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Intercontinental Exchange (ICE) is back in focus after reporting July 2026 operating metrics, with total average daily volume up 25% year on year and open interest up 18% across its markets.
See our latest analysis for Intercontinental Exchange.
The July operating data, recent AI product launches and the second quarter earnings update have put Intercontinental Exchange back on investors' radar. However, the 1-year total shareholder return is down 18.34% while the 3-year total shareholder return is up 36.91%, suggesting short term sentiment is softer even as the longer term record remains positive.
If you are weighing ICE's recent volume trends against other potential opportunities in market infrastructure and financial technology, it can help to widen the search using a focused screener such as 19 top founder-led companies
The share price pullback sits awkwardly next to Intercontinental Exchange's solid recent volumes, earnings and dividends. Are you seeing a business that has changed, or a mood swing that has changed the price you pay?
The most followed narrative sees Intercontinental Exchange's fair value at $183.93 versus a last close of $150.30, which points to meaningful upside in the model and places more emphasis on long term earnings power than on the recent share price pullback.
Intensifying demand for high-quality, real-time market data and analytics, especially to power AI-driven trading and workflow automation, has resulted in consistent growth of ICE's data and analytics businesses, supporting higher-margin, recurring revenues and improved net margins.
Want to see what sits behind that earnings engine for Intercontinental Exchange? The narrative focuses on measured growth, firm margins and a richer earnings multiple. Curious which assumptions do the most work in that $183.93 figure?
Result: Fair Value of $183.93 (UNDERVALUED)
Have a read of the narrative in full and understand what's behind the forecasts.
However, the Intercontinental Exchange narrative can be knocked off course if competition in perpetual futures pressures pricing power or if large acquisitions prove harder to integrate than expected.
Find out about the key risks to this Intercontinental Exchange narrative.
The first narrative leans on earnings and multiples to argue Intercontinental Exchange looks 18.3% undervalued at $150.30 versus a $183.93 fair value. Our DCF model lands closer to $147.73, which suggests the stock is mildly overvalued on future cash flows. Which yardstick do you trust more for your own work?
Look into how the SWS DCF model arrives at its fair value.
Simply Wall St performs a discounted cash flow (DCF) on every stock in the world every day (check out Intercontinental Exchange for example). We show the entire calculation in full. You can track the result in your watchlist or portfolio and be alerted when this changes, or use our stock screener to discover 52 high quality undervalued stocks. If you save a screener we even alert you when new companies match - so you never miss a potential opportunity.
With mixed sentiment around Intercontinental Exchange, this is a moment to move quickly, review the data yourself and weigh both sides. To help frame that view, take a closer look at the 5 key rewards and 2 important warning signs.
If you want a clearer picture of where to put fresh capital next, use the Simply Wall St Screener to compare Intercontinental Exchange with other focused ideas.
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This article by Simply Wall St is general in nature. We provide commentary based on historical data and analyst forecasts only using an unbiased methodology and our articles are not intended to be financial advice. It does not constitute a recommendation to buy or sell any stock, and does not take account of your objectives, or your financial situation. We aim to bring you long-term focused analysis driven by fundamental data. Note that our analysis may not factor in the latest price-sensitive company announcements or qualitative material. Simply Wall St has no position in any stocks mentioned.
Companies discussed in this article include ICE.
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