Principal Financial Group Inc. Sells 3,473 Shares of Intercontinental Exchange, Inc. (NYSE:ICE)

Principal Financial Group Inc. trimmed its position in shares of Intercontinental Exchange, Inc. (NYSE:ICE) by 0.5% during the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the SEC. The institutional investor owned 653,401 shares of the financial services provider’s stock after selling 3,473 shares during the quarter. Principal Financial Group Inc.’s holdings in Intercontinental Exchange were worth $97,363,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Other large investors have also bought and sold shares of the company. Wealth Enhancement Advisory Services LLC boosted its position in Intercontinental Exchange by 1.1% during the 4th quarter. Wealth Enhancement Advisory Services LLC now owns 35,151 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $5,647,000 after acquiring an additional 366 shares in the last quarter. Kestra Private Wealth Services LLC boosted its position in shares of Intercontinental Exchange by 6.9% in the 4th quarter. Kestra Private Wealth Services LLC now owns 73,970 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $11,022,000 after purchasing an additional 4,787 shares in the last quarter. M&T Bank Corp boosted its position in shares of Intercontinental Exchange by 33.2% in the 3rd quarter. M&T Bank Corp now owns 46,689 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $7,500,000 after purchasing an additional 11,648 shares in the last quarter. Avantra Family Wealth Inc. bought a new stake in shares of Intercontinental Exchange in the 4th quarter worth approximately $702,000. Finally, Dixon Mitchell Investment Counsel Inc. boosted its position in shares of Intercontinental Exchange by 9.2% in the 4th quarter. Dixon Mitchell Investment Counsel Inc. now owns 728,133 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $108,515,000 after purchasing an additional 61,110 shares in the last quarter. 89.30% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of analysts have recently commented on ICE shares. Royal Bank of Canada reissued an “outperform” rating and issued a $200.00 price target on shares of Intercontinental Exchange in a research report on Tuesday, January 7th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. dropped their price target on Intercontinental Exchange from $190.00 to $189.00 and set an “overweight” rating on the stock in a research report on Friday, January 17th. UBS Group boosted their price target on Intercontinental Exchange from $185.00 to $195.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research report on Friday, February 7th. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft boosted their price objective on shares of Intercontinental Exchange from $160.00 to $163.00 and gave the stock a “hold” rating in a report on Monday, November 11th. Finally, Keefe, Bruyette & Woods boosted their price objective on shares of Intercontinental Exchange from $178.00 to $186.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a report on Friday, February 7th. Three equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and thirteen have given a buy rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the company presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $178.80.

Intercontinental Exchange Price Performance

Shares of ICE opened at $166.29 on Wednesday. The firm has a market cap of $95.48 billion, a PE ratio of 34.79, a P/E/G ratio of 3.21 and a beta of 1.11. The company has a current ratio of 0.99, a quick ratio of 1.00 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.63. The firm has a fifty day simple moving average of $154.63 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $157.75. Intercontinental Exchange, Inc. has a 1-year low of $124.34 and a 1-year high of $169.78.

Intercontinental Exchange (NYSE:ICE) last announced 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 net margin of 23.42% and a return on equity of 12.95%. On average, equities analysts anticipate that Intercontinental Exchange, Inc. will post 6.63 EPS for the current year.

Intercontinental Exchange Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, December 31st. Stockholders of record on Tuesday, December 16th will be given a dividend of $0.48 per share. This represents a $1.92 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 1.15%. The ex-dividend date is Tuesday, December 16th. Intercontinental Exchange’s payout ratio is 37.66%.

Insider Activity

In other news, insider Christopher Scott Edmonds sold 601 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction on Wednesday, January 15th. The shares were sold at an average price of $147.73, for a total transaction of $88,785.73. Following the completion of the sale, the insider now owns 12,922 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $1,908,967.06. The trade was a 4.44 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available at this link. Also, COO Stuart Glen Williams sold 750 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction on Wednesday, December 18th. The shares were sold at an average price of $152.99, for a total transaction of $114,742.50. Following the sale, the chief operating officer now directly owns 12,780 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $1,955,212.20. The trade was a 5.54 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders sold a total of 34,358 shares of company stock valued at $5,535,650 in the last 90 days. Company insiders own 1.10% of the company’s stock.

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.