Intercontinental Exchange, Inc. (NYSE:ICE) Shares Sold by Westwood Holdings Group Inc.

Westwood Holdings Group Inc. decreased its stake in shares of Intercontinental Exchange, Inc. (NYSE:ICE - Free Report) by 9.8% in the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the SEC. The fund owned 48,769 shares of the financial services provider's stock after selling 5,306 shares during the quarter. Westwood Holdings Group Inc.'s holdings in Intercontinental Exchange were worth $7,267,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

A number of other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also recently modified their holdings of the stock. Sierra Ocean LLC purchased a new stake in Intercontinental Exchange during the fourth quarter valued at $25,000. Redwood Park Advisors LLC purchased a new stake in Intercontinental Exchange during the fourth quarter valued at $33,000. Lee Danner & Bass Inc. purchased a new stake in Intercontinental Exchange during the fourth quarter valued at $34,000. BankPlus Trust Department purchased a new stake in Intercontinental Exchange during the fourth quarter valued at $40,000. Finally, Kapitalo Investimentos Ltda purchased a new stake in Intercontinental Exchange during the fourth quarter valued at $44,000. Institutional investors own 89.30% of the company's stock.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other news, President Benjamin Jackson sold 7,900 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, February 26th. The shares were sold at an average price of $171.43, for a total value of $1,354,297.00. Following the sale, the president now directly owns 147,274 shares in the company, valued at approximately $25,247,181.82. This trade represents a 5.09% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this hyperlink. Also, Director Judith A. Sprieser sold 2,630 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, April 16th. The shares were sold at an average price of $159.00, for a total transaction of $418,170.00. Following the completion of the sale, the director now owns 21,364 shares in the company, valued at $3,396,876. This represents a 10.96% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders have sold a total of 11,082 shares of company stock worth $1,868,802 in the last three months. Corporate insiders own 1.00% of the company's stock.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several brokerages have recently weighed in on ICE. UBS Group increased their target price on shares of Intercontinental Exchange from $185.00 to $195.00 and gave the company a "buy" rating in a research note on Friday, February 7th. Wall Street Zen raised shares of Intercontinental Exchange from a "sell" rating to a "hold" rating in a research note on Monday, February 10th. Barclays increased their target price on shares of Intercontinental Exchange from $189.00 to $198.00 and gave the company an "overweight" rating in a research note on Friday, May 2nd. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods increased their target price on shares of Intercontinental Exchange from $183.00 to $189.00 and gave the company an "outperform" rating in a research note on Friday, May 2nd. Finally, Bank of America reduced their target price on shares of Intercontinental Exchange from $237.00 to $230.00 and set a "buy" rating on the stock in a research note on Wednesday, April 2nd. Three investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and eleven have issued a buy rating to the company's stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the stock currently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus target price of $188.46.

Intercontinental Exchange Stock Up 1.3%

Intercontinental Exchange stock traded up $2.27 during midday trading on Friday, hitting $176.27. 2,248,069 shares of the company's stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 3,006,613. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.63, a quick ratio of 0.99 and a current ratio of 0.99. Intercontinental Exchange, Inc. has a 12 month low of $131.79 and a 12 month high of $179.44. The firm has a 50-day moving average of $167.76 and a two-hundred day moving average of $161.91. The company has a market cap of $101.11 billion, a PE ratio of 36.88, a P/E/G ratio of 2.10 and a beta of 1.12.

Intercontinental Exchange (NYSE:ICE - Get Free Report) last issued its earnings results on Thursday, May 1st. The financial services provider reported $1.72 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $1.70 by $0.02. Intercontinental Exchange had a net margin of 23.42% and a return on equity of 12.95%. The company had revenue of $2.47 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $2.44 billion. During the same period in the prior year, the business earned $1.48 EPS. The firm's quarterly revenue was up 8.0% on a year-over-year basis. As a group, analysts expect that Intercontinental Exchange, Inc. will post 6.73 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Intercontinental Exchange Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, June 30th. Shareholders of record on Friday, June 13th will be issued a dividend of $0.48 per share. This represents a $1.92 annualized dividend and a yield of 1.09%. Intercontinental Exchange's payout ratio is 39.75%.

About Intercontinental Exchange

Intercontinental Exchange, Inc, together with its subsidiaries, engages in the provision of market infrastructure, data services, and technology solutions for financial institutions, corporations, and government entities in the United States, the United Kingdom, the European Union, Singapore, India, Abu Dhabi, Israel, and Canada.