Nippon Life Global Investors Americas Inc. Boosts Holdings in Intercontinental Exchange Inc. $ICE

Key Points

• Nippon Life Global Investors Americas Inc. increased its stake in Intercontinental Exchange by 11.1% in Q4, owning 102,480 shares valued at about $16.6 million after purchasing an additional 10,280 shares.
• Corporate insiders have been net sellers recently: the president and CFO sold shares on Feb. 19, and insiders sold a total of 348,418 shares worth $54.2 million over the past three months, leaving insiders with 0.84% ownership.
• Analysts are largely positive on ICE, with an average consensus rating of Buy and an average price target of $193.80, alongside several recent price-target increases and upgrades.

Nippon Life Global Investors Americas Inc. raised its stake in shares of Intercontinental Exchange Inc. (NYSE:ICE - Free Report) by 11.1% during the fourth quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 102,480 shares of the financial services provider's stock after purchasing an additional 10,280 shares during the quarter. Nippon Life Global Investors Americas Inc.'s holdings in Intercontinental Exchange were worth $16,598,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

A number of other hedge funds have also bought and sold shares of the stock. Aprio Wealth Management LLC increased its stake in Intercontinental Exchange by 122.8% during the 4th quarter. Aprio Wealth Management LLC now owns 5,378 shares of the financial services provider's stock valued at $871,000 after purchasing an additional 2,964 shares in the last quarter. Kestra Private Wealth Services LLC increased its stake in Intercontinental Exchange by 1.8% during the 4th quarter. Kestra Private Wealth Services LLC now owns 74,531 shares of the financial services provider's stock valued at $12,071,000 after purchasing an additional 1,347 shares in the last quarter. Pictet Asset Management Holding SA increased its stake in Intercontinental Exchange by 4.3% during the 4th quarter. Pictet Asset Management Holding SA now owns 379,839 shares of the financial services provider's stock valued at $61,529,000 after purchasing an additional 15,602 shares in the last quarter. Physician Wealth Advisors Inc. increased its stake in Intercontinental Exchange by 57.2% during the 4th quarter. Physician Wealth Advisors Inc. now owns 371 shares of the financial services provider's stock valued at $60,000 after purchasing an additional 135 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Atlas Legacy Advisors LLC increased its stake in Intercontinental Exchange by 4.0% during the 4th quarter. Atlas Legacy Advisors LLC now owns 3,726 shares of the financial services provider's stock valued at $603,000 after purchasing an additional 143 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 89.30% of the company's stock.

Insider Activity

In related news, President Benjamin Jackson sold 3,865 shares of the stock in a transaction on Thursday, February 19th. The shares were sold at an average price of $153.73, for a total transaction of $594,166.45. Following the sale, the president directly owned 165,304 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $25,412,183.92. This represents a 2.28% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available at this hyperlink. Also, CFO Warren Gardiner sold 2,490 shares of the stock in a transaction on Thursday, February 19th. The stock was sold at an average price of $154.00, for a total transaction of $383,460.00. Following the sale, the chief financial officer directly owned 27,679 shares in the company, valued at $4,262,566. This trade represents a 8.25% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The SEC filing for this sale provides additional information. Insiders sold a total of 348,418 shares of company stock valued at $54,196,631 in the last three months. Corporate insiders own 0.84% of the company's stock.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of brokerages have issued reports on ICE. UBS Group restated a "buy" rating and set a $200.00 price target on shares of Intercontinental Exchange in a research note on Monday, February 9th. TD Cowen reiterated a "buy" rating on shares of Intercontinental Exchange in a research note on Friday, February 6th. Weiss Ratings lowered shares of Intercontinental Exchange from a "buy (b)" rating to a "buy (b-)" rating in a research note on Friday. Barclays increased their price objective on shares of Intercontinental Exchange from $193.00 to $198.00 and gave the stock an "overweight" rating in a research note on Wednesday, April 8th. Finally, Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft upgraded shares of Intercontinental Exchange from a "hold" rating to a "buy" rating and set a $188.00 price objective on the stock in a research note on Friday, March 6th. One research analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, nine have issued a Buy rating and one has given a Hold rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the stock presently has an average rating of "Buy" and an average target price of $193.80.

Intercontinental Exchange Stock Performance

Shares of NYSE ICE opened at $158.62 on Monday. The company's fifty day moving average price is $159.96 and its 200 day moving average price is $160.05. Intercontinental Exchange Inc. has a 1 year low of $143.17 and a 1 year high of $189.35. The company has a market capitalization of $89.85 billion, a PE ratio of 27.49, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.65 and a beta of 1.03. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.64, a quick ratio of 1.02 and a current ratio of 1.02.

Intercontinental Exchange (NYSE:ICE - Get Free Report) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, February 5th. The financial services provider reported $1.71 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping analysts' consensus estimates of $1.67 by $0.04. Intercontinental Exchange had a net margin of 26.23% and a return on equity of 13.99%. The firm had revenue of $3.14 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $2.51 billion. During the same period in the prior year, the firm posted $1.52 earnings per share. The firm's quarterly revenue was up 7.8% compared to the same quarter last year. On average, research analysts predict that Intercontinental Exchange Inc. will post 8.06 earnings per share for the current year.

Intercontinental Exchange Dividend Announcement

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, December 31st. Investors of record on Wednesday, December 16th will be issued a dividend of $0.52 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Wednesday, December 16th. This represents a $2.08 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 1.3%. Intercontinental Exchange's dividend payout ratio is 36.05%.

Intercontinental Exchange Company 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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