Intercontinental Exchange Reports Strong First Quarter 2021

Rhea-AI Impact

(Neutral)

Rhea-AI Sentiment

(Neutral)

Tags

Rhea-AI Summary

Intercontinental Exchange (ICE) reported record net revenues of $1.8 billion for 1Q21, a 15% increase year-over-year, alongside a GAAP diluted EPS of $1.14 and adjusted EPS of $1.34, up 7%. Operating income reached a record $892 million with a margin of 50%. The firm plans to record a pre-tax gain of $1.23 billion from divesting its stake in Coinbase in Q2 2021. ICE launched ICE Futures Abu Dhabi on March 29, 2021, and remains optimistic about growth opportunities post-COVID.

Positive

1Q21 net revenues reached $1.8 billion, +15% y/y.
Record 1Q21 operating income of $892 million; operating margin at 50%.
Adjusted diluted EPS of $1.34, up 7% y/y.
Upcoming pre-tax gain of $1.23 billion from Coinbase divestment.

Negative

Exchange segment revenues decreased by 7% compared to 1Q20.
Energy revenues fell by 12% year-over-year.
Fixed income execution revenues dropped by 32%.

04/29/2021 - 07:30 AM

Record 1Q21 net revenues of $1.8 billion, +15% y/y

1Q21 GAAP diluted EPS of $1.14

1Q21 adj. diluted EPS of $1.34, +7% y/y

Record 1Q21 operating income of $892 million; record adjusted operating income of $1.1 billion, +11% y/y

1Q21 operating margin of 50%; adj. operating margin of 59%

Q2 2021 pre-tax gain of $1.23 billion related to the full divestment of stake in Coinbase

Launched ICE Futures Abu Dhabi on March 29, 2021

Jeffrey C. Sprecher,
ICE Chairman & Chief Executive Officer, said,
"We are pleased to report strong first quarter results that extend our track-record of growth. As we emerge from the COVID-19 pandemic, never have our digital networks proven more needed and resilient. We are grateful to our customers that continue to rely on our technology, data and market infrastructure, and we remain focused on innovating across asset classes to drive greater efficiency and transparency."

Intercontinental Exchange (NYSE: ICE), a leading global provider of data, technology and market infrastructure, today reported financial results for the first quarter of 2021. For the quarter ended March 31, 2021, consolidated net income attributable to ICE was $646 million on $1.8 billion of consolidated revenues, less transaction-based expenses. First quarter GAAP diluted earnings per share (EPS) were $1.14. Adjusted net income attributable to ICE was $758 million in the first quarter and adjusted diluted EPS were $1.34. Please refer to the reconciliation of non-GAAP financial measures included in this press release for more information on our adjusted operating expenses, adjusted operating income, adjusted operating margin, adjusted net income, adjusted diluted EPS and free cash flow.

Scott A. Hill, ICE Chief Financial Officer, added: "In the first quarter, we once again grew revenues, operating income and cash flows. This performance reflects a strong balance of compounding recurring revenues and diverse transaction-based revenues. We are excited about the many growth opportunities that lie ahead, and we remain focused on prudent capital management to deliver value to our stockholders."

First Quarter 2021 Business Highlights

$ (in millions)	Net Revenue	Op Margin	Adj Op Margin
	1Q21
Exchanges	$974	67%	69%
Fixed Income and Data Services	$468	28%	38%
Mortgage Technology	$355	30%	60%
Consolidated	$1,797	50%	59%

First quarter consolidated net revenues were $1.8 billion up 15% year-over-year including exchange net revenues of $974 million, fixed income and data services revenues of $468 million and mortgage technology revenues of $355 million. Consolidated operating expenses were $905 million for the first quarter of 2021. On an adjusted basis, consolidated operating expenses were $729 million. Consolidated operating income for the first quarter was $892 million and the operating margin was 50%. On an adjusted basis, consolidated operating income for the first quarter was $1.1 billion and the adjusted operating margin was 59%.

Exchanges Segment Results

First quarter exchange net revenues were $974 million. Exchange operating expenses were $321 million and on an adjusted basis, were $298 million in the first quarter. Segment operating income for the first quarter was $653 million and the operating margin was 67%. On an adjusted basis, operating income was $676 million and the adjusted operating margin was 69%.

$ (in millions)	1Q21	1Q20	% Chg
Revenue, net:
Energy	$310	$353	(12)%
Ags and Metals	59	84	(29)%
Financials⁽¹⁾	105	123	(14)%
Cash Equities and Equity Options	102	113	(10)%
OTC and Other⁽²⁾	77	71	9%
Data and Connectivity Services	207	193	7%
Listings	114	112	2%
Segment Revenue	$974	$1,049	(7)%

		(1) Financials include interest rates and other financial futures and options.
		(2) OTC & other includes physical energy, interest income on certain clearing margin deposits, regulatory penalties and fines, fees for use of our facilities, regulatory fees charged to member organizations of our U.S. securities exchanges, designated market maker service fees, technology development fees, exchange member fees, and agriculture grading and certification fees.

Fixed Income and Data Services Segment Results

First quarter fixed income and data services revenues were $468 million. Fixed income and data services operating expenses were $335 million and adjusted operating expenses were $290 million in the first quarter. Segment operating income for the first quarter was $133 million and the operating margin was 28%. On an adjusted basis, operating income was $178 million and the adjusted operating margin was 38%.

$ (in millions)	1Q21	1Q20	% Chg	Const Curr⁽¹⁾
Revenue:
Fixed Income Execution	$14	$21	(32)%	(32)%
CDS Clearing	55	72	(25)%	(26)%
Fixed Income Data and Analytics	264	245	8%	7%
Other Data and Network Services	135	126	8%	6%
Segment Revenue	$468	$464	1%	—

(1) Net revenues in constant currency are calculated holding both the pound sterling and euro at the average exchange rate from 1Q20, 1.2794 and 1.1025, respectively

Mortgage Technology Segment Results

First quarter mortgage technology revenues were $355 million. Mortgage technology operating expenses were $249 million and adjusted operating expenses were $141 million in the first quarter. Segment operating income for the first quarter was $106 million and the operating margin was 30%. On an adjusted basis, operating income was $214 million and the adjusted operating margin was 60%.

$ (in millions)	1Q21	1Q20	% Chg
Revenue:
Origination Technology⁽¹⁾	$254	$—	n/a
Closing Solutions⁽¹⁾	70	44	61%
Data and Analytics	18	—	n/a
Other	13	2	614%
Segment Revenue	$355	$46	680%

(1) Origination technology revenues include those related to our ICE Mortgage Technology network (previously reported in closing solutions revenues) and closing solutions revenues now include registration revenues related to MERS (previously reported in other revenues).

Other Matters

The effective tax rate for the first quarter of 2021 was 22%.
Operating cash flow in the first quarter of 2021 was $734 million and free cash flow was $702 million.
Unrestricted cash was $562 million and outstanding debt was $16.2 billion as of March 31, 2021.
Through the first quarter of 2021, ICE paid $187 million in dividends.
Expect to record a pre-tax gain of $1.23 billion related to the full divestment of our stake in Coinbase in the second quarter of 2021.

Financial Guidance

ICE's second quarter 2021 total recurring revenues are expected to be in a range of $844 million to $859 million.
ICE's second quarter 2021 GAAP operating expenses are expected to be in a range of $895 millionto $905 million and adjusted operating expenses⁽¹⁾ are expected to be in a range of $742 million to $752 million.
ICE's full year 2021 GAAP operating expenses are expected to be in a range of $3.545 billionto $3.595 billion and adjusted operating expenses⁽¹⁾ are expected to be in a range of $2.880 billion to $2.930 billion to include incremental Bakkt expense and increased FX.
ICE's second quarter 2021 GAAP non-operating expense⁽²⁾ is expected to be in the range of $97 million to $102 million and adjusted non-operating expense is expected to be in the range of $105 million to $110 million.
ICE's diluted share count for the second quarter is expected to be in the range of 562 million to 568 million weighted average shares outstanding.

(1) 2021 and 2Q21 non-GAAP operating expenses exclude amortization of acquisition-related intangibles and transaction & integration costs. 2021 non-GAAP operating expenses also exclude acquisition-related success fees.

(2) Non-operating expense includes interest income, interest expense and net other income. Non-GAAP non-operating expense excludes the equity earnings from an unconsolidated investee.

Earnings Conference Call Information

ICE will hold a conference call today, April 29, 2021, at 8:30 a.m. ET to review its first quarter 2021 financial results. A live audio webcast of the earnings call will be available on the company's website at www.theice.com in the investor relations section. Participants may also listen via telephone by dialing 888-317-6003 from the United States, 866-284-3684 from Canada or 412-317-6061 from outside of the United States and Canada. Telephone participants are required to provide the participant entry number 9642702 and are recommended to call 10 minutes prior to the start of the call. The call will be archived on the company's website for replay.

The conference call for the second quarter 2021 earnings has been scheduled for July 29th, 2021 at 8:30 a.m. ET. Please refer to the Investor Relations website at www.ir.theice.com for additional information.

Historical futures, options and cash ADV, rate per contract, open interest data and CDS cleared information can be found at: http://ir.theice.com/investors-and-media/supplemental-volume-info/default.aspx

Consolidated Statements of Income (In millions, except per share amounts) (Unaudited)

	Three Months Ended March 31,
Revenues:	2021			2020
Exchanges	$	1,606		$	1,605
Fixed income and data services	468			464
Mortgage technology	355			46
Total revenues	2,429			2,115
Transaction-based expenses:
Section 31 fees	125			166
Cash liquidity payments, routing and clearing	507			390
Total revenues, less transaction-based expenses	1,797			1,559
Operating expenses:
Compensation and benefits	354			278
Professional services	44			29
Acquisition-related transaction and integration costs	18			12
Technology and communication	162			131
Rent and occupancy	21			21
Selling, general and administrative	51			49
Depreciation and amortization	255			157
Total operating expenses	905			677
Operating income	892			882
Other income (expense):
Interest income	—			6
Interest expense	(107		)	(72		)
Other income, net	48			20
Other income (expense), net	(59		)	(46		)
Income before income tax expense	833			836
Income tax expense	183			178
Net income	$	650		$	658
Net income attributable to non-controlling interest	(4		)	(8		)
Net income attributable to Intercontinental Exchange, Inc.	$	646		$	650

Earnings per share attributable to Intercontinental Exchange, Inc. common stockholders:
Basic	$	1.15		$	1.18
Diluted	$	1.14		$	1.17
Weighted average common shares outstanding:
Basic	562			552
Diluted	565			555

Consolidated Balance Sheets (In millions) (Unaudited)

	As of			As of
	March 31, 2021			December 31, 2020
Assets:
Current assets:
Cash and cash equivalents	$	562		$	583
Short-term restricted cash and cash equivalents	1,065			1,000
Customer accounts receivable, net	1,530			1,230
Margin deposits, guaranty funds and delivery contracts receivable	85,608			84,083
Prepaid expenses and other current assets	410			323
Total current assets	89,175			87,219
Property and equipment, net	1,731			1,713
Other non-current assets:
Goodwill	21,304			21,291
Other intangible assets, net	14,242			14,408
Long-term restricted cash and cash equivalents	398			408
Other non-current assets	1,195			1,161
Total other non-current assets	37,139			37,268
Total assets	$	128,045		$	126,200

Liabilities and Equity:
Current liabilities:
Accounts payable and accrued liabilities	$	673		$	639
Section 31 fees payable	123			207
Accrued salaries and benefits	136			346
Deferred revenue	523			158
Short-term debt	2,068			2,411
Margin deposits, guaranty funds and delivery contracts payable	85,608			84,083
Other current liabilities	271			155
Total current liabilities	89,402			87,999
Non-current liabilities:
Non-current deferred tax liability, net	3,527			3,563
Long-term debt	14,131			14,126
Accrued employee benefits	203			206
Non-current operating lease liability	306			320
Other non-current liabilities	391			359
Total non-current liabilities	18,558			18,574
Total liabilities	107,960			106,573
Commitments and contingencies
Redeemable non-controlling interest in consolidated subsidiaries	91			93
Equity:
Intercontinental Exchange, Inc. stockholders’ equity:
Common stock	6			6
Treasury stock, at cost	(5,265		)	(5,200		)
Additional paid-in capital	13,908			13,845
Retained earnings	11,498			11,039
Accumulated other comprehensive loss	(184		)	(192		)
Total Intercontinental Exchange, Inc. stockholders’ equity	19,963			19,498
Non-controlling interest in consolidated subsidiaries	31			36
Total equity	19,994			19,534
Total liabilities and equity	$	128,045		$	126,200

Non-GAAP Financial Measures and Reconciliation

We use non-GAAP measures internally to evaluate our performance and in making financial and operational decisions. When viewed in conjunction with our GAAP results and the accompanying reconciliation, we believe that our presentation of these measures provides investors with greater transparency and a greater understanding of factors affecting our financial condition and results of operations than GAAP measures alone. In addition, we believe the presentation of these measures is useful to investors for period-to-period comparison of results because the items described below as adjustments to GAAP are not reflective of our core business performance. These financial measures are not in accordance with, or an alternative to, GAAP financial measures and may be different from non-GAAP measures used by other companies. We use these adjusted results because we believe they more clearly highlight trends in our business that may not otherwise be apparent when relying solely on GAAP financial measures, since these measures eliminate from our results specific financial items that have less bearing on our core operating performance. We strongly recommend that investors review the GAAP financial measures and additional non-GAAP information included in our Quarterly Report on Form 10-Q, including our consolidated financial statements and the notes thereto.

Adjusted operating expenses, adjusted operating income, adjusted operating margin, adjusted net income attributable to ICE common stockholders, adjusted diluted earnings per share and free cash flow for the periods presented below are calculated by adding or subtracting the adjustments described below, which are not reflective of our cash operations and core business performance, and their related income tax effect and other tax adjustments (in millions, except for per share amounts):

Adjusted Operating Income, Operating Margin and Operating Expense Reconciliation

(In millions)

(Unaudited)

Exchanges
Segment

Fixed Income
and Data
Services
Segment

Mortgage
Technology
Segment

Consolidated

Three Months
Ended
March 31,

2021

2020

2021

2020

2021

2020

2021

2020

Total revenues, less transaction-based expenses

$974

$1,049

$468

$464

$355

$46

{ "@context": "https://schema.org", "@type": "FAQPage", "name": "Intercontinental Exchange Reports Strong First Quarter 2021 FAQs", "mainEntity": [ { "@type": "Question", "name": "What were ICE's net revenues for 1Q21?", "acceptedAnswer": { "@type": "Answer", "text": "ICE reported net revenues of $1.8 billion for 1Q21, a 15% year-over-year increase." } }, { "@type": "Question", "name": "What is the GAAP diluted EPS for ICE in 1Q21?", "acceptedAnswer": { "@type": "Answer", "text": "The GAAP diluted EPS for ICE in 1Q21 was $1.14." } }, { "@type": "Question", "name": "How much operating income did ICE generate in 1Q21?", "acceptedAnswer": { "@type": "Answer", "text": "ICE generated a record operating income of $892 million in 1Q21." } }, { "@type": "Question", "name": "What significant event is ICE expecting in Q2 2021?", "acceptedAnswer": { "@type": "Answer", "text": "ICE expects to record a pre-tax gain of $1.23 billion from the full divestment of its stake in Coinbase in Q2 2021." } }, { "@type": "Question", "name": "When did ICE launch ICE Futures Abu Dhabi?", "acceptedAnswer": { "@type": "Answer", "text": "ICE launched ICE Futures Abu Dhabi on March 29, 2021." } } ] }