LGT Capital Partners LTD. Boosts Position in Intercontinental Exchange Inc. $ICE

Key Points

• LGT Capital Partners LTD. increased its stake in Intercontinental Exchange by 12.5% in Q4, adding 26,925 shares to reach 243,138 shares valued at about $39.4 million.
• Wall Street sentiment remains generally positive: analysts’ consensus is a Moderate Buy, with an average price target of $194.60 despite a recent downgrade by Weiss Ratings.
• Intercontinental Exchange reported a strong quarter, with EPS of $2.35 beating estimates and revenue of $3.67 billion, up 20.4% year over year.

LGT Capital Partners LTD. grew its stake in Intercontinental Exchange Inc. (NYSE:ICE - Free Report) by 12.5% in the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 243,138 shares of the financial services provider's stock after buying an additional 26,925 shares during the quarter. Intercontinental Exchange makes up 2.0% of LGT Capital Partners LTD.'s portfolio, making the stock its 20th biggest holding. LGT Capital Partners LTD.'s holdings in Intercontinental Exchange were worth $39,379,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission.

Other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also bought and sold shares of the company. Ares Financial Consulting LLC purchased a new stake in Intercontinental Exchange in the fourth quarter worth about $25,000. Dorato Capital Management purchased a new stake in Intercontinental Exchange in the fourth quarter worth about $29,000. 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 in the last quarter. Holos Integrated Wealth LLC purchased a new stake in Intercontinental Exchange in the fourth quarter worth about $28,000. Finally, Lloyd Advisory Services LLC. purchased a new stake in Intercontinental Exchange in the fourth quarter worth about $30,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 89.30% of the company's stock.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of analysts have commented on the company. Morgan Stanley upped their price target on Intercontinental Exchange from $183.00 to $187.00 and gave the stock an "equal weight" rating in a research report on Friday, April 10th. Weiss Ratings cut Intercontinental Exchange from a "buy (b-)" rating to a "hold (c+)" rating in a research report on Tuesday, June 2nd. Barclays restated an "overweight" rating and issued a $201.00 price target (up from $198.00) on shares of Intercontinental Exchange in a research report on Friday, May 1st. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft upgraded Intercontinental Exchange from a "hold" rating to a "buy" rating and set a $188.00 price target for the company in a research report on Friday, March 6th. Finally, UBS Group restated a "buy" rating and issued a $205.00 price target on shares of Intercontinental Exchange in a research report on Wednesday, May 20th. One analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, eight have given a Buy rating and two have assigned a Hold rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the company presently has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average price target of $194.60.

Intercontinental Exchange Stock Performance

NYSE ICE opened at $138.89 on Tuesday. The stock has a market capitalization of $78.54 billion, a PE ratio of 20.22, a P/E/G ratio of 1.36 and a beta of 0.92. The business has a 50 day simple moving average of $155.49 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $159.68. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.63, a current ratio of 1.01 and a quick ratio of 1.01. Intercontinental Exchange Inc. has a 1-year low of $136.67 and a 1-year high of $189.35.

Intercontinental Exchange (NYSE:ICE - Get Free Report) last released its quarterly 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. The business had revenue of $3.67 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $2.88 billion. Intercontinental Exchange had a return on equity of 14.99% and a net margin of 30.06%.The firm's revenue for the quarter was up 20.4% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter last year, the business posted $1.72 EPS. On average, research analysts predict that Intercontinental Exchange Inc. will post 8.16 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Insider Transactions at Intercontinental Exchange

In other Intercontinental Exchange news, CFO Warren Gardiner sold 2,490 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction that occurred 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 transaction, the chief financial officer owned 25,189 shares in the company, valued at $3,945,604.96. This trade represents a 9.00% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available through this link. Also, Director Sharon Bowen sold 667 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, May 22nd. The shares were sold at an average price of $151.28, for a total value of $100,903.76. Following the transaction, the director owned 15,077 shares of the company's stock, valued at $2,280,848.56. This represents a 4.24% decrease in their position. The SEC filing for this sale provides additional information. Over the last 90 days, insiders have sold 12,001 shares of company stock worth $1,847,820. 0.84% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

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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