GoalVest Advisory LLC Boosts Position in Intercontinental Exchange, Inc. (NYSE:ICE)

GoalVest Advisory LLC boosted its position in shares of Intercontinental Exchange, Inc. (NYSE:ICE) by 38.8% in the first quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the SEC. The fund owned 959 shares of the financial services provider’s stock after acquiring an additional 268 shares during the quarter. GoalVest Advisory LLC’s holdings in Intercontinental Exchange were worth $165,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

A number of other hedge funds also recently bought and sold shares of ICE. Sierra Ocean LLC bought a new stake in Intercontinental Exchange during the fourth quarter valued at about $25,000. REAP Financial Group LLC grew its holdings in Intercontinental Exchange by 116.7% during the fourth quarter. REAP Financial Group LLC now owns 169 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $25,000 after purchasing an additional 91 shares during the period. Menard Financial Group LLC bought a new stake in Intercontinental Exchange during the fourth quarter valued at about $29,000. Redwood Park Advisors LLC bought a new stake in Intercontinental Exchange during the fourth quarter valued at about $33,000. Finally, Lee Danner & Bass Inc. bought a new stake in Intercontinental Exchange during the fourth quarter valued at about $34,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 89.30% of the company’s stock.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

ICE has been the subject of several recent research reports. UBS Group boosted their price target on Intercontinental Exchange from $185.00 to $195.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a report on Friday, February 7th. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods boosted their price target on Intercontinental Exchange from $183.00 to $189.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a report on Friday, May 2nd. Bank of America cut their price target on Intercontinental Exchange from $237.00 to $230.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a report on Wednesday, April 2nd. Morgan Stanley boosted their price target on Intercontinental Exchange from $181.00 to $192.00 and gave the company an “equal weight” rating in a report on Monday, May 5th. Finally, Wall Street Zen raised Intercontinental Exchange from a “sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Monday, February 10th. Three equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and eleven have issued a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the stock has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $188.46.

Insider Activity at Intercontinental Exchange

In related news, Director Judith A. Sprieser sold 2,630 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, April 16th. The stock was sold at an average price of $159.00, for a total transaction of $418,170.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the director now directly owns 21,364 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $3,396,876. This represents a 10.96% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this link. Also, Director Martha A. Tirinnanzi sold 397 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, May 27th. The shares were sold at an average price of $177.11, for a total value of $70,312.67. Following the transaction, the director now directly owns 4,526 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $801,599.86. The trade was a 8.06% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Over the last three months, insiders sold 3,579 shares of company stock valued at $584,818. Insiders own 1.00% of the company’s stock.

Intercontinental Exchange Stock Performance

NYSE ICE opened at $178.50 on Friday. The firm has a market cap of $102.39 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 37.34, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.10 and a beta of 1.12. The company has a quick ratio of 0.99, a current ratio of 0.99 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.63. The business has a 50-day moving average price of $168.00 and a 200-day moving average price of $162.46. Intercontinental Exchange, Inc. has a twelve month low of $131.79 and a twelve month high of $179.44.

Intercontinental Exchange (NYSE:ICE) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, May 1st. The financial services provider reported $1.72 EPS for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.70 by $0.02. Intercontinental Exchange had a return on equity of 12.95% and a net margin of 23.42%. The company had revenue of $2.47 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $2.44 billion. During the same period in the prior year, the company earned $1.48 earnings per share. The firm’s revenue was up 8.0% on a year-over-year basis. As a group, equities research analysts predict that Intercontinental Exchange, Inc. will post 6.73 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Intercontinental Exchange Announces Dividend

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, June 30th. Investors of record on Friday, June 13th will be paid a dividend of $0.48 per share. This represents a $1.92 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 1.08%. Intercontinental Exchange’s payout ratio is presently 39.75%.

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.