Intercontinental Exchange (ICE): One of the Best Financial Stocks Billionaires Are Investing In

We recently published a list of 10 Best Financial Stocks to Buy According to Billionaires. In this article, we are going to take a look at where Intercontinental Exchange, Inc. (NYSE:ICE) stands against other best financial stocks to invest in.

Financial stocks had a great run in 2024, jumping over 30% by mid-December and outpacing the broader market. Fidelity noted that concerns about bank failures faded as the economy stayed strong, and improving fundamentals kept the sector on track. With the Fed cutting rates for the first time since the pandemic, lower borrowing costs could boost economic activity, even if they squeeze bank profit margins a bit. There are still risks, like commercial real estate exposure and loan defaults, but the post-election landscape looks favorable, with lighter regulations and more deal-making. Heading into 2025, financial stocks have solid momentum and plenty of tailwinds. This shift is creating fresh opportunities across the financial sector, from capital markets to private credit.

According to Morgan Stanley, capital markets are making a big comeback in 2025, strengthened by lower interest rates, easing inflation, and steady economic growth. After a period of uncertainty, companies and investors are finally feeling confident enough to jump back into mergers, acquisitions, and major spending. With more cash flowing into the market, demand for private credit and infrastructure investments, especially in AI, is on the rise. Private credit is also having a moment, offering companies more flexible financing options. It is growing fast, with assets under management expected to double in the next few years. Many businesses are using private markets to refinance debt and fuel expansion. 2025 is shaping up to be a huge year for strategic deals, leveraged buyouts, and capital raising.

Mergers and acquisitions in financial services are set to stay strong in 2025. After a year of big-money deals in 2024, companies are still looking for ways to grow, stay competitive, and adapt to market shifts. While economic uncertainty and geopolitical tensions remain, financial firms are using M&A to keep up with new technologies, changing customer expectations, and regulatory changes. Many banks and financial institutions are eyeing fintech acquisitions to stay ahead in the digital space while selling off underperforming parts of their business to free up capital for high-growth opportunities. Larger deals are becoming more common, especially as potential financial deregulation in the US could shake up global markets.

Some of the wealthiest billionaires have built some of the world’s largest financial firms or continue to hold major ownership positions in them. These companies specialize in asset management, financial data services, and cryptocurrency trading. Take Warren Buffett, for instance. Investors around the world look to his portfolio for guidance. His investment strategy heavily favors financial stocks, with significant holdings in banks, payment technology firms, and insurance companies. By the end of 2024, he had committed over $100 billion to the financial sector, representing a substantial share of his estimated $267 billion portfolio. Like Buffett, there are lots of billionaire portfolios to watch out for. So, let’s dive into the best financial stocks that Wall Street moguls are backing.

Our Methodology 

To collect data for this article, we scanned Insider Monkey’s database of billionaires’ stock holdings and picked the top 10 companies operating in the financial services industry with the highest number of billionaire investors in Q4 of 2024. The stocks are ranked in ascending order based on the number of billionaire investors.

Why are we interested in the stocks that hedge funds pile into? The reason is simple: our research has shown that we can outperform the market by imitating the top stock picks of the best hedge funds. Our quarterly newsletter's strategy selects 14 small-cap and large-cap stocks every quarter and has returned 373.4% since May 2014, beating its benchmark by 218 percentage points (see more details here).

Intercontinental Exchange, Inc. (NYSE:ICE)

Number of Billionaire Investors: 18

Intercontinental Exchange, Inc. (NYSE:ICE) provides technology and data solutions to financial institutions, corporations, and governments worldwide. It facilitates trading, clearing, and data services for financial markets, offers pricing and analytics tools for fixed-income assets, and streamlines the US mortgage process with digital solutions. The company was part of 18 billionaire investment portfolios according to latest SEC filings, making it one of the best financial stocks.

On February 25, Intercontinental Exchange, Inc. (NYSE:ICE) exceeded 100 million open contracts on February 20, 2025, an 11% jump year-over-year. The record-breaking numbers include 68.7 million commodity contracts, with 65.3 million in energy alone and 43.8 million in natural gas. Just a day earlier, ICE also saw its biggest natural gas trading volume since 2012, with 3.2 million contracts changing hands.

Intercontinental Exchange, Inc. (NYSE:ICE) declared a $0.48 per share quarterly dividend on February 6, a 6.7% increase from its prior dividend of $0.45. The dividend is payable on March 31, for shareholders of record as of March 17.

ICE reported $698 million in net income for the fourth quarter on $2.3 billion in revenue. GAAP earnings per share came in at $1.21, while adjusted EPS was $1.52. Revenue was up 6% from the previous year because of growth across its exchange, fixed income, and mortgage tech businesses. For the full year, ICE pulled in $4.6 billion in operating cash flow and $3.6 billion in free cash flow. By the end of 2024, the company had $844 million in cash, $20.4 billion in debt, and had paid out over $1 billion in dividends.

On January 6, Raymond James analyst Patrick O'Shaughnessy reaffirmed an Outperform rating on Intercontinental Exchange, Inc. (NYSE:ICE) with a $185 price target, citing its strong, diversified business model. Despite challenges in the Mortgage Tech segment, the analyst expects long-term recovery and continued revenue growth. With ICE trading at 20 times its projected 2026 EPS, he sees it as a solid investment opportunity.

Overall, ICE ranks 10th on our list of the best financial stocks to buy according to billionaires. While we acknowledge the potential of ICE to grow, our conviction lies in the belief that certain AI stocks hold greater promise for delivering higher returns, and doing so within a shorter time frame. If you are looking for an AI stock that is more promising than ICE but that trades at less than 5 times its earnings, check out our report about the cheapest AI stock.

READ NEXT: 20 Best AI Stocks To Buy Now and 30 Best Stocks to Buy Now According to Billionaires.

Disclosure: None. This article is originally published at Insider Monkey.