ICE Q3 Revenue Rises 15% as Exchange Activity Drives Growth

Intercontinental Exchange (ICE) reported record third-quarter net revenue as transaction activity across its exchanges, particularly in energy and financial markets, drove double-digit growth. Adjusted diluted earnings per share rose 18%, while the company set full-year recurring-revenue growth expectations of 9% for Exchanges and 8% for Fixed Income & Data Services.

Net revenue increased 15% from a year earlier to $2.77 billion in the quarter ended September 30, 2026. Transaction net revenue climbed 23% to $1.40 billion, outpacing the 7% increase in recurring revenue to $1.37 billion.

Adjusted operating income rose 19% on a constant-currency basis to $1.70 billion, while the adjusted operating margin widened by two percentage points to 61%. Adjusted diluted EPS increased to $2.02 from $1.71. Adjusted operating expenses were 9% higher at $1.07 billion, and the adjusted effective tax rate rose to 24% from 21%.

On a GAAP basis, operating income advanced 20% to $1.41 billion, net income attributable to ICE rose 15% to $940 million, and diluted EPS increased 18% to $1.67. The GAAP operating margin expanded to 51% from 49%.

Exchange activity leads growth

The Exchanges segment generated $1.54 billion of net revenue, up 22% from the prior-year quarter. Transaction net revenue increased 28% to $1.12 billion, while recurring revenue rose 8% to $422 million. Adjusted operating income grew 26% to $1.17 billion, and the adjusted margin widened three points to 76%.

Energy revenue increased 26% in constant currency to $603 million. Agricultural commodities revenue rose 62% to $83 million, financials revenue increased 37% to $190 million, and cash equities and equity options net revenue grew 25% to $132 million. Exchange data and connectivity services revenue was 10% higher at $292 million.

ICE pointed to expanding participation across several energy markets. JKM liquefied natural gas volume increased 45% from a year earlier, while TTF participation recorded double-digit growth. U.S. financial gas open interest reached a record 13.4 million lots on July 1, and U.S. power options volume rose 17% to a third-quarter record. Henry Hub options volume increased 34%.

Data businesses maintain recurring growth

Fixed Income & Data Services revenue rose 9% in constant currency to $674 million. Recurring revenue increased 9% to $538 million, while transaction revenue grew 11% on the same basis to $136 million.

Fixed Income Data & Analytics revenue increased 8% to $336 million, and Data & Network Technology revenue rose 10% to a record $202 million. CDS clearing revenue grew 13% in constant currency to $102 million. Segment adjusted operating income increased 10% to $309 million, with the adjusted margin improving one point to 46%.

Annual subscription value reached $2.11 billion, up 8% in constant currency from $1.95 billion a year earlier. ICE defines the measure as the annual value of contracted subscriptions for the following 12 months, excluding potential new sales, terminations and price changes during that period.

Mortgage revenue rises, but profitability declines

Mortgage Technology revenue increased 4% to $549 million, including a 6% rise in servicing software revenue to a record $229 million. Data and analytics revenue also grew 6%, while closing solutions revenue increased 4% and origination technology revenue was up 1%.

The segment’s recurring and transaction revenues each rose 4%. However, adjusted operating expenses increased 8% to $330 million, contributing to a 2% decline in adjusted operating income to $219 million. The adjusted operating margin narrowed to 40% from 42%.

ICE said its mortgage network touches about 90% of U.S. mortgages and spans origination and servicing through its Encompass and MSP platforms. The company highlighted ICE Aurora, which embeds agentic artificial intelligence into those systems while retaining human approvals for regulated workflows.

Cash flow, capital returns and outlook

Adjusted free cash flow for the first nine months of 2026 increased 17% to a record $3.73 billion. ICE returned about $2.5 billion to stockholders over the period, including $1.6 billion through share repurchases.

For 2026, the company now specifies 9% recurring-revenue growth for Exchanges, compared with its previous high-single-digit expectation. It expects 8% recurring-revenue growth for Fixed Income & Data Services, versus an earlier range of 7% to 8%. The outlook for Mortgage Technology revenue growth remains in the low-to-mid-single digits.

ICE expects fourth-quarter adjusted operating expenses of $1.082 billion to $1.092 billion and adjusted non-operating expense of $175 million to $185 million. Full-year capital expenditure and software investment is now expected to be about $1.05 billion, compared with the prior estimate of approximately $850 million. The projected full-year effective tax rate remains 24% to 26%.

At September 30, ICE had $936 million of unrestricted cash and $23.30 billion of total debt. Adjusted debt was $19.60 billion after excluding $3.70 billion of debt related to the proposed MarketAxess transaction, resulting in an adjusted debt-to-adjusted EBITDA ratio of 2.7 times.

ICE identified the completion and integration of MarketAxess as a source of uncertainty, including the risk of delays, higher-than-expected costs, difficulty retaining key personnel or failure to realize anticipated savings and synergies. Other risks cited by the company include financial-market volatility, shifts in trading and mortgage activity, regulatory changes, geopolitical conflict, cybersecurity incidents, technology disruptions and competition.