Carmignac Gestion Sells 225,487 Shares of Intercontinental Exchange Inc. $ICE

Carmignac Gestion cut its position in shares of Intercontinental Exchange Inc. (NYSE:ICE) by 16.4% during the 1st quarter, according to its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The fund owned 1,150,073 shares of the financial services provider’s stock after selling 225,487 shares during the period. Intercontinental Exchange accounts for 2.8% of Carmignac Gestion’s portfolio, making the stock its 13th largest holding. Carmignac Gestion’s holdings in Intercontinental Exchange were worth $180,879,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

A number of other institutional investors and hedge funds also recently modified their holdings of ICE. Ares Financial Consulting LLC bought a new position in Intercontinental Exchange during the fourth quarter worth about $25,000. Steph & Co. raised its stake in Intercontinental Exchange by 104.7% in the fourth quarter. Steph & Co. now owns 174 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $28,000 after buying an additional 89 shares during the period. Brooklands Fund Management Ltd bought a new stake in Intercontinental Exchange in the fourth quarter valued at approximately $28,000. Swiss RE Ltd. acquired a new stake in shares of Intercontinental Exchange in the fourth quarter valued at approximately $28,000. Finally, Lloyd Advisory Services LLC. acquired a new stake in shares of Intercontinental Exchange in the fourth quarter valued at approximately $30,000. 89.30% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of research firms recently weighed in on ICE. Piper Sandler dropped their price target on Intercontinental Exchange from $211.00 to $190.00 and set an “overweight” rating on the stock in a research note on Wednesday, July 15th. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods began coverage on shares of Intercontinental Exchange in a research report on Wednesday, April 8th. They set an “outperform” rating and a $190.00 price objective for the company. Barclays reiterated an “overweight” rating and issued a $182.00 price objective (up from $180.00) on shares of Intercontinental Exchange in a report on Friday. Raymond James Financial set a $208.00 target price on shares of Intercontinental Exchange in a research note on Monday, July 6th. Finally, Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft reiterated a “buy” rating and issued a $178.00 price target on shares of Intercontinental Exchange in a research note on Friday. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, nine have given a Buy rating and two have issued a Hold rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the company presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $183.33.

Key Headlines Impacting Intercontinental Exchange

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

• Positive Sentiment: ICE reported second-quarter adjusted earnings of $1.90 per share, exceeding the $1.84 consensus estimate, while revenue reached approximately $2.7 billion, up 5% year over year. Growth in recurring data and mortgage technology helped offset weaker energy-related activity. ICE Q2 Earnings Beat on Data Growth and Mortgage Strength
• Positive Sentiment: The company returned $945 million to shareholders during the quarter, including $651 million in repurchases, and increased its authorized buyback capacity to $4 billion. ICE also raised its quarterly dividend 8% year over year to $0.52 per share. ICE Approves Third Quarter Dividend
• Positive Sentiment: The MarketAxess deal would expand ICE’s electronic fixed-income trading, market-data and distribution capabilities. Management is positioning the acquisition to benefit from the long-term shift from voice-based to electronic bond trading. The transaction is expected to close in the first half of 2027. Rise of Bond E-Trading Underpins ICE’s MarketAxess Deal
• Neutral Sentiment: MarketAxess shares surged roughly 30% after ICE offered a premium of about 33% to its unaffected price, highlighting the strategic value of the target but also making the transaction a significant capital commitment for ICE. NYSE Parent ICE to Purchase MarketAxess
• Negative Sentiment: Investors appear concerned that paying nearly $6 billion in cash could pressure near-term returns, increase execution and integration risk, and limit financial flexibility. The market’s initial reaction was cautious despite the earnings beat, with ICE shares underperforming broader equities.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In related news, General Counsel Andrew J. Surdykowski sold 4,573 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, May 26th. The stock was sold at an average price of $151.56, for a total value of $693,083.88. Following the completion of the sale, the general counsel directly owned 45,473 shares in the company, valued at approximately $6,891,887.88. The trade was a 9.14% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is accessible through this link. Also, CFO Warren Gardiner sold 2,490 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, May 19th. The stock was sold at an average price of $156.64, for a total value of $390,033.60. Following the sale, the chief financial officer directly owned 25,189 shares in the company, valued at $3,945,604.96. This represents a 9.00% decrease in their position. The SEC filing for this sale provides additional information. Insiders sold a total of 13,425 shares of company stock valued at $2,046,324 in the last quarter. Company insiders own 0.84% of the company’s stock.

Intercontinental Exchange Price Performance

Shares of Intercontinental Exchange stock opened at $152.64 on Monday. The company has a quick ratio of 1.01, a current ratio of 1.01 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.63. The stock has a market capitalization of $85.69 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 21.56, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.86 and a beta of 0.92. Intercontinental Exchange Inc. has a twelve month low of $121.79 and a twelve month high of $189.35. The company has a 50-day simple moving average of $139.48 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $153.60.

Intercontinental Exchange (NYSE:ICE) last announced its earnings results on Thursday, July 30th. The financial services provider reported $1.90 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.84 by $0.06. Intercontinental Exchange had a net margin of 30.08% and a return on equity of 14.95%. The firm had revenue of $3.61 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $2.63 billion. During the same quarter in the prior year, the business posted $1.81 EPS. The business’s revenue was up 4.8% compared to the same quarter last year. Analysts forecast that Intercontinental Exchange Inc. will post 7.98 EPS for the current year.

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.