Is Intercontinental Exchange Stock a Buy?

The past quarter has been a minefield for the financials sector. While banks and real estate investment trusts (REITs) have credit exposure and therefore suffer when markets are volatile, the various market exchanges benefit through the increased amount of transactions being processed from day to day. If you are looking for portfolio exposure in financials but want to sidestep the worst effects of a likely recession, buying stock in exchanges might be worth a look.

The New York Stock Exchange. Image source: Getty Images.

The Intercontinental Exchange (NYSE: ICE), the parent company of the New York Stock Exchange as well as 11 other exchanges and marketplaces, just reported its best quarter ever. Earnings per share were up 38% year over year to $1.17. Revenue rose 23% to $1.6 billion. Trading and clearing revenue rose 44% to $883 million, driven largely by a 58% increase in energy trading. Revenues from financial products (interest rate futures and options), cash equities and options, and fixed income segments were all up over 40%. The data and listings segment was up about 3% to $676 million.

Source Fool.com