Walter Public Investments Inc. Increases Stake in Intercontinental Exchange, Inc. (NYSE:ICE)

Walter Public Investments Inc. increased its position in Intercontinental Exchange, Inc. (NYSE:ICE) by 0.6% in the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the SEC. The fund owned 117,024 shares of the financial services provider’s stock after acquiring an additional 688 shares during the quarter. Intercontinental Exchange comprises 3.1% of Walter Public Investments Inc.’s investment portfolio, making the stock its 15th largest holding. Walter Public Investments Inc.’s holdings in Intercontinental Exchange were worth $17,438,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Other large investors also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Sierra Ocean LLC purchased a new stake in Intercontinental Exchange in the 4th quarter worth about $25,000. Capital Performance Advisors LLP purchased a new stake in Intercontinental Exchange in the 3rd quarter worth about $29,000. FSA Wealth Management LLC purchased a new stake in Intercontinental Exchange in the 3rd quarter worth about $31,000. BankPlus Trust Department purchased a new stake in Intercontinental Exchange in the 4th quarter worth about $40,000. Finally, Planning Capital Management Corp increased its holdings in Intercontinental Exchange by 96.7% in the 3rd quarter. Planning Capital Management Corp now owns 299 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $48,000 after acquiring an additional 147 shares during the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 89.30% of the company’s stock.

Intercontinental Exchange Stock Performance

Shares of ICE opened at $170.74 on Thursday. The stock has a 50-day moving average price of $156.50 and a 200-day moving average price of $158.54. The company has a market cap of $98.10 billion, a PE ratio of 35.72, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.10 and a beta of 1.11. Intercontinental Exchange, Inc. has a 12-month low of $124.34 and a 12-month high of $172.63. The company has a current ratio of 0.99, a quick ratio of 0.99 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.63.

Intercontinental Exchange (NYSE:ICE) last released its earnings results on Thursday, February 6th. The financial services provider reported $1.52 earnings per share for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.53 by ($0.01). Intercontinental Exchange had a return on equity of 12.95% and a net margin of 23.42%. As a group, equities analysts forecast that Intercontinental Exchange, Inc. will post 6.73 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Intercontinental Exchange Announces Dividend

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, December 31st. Investors of record on Tuesday, December 16th will be given a $0.48 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Tuesday, December 16th. This represents a $1.92 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 1.12%. Intercontinental Exchange’s payout ratio is 40.17%.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several research analysts have commented on the company. Barclays raised their target price on Intercontinental Exchange from $179.00 to $189.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research note on Friday, February 7th. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft raised their target price on Intercontinental Exchange from $160.00 to $163.00 and gave the stock a “hold” rating in a research note on Monday, November 11th. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods raised their target price on Intercontinental Exchange from $178.00 to $186.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a research note on Friday, February 7th. UBS Group raised their target price on Intercontinental Exchange from $185.00 to $195.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research note on Friday, February 7th. Finally, StockNews.com upgraded Intercontinental Exchange from a “sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Monday, February 10th. Three analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and thirteen have assigned a buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the company presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $178.80.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other Intercontinental Exchange news, SVP Douglas Foley sold 10,580 shares of Intercontinental Exchange stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, February 7th. The stock was sold at an average price of $166.47, for a total value of $1,761,252.60. Following the transaction, the senior vice president now directly owns 21,992 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $3,661,008.24. The trade was a 32.48 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at the SEC website. Also, President Benjamin Jackson sold 17,104 shares of Intercontinental Exchange stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, February 20th. The stock was sold at an average price of $166.62, for a total value of $2,849,868.48. Following the completion of the transaction, the president now directly owns 155,174 shares in the company, valued at $25,855,091.88. This trade represents a 9.93 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders sold 60,368 shares of company stock worth $9,908,492 in the last quarter. 1.10% of the stock is owned by insiders.

Intercontinental Exchange Company Profile

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.