Intercontinental Exchange (NYSE:ICE) Reaches New 1-Year High - Should You Buy?

Key Points

• Intercontinental Exchange (ICE) reached a new 52-week high of $188.59 during recent trading, with a current consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" from analysts and a target price of around $194.92.
• The company reported earnings of $1.81 per share, exceeding analyst expectations, and achieved a revenue of $3.26 billion, showcasing a year-over-year growth of 9.8%.
• ICE announced a quarterly dividend of $0.48 per share, representing an annual yield of 1.0%, with a payout ratio of 36.85% of earnings.

Shares of Intercontinental Exchange Inc. (NYSE:ICE - Get Free Report) hit a new 52-week high on Tuesday . The stock traded as high as $188.59 and last traded at $188.52, with a volume of 3777288 shares trading hands. The stock had previously closed at $184.60.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of equities analysts recently commented on the company. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods lifted their price objective on Intercontinental Exchange from $183.00 to $189.00 and gave the stock an "outperform" rating in a research note on Friday, May 2nd. Piper Sandler boosted their price target on shares of Intercontinental Exchange from $180.00 to $202.00 and gave the stock an "overweight" rating in a research report on Tuesday, July 15th. UBS Group upped their price objective on shares of Intercontinental Exchange from $195.00 to $210.00 and gave the company a "buy" rating in a research note on Tuesday, July 8th. Barclays lifted their target price on shares of Intercontinental Exchange from $206.00 to $212.00 and gave the stock an "overweight" rating in a research note on Friday, August 1st. Finally, Morgan Stanley upped their price target on shares of Intercontinental Exchange from $181.00 to $192.00 and gave the company an "equal weight" rating in a research report on Monday, May 5th. Three research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and ten have issued a buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat, Intercontinental Exchange has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus target price of $194.92.

Intercontinental Exchange Stock Performance

The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.61, a quick ratio of 1.01 and a current ratio of 1.01. The company's 50 day moving average price is $181.53 and its 200-day moving average price is $172.29. The stock has a market cap of $107.64 billion, a P/E ratio of 36.09, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.23 and a beta of 1.11.

Intercontinental Exchange (NYSE:ICE - Get Free Report) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, July 31st. The financial services provider reported $1.81 EPS for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $1.77 by $0.04. Intercontinental Exchange had a net margin of 23.92% and a return on equity of 13.66%. The firm had revenue of $3.26 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $2.50 billion. During the same quarter last year, the business posted $1.52 EPS. The company's revenue for the quarter was up 9.8% on a year-over-year basis. Equities analysts forecast that Intercontinental Exchange Inc. will post 6.73 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Intercontinental Exchange Dividend Announcement

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, September 30th. Investors of record on Tuesday, September 16th will be issued a $0.48 dividend. This represents a $1.92 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 1.0%. Intercontinental Exchange's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 36.85%.

Insider Buying and Selling

In related news, SVP Douglas Foley sold 1,600 shares of the company's stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, June 12th. The stock was sold at an average price of $177.48, for a total value of $283,968.00. Following the transaction, the senior vice president owned 27,313 shares in the company, valued at approximately $4,847,511.24. This represents a 5.53% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this link. Also, Director Sharon Bowen sold 795 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction on Tuesday, July 1st. The stock was sold at an average price of $183.30, for a total value of $145,723.50. Following the completion of the sale, the director directly owned 15,000 shares of the company's stock, valued at $2,749,500. This represents a 5.03% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders sold 226,913 shares of company stock worth $40,671,107 in the last ninety days. Corporate insiders own 1.00% of the company's stock.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Institutional investors and hedge funds have recently made changes to their positions in the company. Princeton Global Asset Management LLC bought a new position in Intercontinental Exchange in the 2nd quarter worth about $28,000. Tsfg LLC lifted its holdings in shares of Intercontinental Exchange by 187.3% in the first quarter. Tsfg LLC now owns 158 shares of the financial services provider's stock worth $27,000 after buying an additional 103 shares in the last quarter. Westside Investment Management Inc. purchased a new stake in shares of Intercontinental Exchange in the second quarter worth about $29,000. Activest Wealth Management boosted its position in shares of Intercontinental Exchange by 4,050.0% in the first quarter. Activest Wealth Management now owns 166 shares of the financial services provider's stock valued at $29,000 after acquiring an additional 162 shares during the period. Finally, Rakuten Securities Inc. grew its stake in Intercontinental Exchange by 595.8% during the first quarter. Rakuten Securities Inc. now owns 167 shares of the financial services provider's stock valued at $29,000 after acquiring an additional 143 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors own 89.30% of the company's stock.

Intercontinental Exchange Company Profile

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.