Merit Financial Group LLC Purchases New Holdings in Intercontinental Exchange, Inc. (NYSE:ICE)

Merit Financial Group LLC acquired a new position in shares of Intercontinental Exchange, Inc. (NYSE:ICE) in the fourth quarter, Holdings Channel reports. The fund acquired 1,731 shares of the financial services provider’s stock, valued at approximately $222,000.

Other hedge funds and other institutional investors also recently modified their holdings of the company. Commonwealth Equity Services LLC lifted its stake in shares of Intercontinental Exchange by 4.3% in the 3rd quarter. Commonwealth Equity Services LLC now owns 41,212 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $4,534,000 after acquiring an additional 1,716 shares during the period. Mirae Asset Global Investments Co. Ltd. boosted its holdings in Intercontinental Exchange by 3.4% in the 3rd quarter. Mirae Asset Global Investments Co. Ltd. now owns 134,409 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $14,788,000 after purchasing an additional 4,405 shares in the last quarter. Chicago Partners Investment Group LLC increased its position in Intercontinental Exchange by 17.2% during the 3rd quarter. Chicago Partners Investment Group LLC now owns 2,421 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $261,000 after purchasing an additional 356 shares during the period. Oregon Public Employees Retirement Fund raised its stake in shares of Intercontinental Exchange by 1.4% during the 3rd quarter. Oregon Public Employees Retirement Fund now owns 44,219 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $4,865,000 after buying an additional 600 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Whittier Trust Co. lifted its holdings in shares of Intercontinental Exchange by 3.9% in the 3rd quarter. Whittier Trust Co. now owns 5,113 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $563,000 after buying an additional 194 shares during the period. 89.30% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Intercontinental Exchange Stock Up 1.2 %

Shares of ICE opened at $134.95 on Friday. The firm has a market cap of $77.41 billion, a PE ratio of 30.95, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.14 and a beta of 1.02. The company has a quick ratio of 1.01, a current ratio of 1.01 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.76. The company’s fifty day moving average is $134.67 and its two-hundred day moving average is $126.40. Intercontinental Exchange, Inc. has a fifty-two week low of $103.81 and a fifty-two week high of $140.43.

Intercontinental Exchange (NYSE:ICE) last released its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, May 2nd. The financial services provider reported $1.48 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, hitting the consensus estimate of $1.48. The company had revenue of $2.29 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $2.31 billion. Intercontinental Exchange had a net margin of 24.24% and a return on equity of 12.76%. Intercontinental Exchange’s revenue for the quarter was up 20.8% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period in the previous year, the firm earned $1.41 earnings per share. Analysts forecast that Intercontinental Exchange, Inc. will post 5.95 earnings per share for the current year.

Intercontinental Exchange Announces Dividend

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, June 28th. Stockholders of record on Thursday, June 13th will be given a $0.45 dividend. This represents a $1.80 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 1.33%. The ex-dividend date is Thursday, June 13th. Intercontinental Exchange’s payout ratio is 41.28%.

Analyst Ratings Changes

ICE has been the topic of a number of recent analyst reports. Barclays dropped their price objective on Intercontinental Exchange from $155.00 to $150.00 and set an “overweight” rating on the stock in a report on Friday, May 3rd. Rosenblatt Securities reiterated a “buy” rating and issued a $164.00 price target on shares of Intercontinental Exchange in a report on Friday, May 3rd. StockNews.com downgraded shares of Intercontinental Exchange from a “hold” rating to a “sell” rating in a report on Friday, May 3rd. Citigroup increased their target price on shares of Intercontinental Exchange from $155.00 to $160.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a report on Thursday, April 4th. Finally, Morgan Stanley lifted their price target on shares of Intercontinental Exchange from $139.00 to $142.00 and gave the company an “equal weight” rating in a research report on Tuesday, April 9th. One analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, two have issued a hold rating, ten have given a buy rating and one has assigned a strong buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the stock has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $147.92.

Insider Activity

In related news, General Counsel Andrew J. Surdykowski sold 341 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, April 26th. The stock was sold at an average price of $131.74, for a total transaction of $44,923.34. Following the transaction, the general counsel now directly owns 48,713 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $6,417,450.62. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this hyperlink. In related news, CFO Warren Gardiner sold 2,176 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated Monday, February 12th. The stock was sold at an average price of $136.00, for a total value of $295,936.00. Following the transaction, the chief financial officer now owns 12,061 shares in the company, valued at $1,640,296. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available at this hyperlink. Also, General Counsel Andrew J. Surdykowski sold 341 shares of the stock in a transaction on Friday, April 26th. The shares were sold at an average price of $131.74, for a total transaction of $44,923.34. Following the transaction, the general counsel now owns 48,713 shares in the company, valued at $6,417,450.62. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Over the last quarter, insiders sold 152,867 shares of company stock worth $20,843,598. 1.10% of the stock is currently owned by corporate insiders.

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.