Intercontinental Exchange Inc. (ICE) to Issue Quarterly Dividend of $0.52 on March 31st

Intercontinental Exchange Inc. (NYSE:ICE) declared a quarterly dividend on Thursday, February 5th. Shareholders of record on Tuesday, March 17th will be paid a dividend of 0.52 per share by the financial services provider on Tuesday, March 31st. This represents a c) dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 1.2%. The ex-dividend date is Tuesday, March 17th. This is a 8.3% increase from Intercontinental Exchange’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.48.

Intercontinental Exchange has raised its dividend by an average of 0.1%per year over the last three years and has raised its dividend every year for the last 9 years. Intercontinental Exchange has a payout ratio of 25.1% indicating that its dividend is sufficiently covered by earnings. Equities analysts expect Intercontinental Exchange to earn $7.52 per share next year, which means the company should continue to be able to cover its $1.92 annual dividend with an expected future payout ratio of 25.5%.

Intercontinental Exchange Trading Up 0.5%

NYSE ICE opened at $169.12 on Friday. The business’s fifty day moving average is $165.19 and its 200-day moving average is $166.51. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.64, a current ratio of 1.02 and a quick ratio of 1.01. The stock has a market capitalization of $96.43 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 29.31, a PEG ratio of 2.04 and a beta of 1.02. Intercontinental Exchange has a one year low of $143.17 and a one year high of $189.35.

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

Insider Activity

In related news, General Counsel Andrew J. Surdykowski sold 2,081 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, November 11th. The stock was sold at an average price of $151.00, for a total transaction of $314,231.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the general counsel directly owned 44,212 shares in the company, valued at $6,676,012. The trade was a 4.50% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this hyperlink. Also, SVP Douglas Foley sold 1,600 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Friday, December 12th. The stock was sold at an average price of $163.20, for a total value of $261,120.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the senior vice president owned 24,196 shares in the company, valued at $3,948,787.20. This represents a 6.20% decrease in their ownership of the stock. Additional details regarding this sale are available in the official SEC disclosure. Over the last three months, insiders sold 166,068 shares of company stock worth $25,470,702. Company insiders own 1.00% of the company’s stock.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Intercontinental Exchange

A number of hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently modified their holdings of the company. Ares Financial Consulting LLC purchased a new stake in Intercontinental Exchange during the 4th quarter valued at about $25,000. Princeton Global Asset Management LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Intercontinental Exchange during the second quarter valued at approximately $28,000. Holos Integrated Wealth LLC bought a new position in shares of Intercontinental Exchange in the fourth quarter worth approximately $28,000. Steph & Co. increased its stake in shares of Intercontinental Exchange by 104.7% in the fourth quarter. Steph & Co. now owns 174 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $28,000 after buying an additional 89 shares during the period. Finally, Westside Investment Management Inc. purchased a new stake in Intercontinental Exchange during the 2nd quarter valued at $29,000. 89.30% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

About Intercontinental Exchange

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.