Intercontinental Exchange

ICE · NYSE · Financials · Financials, fiscal 2016 to 2025

ICE · Last close · October 26, 2026

$160.05

Value Intercontinental Exchange yourself

Intercontinental Exchange's revenue rose 7.5% to $12.6 billion in fiscal 2025. Its operating margin was 39.0%, up from 36.6% a year earlier. Free cash flow was $4.3 billion, up 2.0%. It paid out $2.4 billion in dividends and buybacks, 56% of free cash flow. The diluted share count fell 0.2%.

Intercontinental Exchange, Inc. Latest fiscal year ended December 31, 2025 10-K filed February 5, 2026 · 0001571949-26-000004 Updated October 9, 2026

Revenue

$12.6B

7.5%

Operating margin

39.0%

2.4 pts

Net income

$3.3B

20.4%

Free cash flow

$4.3B

2.0%

Return on capital

7.7%

1.0 pts

Market cap

$90.6B

Oct 26 close

P/E

22.6x

On $7.08 EPS, 4 qtrs

Operating margin is operating income as a share of revenue. Free cash flow is cash from operations minus capital spending. Return on capital is after-tax operating income as a share of the money invested in the business: debt plus equity, minus cash. Market cap is the last closing share price times the latest diluted share count, so it is approximate. P/E is the last close divided by diluted earnings per share over the last four quarters, or the latest fiscal year where the quarters aren't available; there is none when the company made a loss.

What Intercontinental Exchange does

Intercontinental Exchange (ICE) runs financial exchanges and clearing houses, and sells data and software to banks, companies, traders and mortgage lenders. It owns the New York Stock Exchange and futures exchanges for energy, farm products, metals and financial contracts. A clearing house stands between the buyer and seller of each trade so that neither has to worry about the other failing to pay.

It reports three segments. Exchanges, which trades and clears futures, options and stocks and sells related market data, accounted for 55% of revenue less transaction-based expenses in 2025. Fixed Income and Data Services sells bond pricing, reference data, indexes and analytics and clears credit default swaps, and accounted for 24%. Mortgage Technology sells software and networks that lenders use to originate, close and service U.S. home loans, and accounted for 21%.

Much of the revenue from data, listings and software is recurring, while trading and mortgage fees rise and fall with activity. ICE operates 13 regulated exchanges and six clearing houses in the U.S., the U.K., the European Union, Canada, Asia Pacific and the Middle East.

Its biggest risks, as it describes them

Lower trading volumes, volatility or market activity, which reduce its trading and mortgage revenue.
Cyberattacks and system failures, since its role in the financial system makes it a target.
Risks from owning clearing houses, such as a clearing member defaulting or margin collateral losing value.
Regulatory responsibilities and rule changes affecting its exchanges, market data and listing revenue.
Interest rates and housing-market conditions that affect mortgage loan volumes.

From Intercontinental Exchange's annual report on Form 10-K, filed February 5, 2026, in our words; the 10-K has the full description and every risk factor. Updated with each new 10-K.

Charts show fiscal years, from the 10-K filings.

Revenue and margins

Revenue

US$ billions, fiscal years

Margins

Percent of revenue

GrossOperatingNetFree cash flow

Net income and earnings per share

From fiscal 2016 to 2025, earnings per share grew 10.3% a year and net income 9.8% a year, as buybacks cut the share count by 4%.

Net income

US$ billions, fiscal years; loss years in red.

Diluted earnings per share

US$ per share, fiscal years, restated for any stock splits; loss years in red.

Returns on capital

Return on capital and on equity

Percent. Return on capital is after-tax operating income over the money invested in the business (debt plus equity, minus cash); return on equity is net income over shareholders' equity. Both use the average of opening and closing balances.

Return on capitalReturn on equity

Cash flow

Free cash flow

US$ billions. Cash from operations minus capital expenditure; negative years in red.

Payouts and share count

Dividends and buybacks

US$ billions, cash paid in each fiscal year

DividendsShare buybacks

Diluted share count

Weighted-average diluted shares, millions

Valuation

Two ways to value Intercontinental Exchange yourself, both starting from its filings: a discounted cash flow model and the price-to-earnings method.

Discounted cash flow (DCF)

A discounted cash flow (DCF) model values a business as the cash it may generate in future, discounted back to today. The starting figures come from Intercontinental Exchange's 10-K (or, for net cash and shares, its latest 10-Q) and the assumptions are yours: start from one of three example scenarios, then change any figure to see what it implies for a share, and how that compares with the last share price.

Value per share on three example scenarios, from Intercontinental Exchange's fiscal 2025 free cash flow of $4.3B, net cash of −$19.8B at December 31, 2025 and 575 million diluted shares, from its filings. The scenarios are fitted to Intercontinental Exchange: the base scenario's growth in years 1 to 5 is its revenue growth over the last 3 years, 9.5% a year; the cautious and optimistic ones are lower and higher, and growth in years 6 to 10 is halfway to the long-run rate. The base scenario's discount rate is 9% for a business of moderate risk (Financial Exchanges & Data); the cautious and optimistic ones use a point more and a point less. Select one to load it into the calculator. These are the model's arithmetic on those assumptions, not a forecast or a price target.

From the filings

Starting free cash flow, US$ millions

Cash from operations minus capital spending in fiscal 2025.

Net cash, US$ millions

Cash and short-term investments minus debt and finance leases at December 31, 2025. Negative means net debt.

Diluted shares, millions

Weighted-average diluted shares in fiscal 2025.

Your assumptions

Start from

Fitted to Intercontinental Exchange's own revenue growth, as above. Cautious: growth of 4.5% then 3% a year, 2% after year 10, a 10% discount rate. Base: growth of 9.5% then 6% a year, 2.5% after year 10, a 9% discount rate. Optimistic: growth of 14% then 8.5% a year, 3% after year 10, a 8% discount rate.

Free cash flow growth, years 1 to 5 (% a year)

Free cash flow growth, years 6 to 10 (% a year)

Growth after year 10 (% a year)Long-run growth forever after year 10. Usually close to inflation, and always below the discount rate.

Discount rate (% a year)The yearly return an investor wants for the risk. A higher rate gives a lower value.

Value per share on these assumptions

—

Last close, October 26, 2026: $160.05
Value on these assumptions, against the last close: —

Cash flows in years 1 to 10, valued today: —
Everything after year 10, valued today: —
Plus net cash: —
Share of value from after year 10: —

Projected free cash flow

US$ billions. Each column is one year's projected free cash flow, split into what it is worth today and the part removed by discounting.

Value todayRemoved by discounting

How the value changes with two assumptions

Value per share in US$, with the growth rates above. The highlighted cell matches the current assumptions.

How the model works. Free cash flow grows at the first rate for five years and the second rate for five more, and each year is discounted at the discount rate. Everything after year 10 is valued as year-10 cash flow × (1 + growth after year 10) ÷ (discount rate − growth after year 10), discounted back ten years. Net cash is added and the total is divided by diluted shares. The result depends entirely on the assumptions. It is not a forecast, a price target or a recommendation. The last close is the consolidated US closing price, from Databento.

Price-to-earnings (P/E) method

Another common way to value a company is to multiply its earnings per share by a price-to-earnings (P/E) multiple: the number of years of today's earnings an investor pays for a share. A higher multiple usually means investors expect earnings to grow. Choose a multiple, for example from similar companies, to see the value it gives.

Value per share on three example scenarios, from Intercontinental Exchange's earnings per share of $7.08 (over the last four quarters). Each grows earnings for a year at the cash flow scenarios' rates and applies a multiple to next year's earnings: 22.6×, the middle of Intercontinental Exchange's own P/E today, its peers' median and its sector's median (Intercontinental Exchange's own P/E today) for the base scenario, 20% less and more for the cautious and optimistic ones. The price is brought back a year at 10%, 9% and 8%. Select one to load it into the calculator. These are the model's arithmetic on those assumptions, not a forecast or a price target.

Earnings per share, US$

Diluted earnings per share over the four quarters to June 30, 2026, from the 10-Qs and 10-K.

P/E multiple

P/E today is the last close divided by the latest earnings per share, the four quarters' where available. Peers: S&P Global, Nasdaq, Moody's.

Earnings growth in the years ahead (% a year) Starts at Intercontinental Exchange's revenue growth over the last 3 years, 9.5% a year, as the base scenario does.

Earnings per share in the years ahead, US$

Year 1Year 2Year 3Year 4Year 5

Type your own estimate for any year; the years after it carry on at the growth rate.

Apply the multiple to earnings

A multiple on a future year's earnings gives the price then, brought back to today at the discount rate below.

Discount rate (% a year) The yearly return an investor wants for the risk, as in the cash flow model.

Value per share today at this multiple

—

Last close, October 26, 2026: $160.05
Value at this multiple, against the last close: —
Intercontinental Exchange's P/E at the last close: 22.6×

Company	Last close	Earnings per share	P/E today
Moody'sMCO	$484.45	$16.41	29.5×
NasdaqNDAQ	$104.72	$3.66	28.6×
S&P GlobalSPGI	$450.65	$15.81	28.5×
Intercontinental ExchangeICE	$160.05	$7.08	22.6×

How the P/E method works. Value per share is earnings per share times the multiple. On a future year's earnings, that gives the price in that year, which is brought back to today at the discount rate: price ÷ (1 + discount rate) for each year ahead. It is quick and easy to compare across companies, but it ignores debt and cash, and earnings can swing with one-off gains and charges, so a multiple says most about steady, profitable businesses. Like the cash flow model, the result depends entirely on the assumptions you choose. It is not a forecast, a price target or a recommendation.

Balance sheet

Fiscal year end	FY21	FY22	FY23	FY24	FY25
Cash and short-term investments	147,976	1,799	899	844	837
Debt incl. finance leases	15,439	18,126	24,567	23,395	20,679
Net debt (negative means net cash)	−132,537	16,327	23,668	22,551	19,842
Net debt to EBITDA	−29.7x	3.5x	4.8x	3.9x	3.1x
Debt to equity	0.7x	0.8x	1.0x	0.8x	0.7x
Interest coverage	8.2x	5.9x	4.6x	4.7x	6.1x
Current ratio	1.0x	1.1x	1.0x	1.0x	1.0x
Quick ratio	1.0x	1.1x	1.0x	1.0x	1.0x

US$ millions unless stated, at each fiscal year end. Net debt to EBITDA is debt minus cash, divided by operating income before depreciation and amortization: roughly how many years of those earnings the net debt equals. Debt to equity is debt as a multiple of shareholders' equity. Interest coverage is operating income divided by interest expense. The current ratio is current assets over current liabilities; the quick ratio leaves out inventory.

Insider trades

Over the 12 months between October 27, 2025 and October 26, 2026, no insider bought Intercontinental Exchange shares on the open market, and 12 insiders sold $91.3 million, $90.2 million of it under trading plans set up in advance.

Date	Insider	Trade	Shares	Price	Value	Filing
Sep 14, 2026	Douglas FoleySVP, HR & Administration	Sold plan	1,600	$160.00	$256,000	Form 4
Sep 1, 2026	Benjamin JacksonPresident	Sold plan	12,862	$160.09	$2.1 million	Form 4
Sep 1, 2026	Christopher Scott EdmondsPresident, Fixed Income & Data	Sold plan	5,000	$160.59	$802,950	Form 4
Aug 26, 2026	Andrew J SurdykowskiGeneral Counsel	Sold plan	4,574	$161.76	$739,905	Form 4
Aug 26, 2026	Martha A TirinnanziDirector	Sold plan	1,340	$161.16	$215,954	Form 4
Aug 20, 2026	Douglas FoleySVP, HR & Administration	Sold plan	1,600	$160.00	$256,000	Form 4
Aug 19, 2026	Warren GardinerChief Financial Officer	Sold plan	2,491	$156.30	$389,343	Form 4
Aug 13, 2026	Martha A TirinnanziDirector	Sold plan	141	$155.00	$21,855	Form 4
Aug 12, 2026	Mayur KapaniChief Technology Officer	Sold plan	4,271	$151.20	$645,775	Form 4
Aug 5, 2026	Douglas FoleySVP, HR & Administration	Sold	7,300	$148.88	$1.1 million	Form 4
Jul 16, 2026	Lynn C MartinPresident, NYSE Group	Sold plan	15,882	$141.15	$2.2 million	Form 4
Jun 12, 2026	William Jefferson HagueDirector	Sold plan	1,333	$139.46	$185,900	Form 4

The latest 12 of 35 trades. Open-market purchases and sales by officers, directors and 10% owners, from their Form 4 filings with the SEC: one row per person, day and filing, at the day's average price. Grants, option exercises and shares withheld for tax aren't counted. Insiders buy and sell for many reasons, such as taxes, spreading their savings or a plan set up months earlier, so a trade on its own says little about where a company is heading. For information only, not investment advice. Insider trades at all companies

Piotroski F-score

The F-score counts how many of nine simple tests of profitability, funding and efficiency a company passed in a year (Piotroski, 2000). The more tests passed, the stronger the year: 8 or 9 is strong, 0 to 2 weak. Companies that report no gross profit are scored on the other eight.

Test	FY23	FY24	FY25
Net income is positive	Pass	Pass	Pass
Cash from operations is positive	Pass	Pass	Pass
Return on assets rose	Pass	Pass	Pass
Cash from operations exceeds net income	Pass	Pass	Pass
Debt fell relative to assets	Fail	Fail	Pass
Current ratio rose	Fail	Fail	Pass
Share count didn't rise	Fail	Fail	Pass
Gross margin rose	—	—	—
Revenue rose relative to assets	Pass	Pass	Pass
F-score	5 of 8	5 of 8	8 of 8
Accruals ratio	−0.7%	−1.4%	−1.0%

The accruals ratio is net income minus cash from operations, over average total assets.

Compare

Put Intercontinental Exchange side by side with any other company we cover: revenue, growth, margins, cash flow and returns, with ten years of charts.

Similar companies

Company	Year	Revenue growth	Operating margin	Free cash flow margin	Return on capital	Net debt to EBITDA	F-score	Compare
Intercontinental Exchange	FY25	7.5%	39.0%	33.9%	7.7%	3.1x	8
S&P Global	FY25	7.9%	42.2%	35.6%	11.7%	1.5x	7	Compare
Nasdaq	FY25	11.7%	28.2%	24.1%	9.5%	3.4x	9	Compare
Moody's	FY25	8.9%	43.4%	33.4%	31.1%	1.2x	9	Compare
Coinbase	FY25	9.4%	20.0%	31.9%	14.5%	−2.4x	4	Compare

Each company's latest fiscal year. Fiscal years end in different months, so the periods don't line up exactly. Free cash flow margin is free cash flow as a share of revenue. Net debt to EBITDA is explained under the balance sheet, and the F-score above.

10 years of figures

Fiscal year	FY16	FY17	FY18	FY19	FY20	FY21	FY22	FY23	FY24	FY25
Income statement
Revenue	5,971	5,843	6,276	6,547	8,244	9,168	9,636	9,903	11,761	12,640
Revenue growth	27.5%	−2.1%	7.4%	4.3%	25.9%	11.2%	5.1%	2.8%	18.8%	7.5%
Gross profit	—	—	—	—	—	—	—	—	—	—
Research and development	—	—	—	—	—	—	—	—	—	—
Operating income	2,172	2,379	2,583	2,673	3,033	3,449	3,638	3,694	4,309	4,929
Net income	1,430	2,526	1,988	1,933	2,089	4,058	1,446	2,368	2,754	3,315
Diluted EPS (US$)	2.39	4.25	3.43	3.42	3.77	7.18	2.58	4.19	4.78	5.77
Diluted shares (millions)	599	594	579	565	555	565	561	565	576	575
Cash flow
Cash from operations	2,149	2,085	2,533	2,659	2,881	3,123	3,554	3,542	4,609	4,662
Capital expenditure	250	220	134	153	207	179	225	190	406	373
Free cash flow	1,899	1,865	2,399	2,506	2,674	2,944	3,329	3,352	4,203	4,289
Dividends paid	409	476	555	621	669	747	853	955	1,039	1,105
Share buybacks	50	949	1,198	1,460	1,247	250	632	0	0	1,294
Acquisitions	425	423	1,246	352	9,446	66	59	10,198	38	19
Stock-based compensation	124	135	130	139	139	188	155	257	231	238
Balance sheet at fiscal year end
Cash and short-term investments	1,373	1,584	64,592	65,091	83,619	147,976	1,799	899	844	837
Debt incl. finance leases	8,857	7,933	8,392	10,388	18,948	15,439	18,126	24,567	23,395	20,679
Total assets	82,003	78,264	92,791	94,493	126,200	193,502	194,338	136,084	139,428	136,887
Total liabilities	66,213	61,279	75,489	77,129	106,573	170,754	171,577	110,298	111,708	107,896
Shareholders' equity	15,717	16,957	17,201	17,255	19,498	22,709	22,706	25,717	27,647	28,915
Margins and ratios
Gross margin	—	—	—	—	—	—	—	—	—	—
Operating margin	36.4%	40.7%	41.2%	40.8%	36.8%	37.6%	37.8%	37.3%	36.6%	39.0%
Net margin	23.9%	43.2%	31.7%	29.5%	25.3%	44.3%	15.0%	23.9%	23.4%	26.2%
Free cash flow margin	31.8%	31.9%	38.2%	38.3%	32.4%	32.1%	34.5%	33.9%	35.7%	33.9%
Return on capital	6.7%	10.2%	—	—	—	—	—	7.0%	6.7%	7.7%
Return on equity	9.4%	15.5%	11.6%	11.2%	11.4%	19.2%	6.4%	9.8%	10.3%	11.7%
Return on assets	1.8%	3.1%	2.3%	2.1%	1.9%	2.5%	0.8%	1.4%	2.0%	2.4%
Net debt to EBITDA	2.7x	2.2x	−17.7x	−16.4x	−17.1x	−29.7x	3.5x	4.8x	3.9x	3.1x

US$ millions unless stated. Where a later 10-K restated a year, the latest filed figure is shown. Download all figures (CSV, US$ millions)

Source: Intercontinental Exchange's Form 10-K filings, from SEC EDGAR. For information only, not investment advice. The Filing Desk is not affiliated with Intercontinental Exchange.