Intercontinental Exchange (NYSE:ICE) Sets New 1-Year High – What’s Next?

Shares of Intercontinental Exchange, Inc. (NYSE:ICE) reached a new 52-week high on Monday . The stock traded as high as $173.74 and last traded at $173.76, with a volume of 131394 shares. The stock had previously closed at $173.23.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several equities research analysts have recently issued reports on the stock. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods lifted their price objective on shares of Intercontinental Exchange from $178.00 to $186.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a research report on Friday, February 7th. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft lifted their price target on shares of Intercontinental Exchange from $160.00 to $163.00 and gave the company a “hold” rating in a report on Monday, November 11th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. dropped their price objective on shares of Intercontinental Exchange from $190.00 to $189.00 and set an “overweight” rating for the company in a report on Friday, January 17th. UBS Group lifted their target price on Intercontinental Exchange from $185.00 to $195.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a report on Friday, February 7th. Finally, Barclays boosted their target price on Intercontinental Exchange from $179.00 to $189.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research report on Friday, February 7th. Three investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and thirteen have assigned a buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the stock has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $178.80.

Intercontinental Exchange Stock Up 1.1 %

The company has a current ratio of 0.99, a quick ratio of 0.99 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.63. The firm has a market cap of $98.69 billion, a PE ratio of 35.94, a P/E/G ratio of 2.10 and a beta of 1.11. The business’s 50-day simple moving average is $158.26 and its 200 day simple moving average is $159.03.

Intercontinental Exchange (NYSE:ICE) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, February 6th. The financial services provider reported $1.52 earnings per share for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.53 by ($0.01). Intercontinental Exchange had a net margin of 23.42% and a return on equity of 12.95%. As a group, equities research analysts expect that Intercontinental Exchange, Inc. will post 6.73 earnings per share for the current year.

Intercontinental Exchange Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, December 31st. Investors of record on Tuesday, December 16th will be given a dividend of $0.48 per share. This represents a $1.92 annualized dividend and a yield of 1.12%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Tuesday, December 16th. Intercontinental Exchange’s dividend payout ratio is currently 40.17%.

Insider Buying and Selling at Intercontinental Exchange

In related news, General Counsel Andrew J. Surdykowski sold 955 shares of Intercontinental Exchange stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, December 10th. The stock was sold at an average price of $156.08, for a total transaction of $149,056.40. Following the completion of the transaction, the general counsel now directly owns 44,702 shares in the company, valued at approximately $6,977,088.16. This trade represents a 2.09 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. Also, President Benjamin Jackson sold 7,900 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, February 26th. The stock was sold at an average price of $171.43, for a total value of $1,354,297.00. Following the completion of the sale, the president now owns 147,274 shares in the company, valued at approximately $25,247,181.82. This represents a 5.09 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last quarter, insiders have sold 68,268 shares of company stock worth $11,262,789. 1.10% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Intercontinental Exchange

A number of hedge funds have recently bought and sold shares of ICE. Norges Bank acquired a new position in shares of Intercontinental Exchange during the 4th quarter worth approximately $1,196,258,000. Royal Bank of Canada increased its holdings in Intercontinental Exchange by 132.9% in the 4th quarter. Royal Bank of Canada now owns 9,121,352 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $1,359,173,000 after acquiring an additional 5,204,309 shares in the last quarter. Kovitz Investment Group Partners LLC grew its position in shares of Intercontinental Exchange by 423.8% in the fourth quarter. Kovitz Investment Group Partners LLC now owns 4,546,437 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $677,465,000 after purchasing an additional 3,678,384 shares during the period. Janus Henderson Group PLC increased its stake in shares of Intercontinental Exchange by 326.3% during the third quarter. Janus Henderson Group PLC now owns 4,520,639 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $726,196,000 after purchasing an additional 3,460,096 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Raymond James Financial Inc. purchased a new stake in shares of Intercontinental Exchange during the fourth quarter worth about $406,728,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 89.30% of the company’s stock.

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.