J. Stern & Co. LLP Buys 53,798,055 Shares of Intercontinental Exchange Inc. $ICE

J. Stern & Co. LLP lifted its holdings in Intercontinental Exchange Inc. (NYSE:ICE - Free Report) by 17,398.1% in the 4th quarter, according to its most recent filing with the SEC. The firm owned 54,107,273 shares of the financial services provider's stock after purchasing an additional 53,798,055 shares during the period. Intercontinental Exchange comprises 2.7% of J. Stern & Co. LLP's holdings, making the stock its 13th biggest position. J. Stern & Co. LLP owned 9.53% of Intercontinental Exchange worth $8,763,214,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Several other hedge funds have also recently modified their holdings of ICE. Ares Financial Consulting LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Intercontinental Exchange in the 4th quarter worth approximately $25,000. Holos Integrated Wealth LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Intercontinental Exchange in the 4th quarter worth approximately $28,000. Steph & Co. lifted its position in shares of Intercontinental Exchange by 104.7% in the 4th quarter. Steph & Co. now owns 174 shares of the financial services provider's stock worth $28,000 after purchasing an additional 89 shares during the period. Brooklands Fund Management Ltd purchased a new stake in shares of Intercontinental Exchange in the 4th quarter worth approximately $28,000. Finally, Swiss RE Ltd. purchased a new stake in shares of Intercontinental Exchange in the 4th quarter worth approximately $28,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 89.30% of the company's stock.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several brokerages have recently weighed in on ICE. Weiss Ratings cut shares of Intercontinental Exchange from a "buy (b-)" rating to a "hold (c+)" rating in a research report on Tuesday, June 2nd. UBS Group reaffirmed a "buy" rating and issued a $205.00 price target on shares of Intercontinental Exchange in a research report on Wednesday, May 20th. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods began coverage on shares of Intercontinental Exchange in a research report on Wednesday, April 8th. They issued an "outperform" rating and a $190.00 price target for the company. Morgan Stanley upped their price target 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. Finally, Rothschild & Co Redburn set a $177.00 price target on shares of Intercontinental Exchange in a research report on Thursday, June 11th. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, eight have given a Buy rating and two have issued a Hold rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, Intercontinental Exchange has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average price target of $193.00.

Insider Activity at Intercontinental Exchange

In related news, Director William Jefferson Hague sold 1,333 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred 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 completion of the sale, the director owned 20,132 shares of the company's stock, valued at $2,807,608.72. This represents a 6.21% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available at this link. Also, CTO Mayur Kapani sold 4,271 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, May 14th. The shares were sold at an average price of $155.42, for a total transaction of $663,798.82. Following the sale, the chief technology officer directly owned 64,869 shares of the company's stock, valued at $10,081,939.98. The trade was a 6.18% decrease in their position. Additional details regarding this sale are available in the official SEC disclosure. Insiders have sold a total of 13,425 shares of company stock valued at $2,046,324 over the last three months. Company insiders own 0.84% of the company's stock.

Intercontinental Exchange Trading Up 0.6%

NYSE:ICE opened at $140.95 on Wednesday. Intercontinental Exchange Inc. has a 52 week low of $136.67 and a 52 week high of $189.35. The firm has a 50 day moving average of $153.32 and a 200 day moving average of $159.10. The company has a quick ratio of 1.01, a current ratio of 1.01 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.63. The stock has a market capitalization of $79.71 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 20.52, a PEG ratio of 1.34 and a beta of 0.92.

Intercontinental Exchange (NYSE:ICE - Get Free Report) last posted its earnings results on Thursday, April 30th. The financial services provider reported $2.35 EPS for the quarter, beating analysts' consensus estimates of $2.23 by $0.12. Intercontinental Exchange had a net margin of 30.06% and a return on equity of 14.99%. The company had revenue of $3.67 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $2.88 billion. During the same quarter in the prior year, the company posted $1.72 earnings per share. Intercontinental Exchange's revenue for the quarter was up 20.4% compared to the same quarter last year. As a group, sell-side analysts anticipate that Intercontinental Exchange Inc. will post 8.16 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

About Intercontinental Exchange

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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