarter. Americana Partners LLC grew its position in Intercontinental Exchange by 20.4% during the 4th quarter. Americana Partners LLC now owns 3,548 shares of the financial services provider's stock worth $575,000 after purchasing an additional 600 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Lloyd Advisory Services LLC. purchased a new position in Intercontinental Exchange during the 4th quarter worth approximately $30,000. Institutional investors own 89.30% of the company's stock.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several research firms have weighed in on ICE. Barclays reiterated an "overweight" rating and set a $201.00 price objective (up from $198.00) on shares of Intercontinental Exchange in a research report on Friday, May 1st. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods began coverage on shares of Intercontinental Exchange in a research report on Wednesday, April 8th. They set an "outperform" rating and a $190.00 price objective on the stock. Wall Street Zen upgraded shares of Intercontinental Exchange from a "sell" rating to a "hold" rating in a research report on Saturday, February 7th. Weiss Ratings cut shares of Intercontinental Exchange from a "buy (b)" rating to a "buy (b-)" rating in a research report on Friday, April 24th. Finally, Morgan Stanley lifted their price objective on shares of Intercontinental Exchange from $183.00 to $187.00 and gave the stock an "equal weight" rating in a research report on Friday, April 10th. One analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, nine have given a Buy rating and one has assigned a Hold rating to the company's stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the stock currently has a consensus rating of "Buy" and a consensus target price of $194.60.

Insider Buying and Selling

In related news, General Counsel Andrew J. Surdykowski sold 4,571 shares of the company's stock in a transaction on Thursday, February 26th. The shares were sold at an average price of $162.00, for a total value of $740,502.00. Following the completion of the sale, the general counsel directly owned 48,181 shares in the company, valued at approximately $7,805,322. This represents a 8.67% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is accessible through this link. Also, CFO Warren Gardiner sold 2,490 shares of the company's stock in a transaction on Tuesday, May 19th. The stock was sold at an average price of $156.64, for a total transaction of $390,033.60. Following the completion of the sale, the chief financial officer owned 25,189 shares of the company's stock, valued at $3,945,604.96. This represents a 9.00% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale is available in the SEC filing. Over the last three months, insiders sold 11,332 shares of company stock worth $1,794,334. Corporate insiders own 0.84% of the company's stock.

Intercontinental Exchange Trading Down 1.3%

Intercontinental Exchange stock opened at $150.94 on Wednesday. The company's fifty day simple moving average is $158.06 and its 200-day simple moving average is $160.15. 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 Inc. has a 12 month low of $143.17 and a 12 month high of $189.35. The stock has a market cap of $85.36 billion, a P/E ratio of 21.97, a P/E/G ratio of 1.42 and a beta of 0.96.

Intercontinental Exchange (NYSE:ICE - Get Free Report) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, April 30th. The financial services provider reported $2.35 EPS for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $2.23 by $0.12. Intercontinental Exchange had a net margin of 30.06% and a return on equity of 14.99%. The business had revenue of $3.67 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $2.88 billion. During the same period in the previous year, the company posted $1.72 EPS. Intercontinental Exchange's revenue was up 20.4% on a year-over-year basis. As a group, sell-side analysts forecast that Intercontinental Exchange Inc. will post 8.15 EPS for the current fiscal year.

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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