ICE Reports Solid Earnings for 2017, Books Big Benefits from Tax Reform

Intercontinental Exchange (NYSE:ICE), a global network of exchanges and clearing houses, has reported its financial results for the fourth quarter and full year ending December 31, 2017, which showed a multi-million-dollar benefit from recent U.S. tax changes, according to an ICE statement.

During Q4 2017, ICE unveiled the adjusted net income attributable to the group at $1.2 billion on $1.1 billion of consolidated revenues less transaction-based expenses. This included $764 million of a deferred tax benefit related to U.S. tax reform.

Excluding the tax benefits, ICE’s earnings were higher 31 percent year-on-year from $352 million in Q4 ‎2016‎. Furthermore, ICE reported diluted earnings per share (EPS) of $2.08 in Q4 2017 on a GAAP basis, a gain of 252 percent year-on-year from $0.59 in Q4 ‎2016‎.

Taking a full-year perspective, ICE‘s total revenues, less transaction-based expenses, in the twelve months ending December 31, 2017 increased 3 percent to $4.6 billion compared to ‎$4.49‎ billion in ‎2016‎.

Additionally, operating income was also on the uptick in 2017, with ICE orchestrating a figure of $2.5 billion, compared to just $1.4 billion the year earlier, good for a jump of 78 percent year-on-year.

ICE completed the last three months through December 2017 with consolidated operating expenses at $552 million, a slight drop of 4.0 percent year-on-year from $580 in Q4 ‎2016‎.

In a statement, ICE Chairman and CEO Jeffrey C. Sprecher said: “We are pleased to deliver our twelfth consecutive year of record revenue. We achieved this by executing on our strategy to deliver best-in-class trading, clearing, listings and information services while continuing to expand our range of content and distribution solutions to meet the evolving needs of the market. As we look to 2018 and beyond, we are focused on innovation and growth to serve our customers and build shareholder value.”

Scott A. Hill, ICE CFO, added: “In addition to investing in growth, we returned more capital to shareholders in 2017 than any year in our history enabled by another year of record revenue, disciplined expense management and strong cash flow. We remain committed to creating long-term value for our shareholders through operational execution and strategic investments to build on our track record of growth.”