FDS vs MCO vs ICE Stock Comparison

Factset Research Systems, Moodys and Intercontinental Exchange Prices as of Oct 27, 2026 Peers: Industry group
FDS Factset Research Systems Inc
$309.58 +13.4% 1M +6.6% 1Y
Market cap
$11.20B
P/E
21.0x
Revenue (TTM)
$2.48B
Div. yield
–
Financial Data and Analytics Financial Services
4 wins
MCO Moodys Corp /De/
$473.76 +1.0% 1M -4.3% 1Y
Market cap
$81.68B
P/E
28.4x
Revenue (TTM)
$8.18B
Div. yield
0.85%
Financial Data and Analytics Financial Services
6 wins

Head to Head

12 decided of 12

Moodys leads on 6 of the 12 questions below (Moodys 6, Factset Research Systems 4, Intercontinental Exchange 2). Which ones matter depends on what you are buying for; a cheap multiple and slow growth often come together.

QuestionFDSMCOICELeader
Larger companyMarket capitalisation $11.20B $81.68B $87.61B ICE
Cheaper on earningsLower P/E, profitable companies only 21.0x 28.4x 21.7x FDS
Cheaper on forward earningsLower price / next fiscal year consensus EPS 16.7x 26.4x 17.9x FDS
Faster revenue growthRevenue growth, trailing twelve months +6.7% +9.0% +6.9% MCO
More profitableNet margin, trailing twelve months 21.5% 35.3% 30.1% MCO
Better return on capitalReturn on invested capital 16.9% 27.9% 8.5% MCO
Less leveragedLower net debt / EBITDA 1.3x 1.3x 2.6x FDS
Higher dividend yieldTrailing dividend yield 0.00% 0.85% 0.01% MCO
Better 1-year returnPrice return, last 12 months +6.6% -4.3% -2.8% FDS
Better 5-year returnAnnualised price return, 5 years -6.7%/yr +3.1%/yr +2.8%/yr MCO
Less volatileAnnualised volatility, 1 year 48.3% 28.4% 25.8% ICE
Higher overall scoreMean of the five percentile scores vs peers 56/100 60/100 54/100 MCO

Percentile Scorecard

FDSMCOICE

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

AxisFDSMCOICE
Valuation 30 #658 of 940 19 #758 of 940 59 #40 of 96
Growth 29 #466 of 655 73 #179 of 655 45 #37 of 66
Profitability 85 #97 of 633 96 #25 of 633 83 #12 of 64
Financial Health 63 #266 of 714 53 #338 of 714 36 #60 of 93
Shareholder Returns 72 #201 of 709 61 #279 of 709 46 #21 of 38
Overall 56 60 54
  • FDS ranked among 1,003 companies in Financial Services
  • MCO ranked among 1,003 companies in Financial Services
  • 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

PeriodFDSMCOICESPY
1 month +13.4%+1.0%+0.7% -0.2%
3 months +9.0%-2.2%+1.7% +3.9%
6 months +34.9%+3.4%-0.6% +8.2%
Year to date +6.7%-7.3%-4.0% +12.9%
1 year +6.6%-4.3%-2.8% +12.3%
3 years -26.4%+56.9%+48.4% +87.4%
3 years, per year -9.7%+16.2%+14.1% +23.3%
5 years -29.4%+16.5%+14.7% +67.9%
5 years, per year -6.7%+3.1%+2.8% +10.9%
10 years +100.7%+363.7%+192.0% +261.1%
10 years, per year +7.2%+16.6%+11.3% +13.7%

Risk

MeasureFDSMCOICESPY
Volatility, 1Y 48.3%28.4%25.8% 12.7%
Downside volatility, 1Y 50.4%30.3%27.5% 12.7%
Beta vs S&P 500, 1Y -0.050.480.16 1.00
Return / volatility, 1Y 0.14-0.15-0.11 0.97
Max drawdown, 5Y -61.7%-42.2%-35.1% -25.4%
From 52-week high -7.7%-12.2%-11.2% -1.2%
52-week high $335.45$539.61$175.10 $779.14
52-week low $190.06$412.23$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.

MultipleFDSMCOICE
P/E now vs peer median 21.2xmedian 13.0x 28.4xmedian 13.0x 21.7xmedian 28.3x
P/S now vs peer median 4.4xmedian 3.2x 10.0xmedian 3.2x 6.5xmedian 2.9x
EV/EBITDA now vs peer median 13.6xmedian 7.4x 21.0xmedian 7.4x 15.0xmedian 13.5x
P/FCF now vs peer median 15.4xmedian 10.8x 27.4xmedian 10.8x 17.2xmedian 16.0x
P/B now vs peer median 5.5xmedian 1.2x 23.9xmedian 1.2x 2.9xmedian 2.4x
PEG now vs peer median 3.22median 0.87 1.07median 0.87 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 monthsFDSMCOICE
Revenue $2.48B $8.18B $13.43B
Gross profit $1.25B $6.10B –
Operating income $699.96M $3.64B $5.47B
Net income $533.48M $2.89B $4.10B
Free cash flow $707.48M $2.98B $5.08B
EPS (diluted) $14.57 $16.64 $7.13
Cash & equivalents $233.34M $1.51B $1.07B
Total debt $1.37B $6.91B $19.85B
Shares (diluted) 36.61M 173.30M 566.00M
Enterprise value $10.05B $74.75B $81.35B

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
MetricFDSMCOICE
P/E 21.2x 28.4x 21.7x
P/FCF 15.4x 27.4x 17.2x
P/Operating cash flow 13.3x 24.5x 15.8x
P/S 4.4x 10.0x 6.5x
P/B 5.5x 23.9x 2.9x
P/Tangible book 71.6x 47.5x 5.9x
EV/EBITDA 13.6x 21.0x 15.0x
EV/EBIT 17.2x 23.9x 19.2x
EV/Revenue 4.9x 10.6x 7.8x
EV/FCF 17.0x 29.2x 20.7x
EV/Operating cash flow 14.6x 26.1x 19.1x
PEG (3Y EPS CAGR) 3.22 1.07 0.65

Growth

14 metrics
MetricFDSMCOICE
Revenue growth (1Y) 6.7% 9.0% 6.9%
Revenue CAGR (3Y) 5.9% 12.6% 11.9%
Gross profit growth (1Y) 2.4% 10.3% –
Gross profit CAGR (3Y) 4.1% 14.6% –
Operating income growth (1Y) -6.5% 16.0% 16.4%
Operating income CAGR (3Y) 3.6% 23.3% 13.9%
Net income growth (1Y) -10.6% 28.5% 34.1%
Net income CAGR (3Y) 4.4% 24.0% 33.1%
EPS growth (1Y) -6.3% 33.1% 36.6%
EPS CAGR (3Y) 6.6% 26.5% 33.3%
Operating cash flow growth (1Y) 13.2% 22.5% 13.1%
Operating cash flow CAGR (3Y) 8.4% 17.5% 14.9%
Free cash flow growth (1Y) 14.6% 24.1% 13.9%
Free cash flow CAGR (3Y) 6.6% 18.8% 14.1%

Profitability

14 metrics
MetricFDSMCOICE
Gross margin 50.6% 74.6% –
EBITDA margin 35.6% 50.6% 52.3%
Operating margin 28.3% 44.6% 40.7%
Pretax margin 26.2% 45.2% 39.7%
Net margin 21.5% 35.3% 30.1%
FCF margin 28.6% 36.4% 37.8%
Operating cash flow margin 33.2% 40.7% 41.1%
Return on equity 26.4% 87.8% 13.9%
Return on assets 12.8% 19.6% 2.3%
Return on invested capital 16.9% 27.9% 8.5%
Return on capital employed 22.8% 31.8% 9.7%
Asset turnover 0.6x 0.6x 0.1x
Cash conversion (OCF / net income) 1.5x 1.2x 1.3x
Stock comp / revenue 3.4% 2.8% 2.0%

Financial Health

11 metrics
MetricFDSMCOICE
Debt / assets 33.1% 46.6% 11.4%
Debt / equity 0.7x 2.0x 0.7x
Net debt / EBITDA 1.3x 1.3x 2.6x
Debt / FCF 1.9x 2.3x 3.9x
Liabilities / assets 51.6% 77.0% 83.0%
Equity / assets 48.4% 23.0% 17.0%
Interest coverage 12.8x – 6.8x
Current ratio 0.6x 1.3x 1.0x
Quick ratio 0.5x 1.3x 0.0x
Cash ratio 0.2x 0.5x 0.0x
Altman Z-score 5.00 7.58 0.73

Shareholder Returns

7 metrics
MetricFDSMCOICE
Dividend yield 1.5% 0.9% 1.3%
Net buyback yield 5.6% 3.6% 2.3%
Shareholder yield 7.1% 4.5% 3.6%
Payout ratio (earnings) – 24.6% 27.8%
Payout ratio (FCF) – 23.8% 22.5%
Dividend growth (1Y) – 3.0% 6.1%
Dividend CAGR (3Y) – 8.8% 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.

ConsensusFDSMCOICE
Forward P/E 16.7xFY2027 26.4xFY2026 17.9xFY2026
EPS, next fiscal year $18.55FY2027 $17.93FY2026 $8.69FY2026
EPS growth, next FY +3.0%FY2027 +20.0%FY2026 +25.0%FY2026
EPS growth, the year after +21.9% -1.5% -3.2%
Revenue, next fiscal year $2.68BFY2027 $8.69BFY2026 $10.54BFY2026
Revenue growth, next FY +8.1%FY2027 +12.6%FY2026 +6.1%FY2026
Revenue growth, the year after +9.7% -2.0% +16.0%

Institutional Ownership

13F filings, quarter ended Jun 30, 2026
HoldersFDSMCOICE
Held by institutions 100.0% 90.8% 92.5%
Institutions holding 769 1,404 1,653
Change in shares held, QoQ +6.1% -1.6% +1.4%
Institutions buying 415 644 735
Institutions selling 244 522 694
Buyers to sellers 1.70 1.23 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.

FDSMCOICE
FDS 1.00 0.60 0.42
MCO 0.60 1.00 0.56
ICE 0.42 0.56 1.00

Add a Peer

Largest companies in the same industry

Related Comparisons

Frequently Asked Questions

Which is bigger, FDS, MCO and ICE?

Intercontinental Exchange (ICE) is the largest by market capitalisation: Factset Research Systems (FDS) $11.20B, Moodys (MCO) $81.68B, Intercontinental Exchange (ICE) $87.61B.

Which stock is cheaper, FDS, MCO and ICE?

Factset Research Systems (FDS) trades on the lowest price-to-earnings ratio (Factset Research Systems (FDS) 21.0x, Moodys (MCO) 28.4x, Intercontinental Exchange (ICE) 21.7x). On next year's consensus earnings, Factset Research Systems (FDS) is cheapest (Factset Research Systems (FDS) 16.7x, Moodys (MCO) 26.4x, Intercontinental Exchange (ICE) 17.9x). A lower multiple can reflect slower expected growth, so read it next to the growth figures.

Which company is growing faster?

Moodys (MCO) grew revenue fastest over the trailing twelve months: Factset Research Systems (FDS) +6.7%, Moodys (MCO) +9.0%, Intercontinental Exchange (ICE) +6.9%.

Which company is more profitable?

Moodys (MCO) has the highest net margin (Factset Research Systems (FDS) 21.5%, Moodys (MCO) 35.3%, Intercontinental Exchange (ICE) 30.1%). On return on invested capital, Moodys (MCO) leads (Factset Research Systems (FDS) 16.9%, Moodys (MCO) 27.9%, Intercontinental Exchange (ICE) 8.5%).

Which stock has performed better?

Over the past year Factset Research Systems (FDS) returned the most: Factset Research Systems (FDS) +6.6%, Moodys (MCO) -4.3%, Intercontinental Exchange (ICE) -2.8%. Over five years, Moodys (MCO) compounded fastest (Factset Research Systems (FDS) -6.7%/yr, Moodys (MCO) +3.1%/yr, Intercontinental Exchange (ICE) +2.8%/yr). Returns are price only, before dividends.

Which pays a higher dividend?

Moodys (MCO) has the highest dividend yield: Factset Research Systems (FDS) 0.00%, Moodys (MCO) 0.85%, Intercontinental Exchange (ICE) 0.01%. Factset Research Systems (FDS) pays no regular dividend.

Which stock is riskier?

By one-year price volatility, Intercontinental Exchange (ICE) has been the steadiest (Factset Research Systems (FDS) 48.3%, Moodys (MCO) 28.4%, Intercontinental Exchange (ICE) 25.8%). Volatility measures how widely the price swings, not the risk of the business.

Which is the better stock, FDS, MCO 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, Moodys (MCO) leads on 6. 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.