Principal Financial Group Inc. Purchases 10,178 Shares of Intercontinental Exchange Inc. $ICE

Key Points

• Principal Financial Group raised its stake in Intercontinental Exchange (NYSE:ICE) by 1.6%, buying 10,178 shares to hold 639,431 shares worth about $103.56 million (≈0.11% of the company).
• ICE beat quarterly expectations, reporting $2.35 EPS vs. $2.23 expected and $3.67 billion in revenue vs. $2.88 billion expected, with revenue up 20.4% year-over-year; analysts' consensus is a "Buy" with a $194.10 target.
• Notable insider selling: insiders sold 343,696 shares (≈$53.4 million) in the past 90 days, while institutional investors own 89.30% of the stock and insiders hold 0.84%.

Principal Financial Group Inc. increased its position in shares of Intercontinental Exchange Inc. (NYSE:ICE - Free Report) by 1.6% in the fourth quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The fund owned 639,431 shares of the financial services provider's stock after buying an additional 10,178 shares during the period. Principal Financial Group Inc. owned 0.11% of Intercontinental Exchange worth $103,562,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

A number of other institutional investors and hedge funds have also recently modified their holdings of ICE. Ares Financial Consulting LLC bought a new position in shares of Intercontinental Exchange during the 4th quarter worth about $25,000. Dorato Capital Management bought a new position in Intercontinental Exchange in the fourth quarter worth approximately $29,000. Steph & Co. grew its stake in Intercontinental Exchange by 104.7% in the fourth quarter. Steph & Co. now owns 174 shares of the financial services provider's stock valued at $28,000 after acquiring an additional 89 shares during the period. Holos Integrated Wealth LLC bought a new stake in shares of Intercontinental Exchange during the fourth quarter valued at approximately $28,000. Finally, Caitlin John LLC bought a new stake in shares of Intercontinental Exchange during the third quarter valued at approximately $32,000. 89.30% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Intercontinental Exchange Trading Down 1.1%

Shares of ICE stock opened at $153.57 on Thursday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.63, a quick ratio of 1.01 and a current ratio of 1.01. The company has a market capitalization of $86.84 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 22.35, a PEG ratio of 1.43 and a beta of 0.96. Intercontinental Exchange Inc. has a 52-week low of $143.17 and a 52-week high of $189.35. The company has a 50-day simple moving average of $160.23 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $159.99.

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, topping the consensus estimate of $2.23 by $0.12. The firm had revenue of $3.67 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $2.88 billion. Intercontinental Exchange had a net margin of 30.06% and a return on equity of 14.99%. The company's quarterly revenue was up 20.4% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter last year, the firm earned $1.72 EPS. Research analysts anticipate that Intercontinental Exchange Inc. will post 8.16 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of brokerages recently issued reports on ICE. UBS Group reiterated a "buy" rating and issued a $200.00 target price on shares of Intercontinental Exchange in a report on Monday, February 9th. Morgan Stanley lifted their price objective on shares of Intercontinental Exchange from $183.00 to $187.00 and gave the company an "equal weight" rating in a report on Friday, April 10th. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft upgraded shares of Intercontinental Exchange from a "hold" rating to a "buy" rating and set a $188.00 price objective for the company in a report on Friday, March 6th. Wall Street Zen upgraded shares of Intercontinental Exchange from a "sell" rating to a "hold" rating in a report on Saturday, February 7th. Finally, TD Cowen reiterated a "buy" rating on shares of Intercontinental Exchange in a research note on Friday, February 6th. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, nine have assigned a Buy rating and one has given a Hold rating to the company's stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the company has an average rating of "Buy" and a consensus target price of $194.10.

Insider Buying and Selling at Intercontinental Exchange

In other news, General Counsel Andrew J. Surdykowski sold 4,571 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction on Thursday, February 26th. The stock was sold at an average price of $162.00, for a total transaction of $740,502.00. Following the completion of the sale, the general counsel directly owned 48,181 shares of the company's stock, valued at $7,805,322. This trade represents a 8.67% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available through the SEC website. Also, President Benjamin Jackson sold 3,865 shares of the business's stock in a transaction dated Thursday, February 19th. The stock was sold at an average price of $153.73, for a total transaction of $594,166.45. Following the completion of the transaction, the president directly owned 165,304 shares in the company, valued at $25,412,183.92. This trade represents a 2.28% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The SEC filing for this sale provides additional information. Insiders sold a total of 343,696 shares of company stock valued at $53,397,715 in the last ninety days. 0.84% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

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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