Intercontinental Exchange Inc. (NYSE:ICE) Receives Consensus Recommendation of "Moderate Buy" from Analysts

Key Points

• Analysts rate Intercontinental Exchange “Moderate Buy”: Nine analysts recommend buying the stock, one strongly recommends it, and two rate it a hold. The average 12-month price target is $183.33, above the reported $151.97 share price.
• Recent earnings exceeded expectations: ICE reported quarterly EPS of $1.90 versus the $1.84 consensus estimate, while revenue reached $3.61 billion and increased 4.8% year over year.
• Institutional ownership remains high, but insiders have been selling: Institutional investors and hedge funds own 89.3% of the company, while insiders sold 13,425 shares worth approximately $2.05 million over the past 90 days.

Shares of Intercontinental Exchange Inc. (NYSE:ICE - Get Free Report) have been assigned a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" from the twelve brokerages that are presently covering the firm, MarketBeat reports. Two equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, nine have given a buy rating and one has given a strong buy rating to the company. The average twelve-month price target among analysts that have issued a report on the stock in the last year is $183.3333.

Several brokerages have recently issued reports on ICE. Morgan Stanley decreased their price objective on Intercontinental Exchange from $187.00 to $163.00 and set an "equal weight" rating for the company in a report on Friday, July 10th. Rothschild & Co Redburn set a $177.00 target price on Intercontinental Exchange in a report on Thursday, June 11th. Wall Street Zen cut Intercontinental Exchange from a "hold" rating to a "sell" rating in a research report on Saturday. The Goldman Sachs Group decreased their price target on Intercontinental Exchange from $208.00 to $180.00 and set a "buy" rating for the company in a report on Tuesday, June 30th. Finally, UBS Group restated a "buy" rating and issued a $195.00 price objective (up from $190.00) on shares of Intercontinental Exchange in a research report on Friday.

Intercontinental Exchange Trading Down 0.3%

Shares of Intercontinental Exchange stock opened at $151.97 on Tuesday. The stock has a market cap of $85.32 billion, a PE ratio of 21.47, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.86 and a beta of 0.92. The firm has a fifty day moving average price of $139.46 and a 200 day moving average price of $153.50. Intercontinental Exchange has a 1 year low of $121.79 and a 1 year high of $189.35. 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 (NYSE:ICE - Get Free Report) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, July 30th. The financial services provider reported $1.90 EPS for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $1.84 by $0.06. The company had revenue of $3.61 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $2.63 billion. Intercontinental Exchange had a net margin of 30.08% and a return on equity of 14.95%. The firm's revenue was up 4.8% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period in the prior year, the company earned $1.81 earnings per share. Equities research analysts predict that Intercontinental Exchange will post 7.98 earnings per share for the current year.

Insider Transactions at Intercontinental Exchange

In other Intercontinental Exchange news, CTO Mayur Kapani sold 4,271 shares of Intercontinental Exchange stock in a transaction on Thursday, May 14th. The shares were sold at an average price of $155.42, for a total value of $663,798.82. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief technology officer owned 64,869 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $10,081,939.98. The trade was a 6.18% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this link. Also, Director William Jefferson Hague sold 1,333 shares of the company's stock in a transaction dated Friday, June 12th. The stock was sold at an average price of $139.46, for a total transaction of $185,900.18. Following the completion of the transaction, the director owned 20,132 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $2,807,608.72. This trade represents a 6.21% decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale is available in the SEC filing. Over the last 90 days, insiders sold 13,425 shares of company stock worth $2,046,324. Insiders own 0.84% of the company's stock.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Intercontinental Exchange

Institutional investors have recently modified their holdings of the business. Phillips Financial Management LLC acquired a new position in Intercontinental Exchange in the 2nd quarter worth about $214,000. Pecaut & CO. purchased a new position in Intercontinental Exchange during the second quarter worth approximately $2,024,000. Summit Global Investments acquired a new stake in Intercontinental Exchange in the second quarter valued at approximately $1,226,000. Oppenheimer Asset Management Inc. acquired a new stake in Intercontinental Exchange in the second quarter valued at approximately $14,177,000. Finally, Mill Capital Management LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Intercontinental Exchange in the second quarter valued at approximately $19,294,000. 89.30% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

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.

This instant news alert was generated by narrative science technology and financial data from MarketBeat in order to provide readers with the fastest reporting and unbiased coverage. Please send any questions or comments about this story to contact@marketbeat.com.