Intercontinental Exchange Inc. $ICE Stock Position Increased by Advisors Preferred LLC

Advisors Preferred LLC boosted its position in shares of Intercontinental Exchange Inc. (NYSE:ICE) by 284.5% in the 3rd quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 43,645 shares of the financial services provider’s stock after buying an additional 32,295 shares during the quarter. Intercontinental Exchange accounts for approximately 1.0% of Advisors Preferred LLC’s investment portfolio, making the stock its 23rd largest position. Advisors Preferred LLC’s holdings in Intercontinental Exchange were worth $7,098,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Other hedge funds have also recently bought and sold shares of the company. Lansforsakringar Fondforvaltning AB publ boosted its position in shares of Intercontinental Exchange by 4.9% during the 3rd quarter. Lansforsakringar Fondforvaltning AB publ now owns 180,698 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $30,444,000 after purchasing an additional 8,446 shares in the last quarter. Tredje AP fonden lifted its stake in Intercontinental Exchange by 28.8% during the third quarter. Tredje AP fonden now owns 223,390 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $37,637,000 after purchasing an additional 50,000 shares during the last quarter. Raiffeisen Bank International AG boosted its holdings in Intercontinental Exchange by 61.1% during the third quarter. Raiffeisen Bank International AG now owns 9,490 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $1,594,000 after buying an additional 3,600 shares in the last quarter. AMG National Trust Bank grew its position in Intercontinental Exchange by 4.6% in the third quarter. AMG National Trust Bank now owns 4,076 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $687,000 after buying an additional 178 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Lion Street Advisors LLC bought a new position in shares of Intercontinental Exchange in the third quarter valued at $327,000. 89.30% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Intercontinental Exchange Stock Down 0.1%

Intercontinental Exchange stock opened at $154.00 on Friday. The firm has a market cap of $87.45 billion, a PE ratio of 26.69, a P/E/G ratio of 1.60 and a beta of 1.02. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.64, a quick ratio of 1.02 and a current ratio of 1.02. The firm’s 50 day moving average price is $164.58 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $164.38. Intercontinental Exchange Inc. has a twelve month low of $143.17 and a twelve month high of $189.35.

Intercontinental Exchange (NYSE:ICE) last issued its earnings results on Thursday, February 5th. The financial services provider reported $1.71 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.67 by $0.04. Intercontinental Exchange had a net margin of 26.23% and a return on equity of 13.99%. The company had revenue of $3.14 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $2.51 billion. During the same quarter last year, the business posted $1.52 EPS. The company’s revenue for the quarter was up 7.8% on a year-over-year basis. On average, research analysts predict that Intercontinental Exchange Inc. will post 6.73 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Intercontinental Exchange Dividend Announcement

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, December 31st. Shareholders of record on Wednesday, December 16th will be given a $0.52 dividend. This represents a $2.08 annualized dividend and a yield of 1.4%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Wednesday, December 16th. Intercontinental Exchange’s dividend payout ratio is presently 33.28%.

Insider Buying and Selling

In related news, CEO Jeffrey C. Sprecher sold 150,000 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, February 18th. The shares were sold at an average price of $155.00, for a total transaction of $23,250,000.00. Following the transaction, the chief executive officer owned 1,651,705 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $256,014,275. This trade represents a 8.33% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through the SEC website. Also, CTO Mayur Kapani sold 15,213 shares of Intercontinental Exchange stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, February 18th. The shares were sold at an average price of $155.02, for a total transaction of $2,358,319.26. Following the completion of the sale, the chief technology officer owned 64,869 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $10,055,992.38. This trade represents a 19.00% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The SEC filing for this sale provides additional information. Over the last 90 days, insiders sold 341,036 shares of company stock worth $53,068,762. Insiders own 1.00% of the company’s stock.

Key Headlines Impacting Intercontinental Exchange

Here are the key news stories impacting Intercontinental Exchange this week:

• Positive Sentiment: Kraken integration — Kraken has integrated with ICE Chat to expand institutional OTC crypto access, which advances ICE’s push into crypto infrastructure and could boost trading/data volumes over time. Kraken Integrates with ICE Chat
• Positive Sentiment: Fundamentals & analyst support — ICE recently reported an EPS beat and revenue above expectations, continues to pay a quarterly dividend, and retains a mostly positive analyst consensus/price targets, providing fundamental support under the stock. MarketBeat Coverage
• Neutral Sentiment: Pune office lease — ICE’s India arm leased space for a global capability center in Pune (commercial real estate move that supports operations expansion but is not material to near-term earnings). ICE leases Pune GCC space
• Neutral Sentiment: Small institutional flows — Recent filings show many small, new institutional stakes; institutional ownership remains high (~89%), but recent buys/sells cited are immaterial at scale. Institutional activity
• Negative Sentiment: Large CEO selling — CEO Jeffrey C. Sprecher sold significant blocks of shares (reported filings show ~150,000 and ~129,937-share dispositions around Feb 18). Large CEO sales are the most likely proximate cause of today’s negative sentiment. CEO SEC filing
• Negative Sentiment: CTO sale — CTO Mayur Kapani sold 15,213 shares (~$2.36M) on Feb 18, a ~19% reduction in his holding. CTO SEC filing
• Negative Sentiment: Other executive selling — Additional insider sales reported: President Benjamin Jackson (3,865 sh), CFO Warren Gardiner (2,490 sh), and insider Christopher Scott Edmonds (11,303 sh). These clustered sales amplify negative investor perception even though executives retain sizable holdings. President SEC filing CFO SEC filing Insider Edmonds SEC filing

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several equities research analysts have recently weighed in on the company. Royal Bank Of Canada reissued an “outperform” rating and set a $180.00 price objective on shares of Intercontinental Exchange in a research note on Tuesday, January 6th. Morgan Stanley set a $183.00 price target on Intercontinental Exchange and gave the company an “equal weight” rating in a research report on Tuesday, February 10th. UBS Group reissued a “buy” rating and issued a $200.00 price target on shares of Intercontinental Exchange in a research note on Monday, February 9th. Wall Street Zen raised shares of Intercontinental Exchange from a “sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Saturday, February 7th. Finally, Raymond James Financial reiterated a “strong-buy” rating and issued a $211.00 target price on shares of Intercontinental Exchange in a report on Tuesday, January 6th. One analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, nine have assigned a Buy rating and one has assigned a Hold rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the company has an average rating of “Buy” and a consensus target price of $195.40.

Intercontinental Exchange 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.