Intercontinental Exchange stock expands fixed income with MarketAxess deal

Published on 09/29/2026 at 08:17 | Editorial responsibility: Rafael Müller, Editor-in-Chief AD HOC NEWS

A USD 167.00 offer values MarketAxess at USD 5.7 billion as Intercontinental Exchange expands its fixed income network. Q2 adjusted EPS reached USD 1.90.

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Intercontinental Exchange (ISIN US45866F1049) was last at USD 152.91 on the NYSE on September 28, 2026, down USD 1.40 or 0.91 percent from the prior close. The strategic headline is ICE's agreement to acquire MarketAxess for USD 167.00 per share, extending its fixed income and data platform.

MarketAxess adds execution scale

According to Fortune, the transaction carries an enterprise value of USD 5.7 billion and a 33 percent premium to MarketAxess' July 29, 2026 closing price. ICE expects the deal to close in the first half of 2027, subject to regulatory approvals and customary conditions.

The rationale is operational as well as financial. MarketAxess brings more than 2,100 institutional firms to a platform that ICE says will connect institutional credit liquidity with its retail and wealth channels, while the combined business can distribute ICE pricing, reference data, indices and analytics across a broader workflow.

Q2 earnings support the strategy

ICE reported second quarter 2026 adjusted EPS of USD 1.90, exceeding the USD 1.84 consensus estimate by USD 0.06, while revenue reached USD 3.61 billion and increased 4.8 percent from the prior-year quarter, according to MarketBeat. The prior-year quarter produced EPS of USD 1.81, making the latest adjusted result USD 0.09 higher.

The latest earnings discussion also supplied measurable operating support. ICE's second quarter fixed income and data services revenue reached USD 645 million, up 8 percent year over year, while mortgage technology revenue was USD 557 million, up 5 percent, as reported in the Fortune transcript. ICE also raised full-year fixed income and data services recurring-revenue growth guidance to 7 percent to 8 percent.

Analyst target stays above the quote

On August 31, 2026, Jefferies raised its Intercontinental Exchange price target from USD 171.00 to USD 189.00 and maintained a Buy rating, according to Yahoo Finance. The USD 189.00 target lies 23.60 percent above the September 28, 2026 price of USD 152.91, leaving the acquisition and its financing plan as the main execution variables.

ICE stock remains below yearly high

Intercontinental Exchange stock was last at USD 152.91 on the NYSE on September 28, 2026 at 4:00 p.m. ET, with session volume of 2,339,562 shares. Its 52-week range was USD 121.79 to USD 176.05, and its market capitalization was USD 85.8 billion as of that date.