Rockland Trust Co. Increases Stake in Intercontinental Exchange Inc. $ICE

Key Points

• Rockland Trust increased its Intercontinental Exchange stake by 4.2% in the third quarter, bringing its holdings to 180,092 shares valued at approximately $27.4 million. Institutional investors collectively own 89.3% of ICE.
• ICE reported quarterly earnings of $1.90 per share, beating analyst expectations of $1.84, while revenue reached $3.61 billion and rose 4.8% year over year.
• Analysts maintain a “Moderate Buy” consensus with an average price target of $181.77, although recent targets ranged from $159 to $218. ICE shares recently traded at $151.59.

Rockland Trust Co. raised its position in Intercontinental Exchange Inc. (NYSE:ICE - Free Report) by 4.2% during the third quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The firm owned 180,092 shares of the financial services provider's stock after acquiring an additional 7,262 shares during the quarter. Intercontinental Exchange makes up 1.0% of Rockland Trust Co.'s investment portfolio, making the stock its 25th largest position. Rockland Trust Co.'s holdings in Intercontinental Exchange were worth $27,379,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Several other large investors also recently modified their holdings of ICE. J. Stern & Co. LLP lifted its stake in Intercontinental Exchange by 17,398.1% in the fourth quarter. J. Stern & Co. LLP now owns 54,107,273 shares of the financial services provider's stock worth $8,763,214,000 after acquiring an additional 53,798,055 shares during the period. BlackRock Inc. bought a new position in Intercontinental Exchange in the 2nd quarter worth $6,245,085,000. State Street Corp lifted its position in shares of Intercontinental Exchange by 3.4% in the 4th quarter. State Street Corp now owns 25,653,952 shares of the financial services provider's stock worth $4,154,914,000 after purchasing an additional 837,208 shares during the period. Wellington Management Group LLP boosted its stake in shares of Intercontinental Exchange by 16.1% during the 2nd quarter. Wellington Management Group LLP now owns 11,812,273 shares of the financial services provider's stock valued at $1,454,209,000 after purchasing an additional 1,634,385 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Capital World Investors increased its position in shares of Intercontinental Exchange by 12.5% during the fourth quarter. Capital World Investors now owns 7,907,399 shares of the financial services provider's stock valued at $1,280,688,000 after buying an additional 878,435 shares during the period. 89.30% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

Intercontinental Exchange Stock Performance

Shares of NYSE:ICE traded up $1.44 during midday trading on Monday, reaching $151.59. 895,288 shares of the company's stock traded hands, compared to its average volume of 3,825,024. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.63, a quick ratio of 1.01 and a current ratio of 1.01. Intercontinental Exchange Inc. has a one year low of $121.79 and a one year high of $176.05. The company has a market cap of $85.10 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 21.40, a P/E/G ratio of 1.45 and a beta of 0.94. The stock has a 50 day moving average of $155.65 and a 200 day moving average of $150.91.

Intercontinental Exchange (NYSE:ICE - Get Free Report) last issued its earnings results on Thursday, July 30th. The financial services provider reported $1.90 earnings per share for the quarter, topping analysts' consensus estimates of $1.84 by $0.06. The business had revenue of $3.61 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $2.63 billion. Intercontinental Exchange had a return on equity of 14.95% and a net margin of 30.08%.Intercontinental Exchange's revenue was up 4.8% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter in the previous year, the firm earned $1.81 EPS. As a group, equities research analysts anticipate that Intercontinental Exchange Inc. will post 8.12 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Insider Activity

In related news, SVP Douglas Foley sold 7,300 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, August 5th. The shares were sold at an average price of $148.88, for a total transaction of $1,086,824.00. Following the transaction, the senior vice president owned 19,063 shares in the company, valued at $2,838,099.44. This represents a 27.69% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at the SEC website. Also, insider Christopher Edmonds sold 5,000 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, September 1st. The stock was sold at an average price of $160.59, for a total transaction of $802,950.00. Following the completion of the sale, the insider owned 14,367 shares in the company, valued at $2,307,196.53. This represents a 25.82% decrease in their position. The SEC filing for this sale provides additional information. Insiders sold 41,179 shares of company stock valued at $6,473,715 over the last three months. Corporate insiders own 0.84% of the company's stock.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several brokerages have commented on ICE. Morgan Stanley lowered their price objective on shares of Intercontinental Exchange from $187.00 to $163.00 and set an "equal weight" rating for the company in a report on Friday, July 10th. The Goldman Sachs Group decreased their target price on Intercontinental Exchange from $208.00 to $180.00 and set a "buy" rating for the company in a research report on Tuesday, June 30th. Rothschild & Co Redburn set a $177.00 price target on Intercontinental Exchange in a research note on Thursday, June 11th. Raymond James Financial reiterated a "strong-buy" rating and issued a $218.00 price objective on shares of Intercontinental Exchange in a report on Tuesday, September 1st. Finally, Wells Fargo & Company initiated coverage on Intercontinental Exchange in a research report on Friday. They set an "underweight" rating and a $159.00 price objective for the company. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, eight have given a Buy rating, three have given a Hold rating and one has given a Sell rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat, the company has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average price target of $181.77.

About Intercontinental Exchange

Intercontinental Exchange, Inc NYSE: ICE operates global exchanges, clearinghouses, data services and technology platforms. The company provides marketplaces and infrastructure that support the trading, clearing and management of risk across financial and commodity markets.

Its businesses include the New York Stock Exchange, ICE Futures exchanges and ICE Clear clearinghouses. ICE offers trading and clearing services for equities, equity options, interest rates, currencies, energy, agricultural commodities, metals and other contracts.

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