CME vs MKTX vs ICE Stock Comparison

Cme, Marketaxess Holdings and Intercontinental Exchange Prices as of Oct 28, 2026 Peers: Industry group
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CME Cme Group Inc.
$294.04 +11.7% 1M +10.4% 1Y
Market cap
$105.10B
P/E
23.8x
Revenue (TTM)
$6.97B
Div. yield
3.40%
Exchanges Financial Services
10 wins
MKTX Marketaxess Holdings Inc
$164.82 +0.5% 1M +0.9% 1Y
Market cap
$5.80B
P/E
19.9x
Revenue (TTM)
$871.61M
Div. yield
1.88%
Exchanges Financial Services
1 win

Head to Head

12 decided of 12

Cme leads on 10 of the 12 questions below (Cme 10, Marketaxess Holdings 1, Intercontinental Exchange 1). Which ones matter depends on what you are buying for; a cheap multiple and slow growth often come together.

QuestionCMEMKTXICELeader
Larger companyMarket capitalisation $105.10B $5.80B $87.55B CME
Cheaper on earningsLower P/E, profitable companies only 23.8x 19.9x 21.8x MKTX
Cheaper on forward earningsLower price / next fiscal year consensus EPS 25.0x 20.2x 18.0x ICE
Faster revenue growthRevenue growth, trailing twelve months +9.0% +3.9% +6.9% CME
More profitableNet margin, trailing twelve months 63.3% — 30.1% CME
Better return on capitalReturn on invested capital 11.7% — 8.5% CME
Less leveragedLower net debt / EBITDA 0.2x — 2.6x CME
Higher dividend yieldTrailing dividend yield 3.40% 1.88% 1.31% CME
Better 1-year returnPrice return, last 12 months +10.4% +0.9% -0.8% CME
Better 5-year returnAnnualised price return, 5 years +5.9%/yr -16.6%/yr +2.4%/yr CME
Less volatileAnnualised volatility, 1 year 25.4% 36.4% 25.8% CME
Higher overall scoreMean of the five percentile scores vs peers 60/100 48/100 55/100 CME

Percentile Scorecard

CMEMKTXICE

Each axis is the mean percentile of its metrics against the company's industry group. 100 is the best in the group, 50 the middle.

Scores by Axis

AxisCMEMKTXICE
Valuation 44 #54 of 96 31 #67 of 96 62 #37 of 96
Growth 22 #51 of 65 17 #54 of 65 45 #36 of 65
Profitability 91 #7 of 65 89 #8 of 65 86 #10 of 65
Financial Health 54 #43 of 92 – 35 #60 of 92
Shareholder Returns 92 #4 of 38 54 #18 of 38 49 #20 of 38
Overall 60 48 55
  • CME ranked among 110 companies in Capital Markets
  • MKTX ranked among 110 companies in Capital Markets
  • ICE ranked among 110 companies in Capital Markets

Price Performance

Price return, split-adjusted, before dividends. Click a name to hide or show it.

Returns

PeriodCMEMKTXICESPY
1 month +11.7%+0.5%+2.0% +0.9%
3 months +10.8%+31.1%+1.1% +5.9%
6 months +2.4%+2.5%-0.1% +8.5%
Year to date +7.7%-9.1%-3.6% +13.3%
1 year +10.4%+0.9%-0.8% +12.4%
3 years +40.7%-20.0%+49.0% +88.1%
3 years, per year +12.1%-7.2%+14.2% +23.5%
5 years +33.3%-59.7%+12.7% +68.2%
5 years, per year +5.9%-16.6%+2.4% +11.0%
10 years +194.3%+9.8%+191.3% +263.4%
10 years, per year +11.4%+0.9%+11.3% +13.8%

Risk

MeasureCMEMKTXICESPY
Volatility, 1Y 25.4%36.4%25.8% 12.7%
Downside volatility, 1Y 27.7%27.8%27.5% 12.7%
Beta vs S&P 500, 1Y -0.380.160.16 1.00
Return / volatility, 1Y 0.410.02-0.03 0.98
Max drawdown, 5Y -33.1%-73.7%-35.1% -25.4%
From 52-week high -9.9%-14.9%-10.9% -0.9%
52-week high $326.46$193.61$175.10 $779.14
52-week low $218.58$109.09$122.91 $631.97

Valuation History

Weekly multiples on trailing twelve-month fundamentals. Negative or extreme readings (a loss year, a collapsed denominator) are left out so the chart stays readable.

MultipleCMEMKTXICE
P/E now vs peer median 23.8xmedian 30.1x 19.9xmedian 30.1x 21.8xmedian 30.1x
P/S now vs peer median 15.1xmedian 3.0x 6.7xmedian 3.0x 6.5xmedian 3.0x
EV/EBITDA now vs peer median 21.8xmedian 14.1x —median 14.1x 15.0xmedian 14.1x
P/FCF now vs peer median 24.3xmedian 15.8x 29.7xmedian 15.8x 17.2xmedian 15.8x
P/B now vs peer median 4.0xmedian 2.4x 4.5xmedian 2.4x 3.0xmedian 2.4x
PEG now vs peer median 1.74median 0.54 2.50median 0.54 0.65median 0.54

Financial History

Reported figures by fiscal period, placed on the calendar year (or quarter) each period ended in, so companies with different fiscal years line up.

Trailing twelve monthsCMEMKTXICE
Revenue $6.97B $871.61M $13.43B
Operating income $4.58B $341.21M $5.47B
Net income $4.42B – $4.10B
Free cash flow $4.33B – $5.08B
EPS (diluted) $12.31 $8.29 $7.13
Cash & equivalents $2.20B $381.05M $1.07B
Total debt $13.69B – $19.85B
Shares (diluted) 358.64M 35.24M 566.00M
Enterprise value $93.43B $5.82B $81.36B

All Metrics

58 metrics · best in bold

Bold marks the best reading: the lowest positive value for multiples, leverage and payout, the highest for everything else. The bar under each value is its percentile against that company's own peers. Hover a value for its rank and the peer median.

Valuation

12 metrics
MetricCMEMKTXICE
P/E 23.8x 19.9x 21.8x
P/FCF 24.3x 29.7x 17.2x
P/Operating cash flow 23.7x – 15.9x
P/S 15.1x 6.7x 6.5x
P/B 4.0x 4.5x 3.0x
P/Tangible book 4.4x 4.9x 5.9x
EV/EBITDA 21.8x – 15.0x
EV/EBIT 23.2x – 19.3x
EV/Revenue 15.2x 6.7x 7.9x
EV/FCF 24.5x – 20.8x
EV/Operating cash flow 24.0x – 19.1x
PEG (3Y EPS CAGR) 1.74 2.50 0.65

Growth

14 metrics
MetricCMEMKTXICE
Revenue growth (1Y) 9.0% 3.9% 6.9%
Revenue CAGR (3Y) 9.2% 5.9% 11.9%
Gross profit growth (1Y) – – –
Gross profit CAGR (3Y) – – –
Operating income growth (1Y) 10.1% -1.3% 16.4%
Operating income CAGR (3Y) 12.2% 2.6% 13.9%
Net income growth (1Y) 17.3% – 34.1%
Net income CAGR (3Y) 13.1% – 33.1%
EPS growth (1Y) 19.4% 40.2% 36.6%
EPS CAGR (3Y) 13.7% 8.0% 33.3%
Operating cash flow growth (1Y) 6.4% – 13.1%
Operating cash flow CAGR (3Y) 9.3% – 14.9%
Free cash flow growth (1Y) 6.1% – 13.9%
Free cash flow CAGR (3Y) 9.4% – 14.1%

Profitability

14 metrics
MetricCMEMKTXICE
Gross margin – – –
EBITDA margin 69.8% – 52.3%
Operating margin 65.7% – 40.7%
Pretax margin 82.8% – 39.7%
Net margin 63.3% – 30.1%
FCF margin 62.1% – 37.8%
Operating cash flow margin 63.5% – 41.1%
Return on equity 16.6% 23.3% 13.9%
Return on assets 2.3% 12.5% 2.3%
Return on invested capital 11.7% – 8.5%
Return on capital employed 12.3% – 9.7%
Asset turnover 0.0x 0.4x 0.1x
Cash conversion (OCF / net income) 1.0x – 1.3x
Stock comp / revenue 1.4% – 2.0%

Financial Health

11 metrics
MetricCMEMKTXICE
Debt / assets 1.8% – 11.4%
Debt / equity 0.1x – 0.7x
Net debt / EBITDA 0.2x – 2.6x
Debt / FCF 0.8x – 3.9x
Liabilities / assets 86.2% 43.3% 83.0%
Equity / assets 13.8% 56.0% 17.0%
Interest coverage 26.2x – 6.8x
Current ratio 1.0x – 1.0x
Quick ratio 0.0x – 0.0x
Cash ratio 0.0x – 0.0x
Altman Z-score 0.56 – 0.73

Shareholder Returns

7 metrics
MetricCMEMKTXICE
Dividend yield 3.4% 1.9% 1.3%
Net buyback yield – – 2.3%
Shareholder yield 3.4% 1.9% 3.6%
Payout ratio (earnings) – – 27.8%
Payout ratio (FCF) – – 22.5%
Dividend growth (1Y) – – 6.1%
Dividend CAGR (3Y) – – 8.3%

Analyst Estimates

Solid lines are reported fiscal-year results; dashed lines are the consensus for the years ahead. Hover a year for the analysts' high and low, and how each result compared with its estimate.

ConsensusCMEMKTXICE
Forward P/E 25.0xFY2026 20.2xFY2026 18.0xFY2026
EPS, next fiscal year $11.74FY2026 $8.17FY2026 $8.69FY2026
EPS growth, next FY +4.8%FY2026 +10.6%FY2026 +25.0%FY2026
EPS growth, the year after +19.0% +10.0% -3.2%
Revenue, next fiscal year $7.27BFY2026 $944.60MFY2026 $10.54BFY2026
Revenue growth, next FY +11.6%FY2026 +11.7%FY2026 +6.1%FY2026
Revenue growth, the year after +7.0% -2.0% +16.0%

Institutional Ownership

13F filings, quarter ended Jun 30, 2026
HoldersCMEMKTXICE
Held by institutions 88.9% 100.0% 92.5%
Institutions holding 1,691 394 1,653
Change in shares held, QoQ +0.4% +2.3% +1.4%
Institutions buying 822 189 735
Institutions selling 655 164 694
Buyers to sellers 1.25 1.15 1.06

Return Correlation

Daily returns, last 12 months

1.00 means two stocks move in lockstep, 0 that they move independently. Pairs below about 0.5 diversify each other.

CMEMKTXICE
CME 1.00 0.30 0.51
MKTX 0.30 1.00 0.34
ICE 0.51 0.34 1.00

Add a Peer

Largest companies in the same industry

Related Comparisons

Frequently Asked Questions

Which is bigger, CME, MKTX and ICE?

Cme (CME) is the largest by market capitalisation: Cme (CME) $105.10B, Marketaxess Holdings (MKTX) $5.80B, Intercontinental Exchange (ICE) $87.55B.

Which stock is cheaper, CME, MKTX and ICE?

Marketaxess Holdings (MKTX) trades on the lowest price-to-earnings ratio (Cme (CME) 23.8x, Marketaxess Holdings (MKTX) 19.9x, Intercontinental Exchange (ICE) 21.8x). On next year's consensus earnings, Intercontinental Exchange (ICE) is cheapest (Cme (CME) 25.0x, Marketaxess Holdings (MKTX) 20.2x, Intercontinental Exchange (ICE) 18.0x). A lower multiple can reflect slower expected growth, so read it next to the growth figures.

Which company is growing faster?

Cme (CME) grew revenue fastest over the trailing twelve months: Cme (CME) +9.0%, Marketaxess Holdings (MKTX) +3.9%, Intercontinental Exchange (ICE) +6.9%.

Which company is more profitable?

Cme (CME) has the highest net margin (Cme (CME) 63.3%, Intercontinental Exchange (ICE) 30.1%). On return on invested capital, Cme (CME) leads (Cme (CME) 11.7%, Intercontinental Exchange (ICE) 8.5%).

Which stock has performed better?

Over the past year Cme (CME) returned the most: Cme (CME) +10.4%, Marketaxess Holdings (MKTX) +0.9%, Intercontinental Exchange (ICE) -0.8%. Over five years, Cme (CME) compounded fastest (Cme (CME) +5.9%/yr, Marketaxess Holdings (MKTX) -16.6%/yr, Intercontinental Exchange (ICE) +2.4%/yr). Returns are price only, before dividends.

Which pays a higher dividend?

Cme (CME) has the highest dividend yield: Cme (CME) 3.40%, Marketaxess Holdings (MKTX) 1.88%, Intercontinental Exchange (ICE) 1.31%.

Which stock is riskier?

By one-year price volatility, Cme (CME) has been the steadiest (Cme (CME) 25.4%, Marketaxess Holdings (MKTX) 36.4%, Intercontinental Exchange (ICE) 25.8%). Volatility measures how widely the price swings, not the risk of the business.

Which is the better stock, CME, MKTX and ICE?

There is no single answer; it depends on what you are buying for. On the 12 head-to-head measures on this page, Cme (CME) leads on 10. Business Quant does not give investment advice; use the comparison as a starting point for your own research.

Data from SEC filings, exchange prices and consensus estimates, via Business Quant. Percentile scores compare each company with its own peer group, so two companies' scores are each relative to different peers unless you rank against the whole market. Price returns exclude dividends. Nothing on this page is investment advice.