CME vs ICE: CME and Intercontinental Exchange compared
The short version
From the latest prices and each company's SEC filings. Who's ahead on each measure, not which to buy.
- CME is the larger company, worth $98.5B, close to Intercontinental Exchange's $87.9B.
- Intercontinental Exchange grew revenue faster over the last year (+10.7% vs +0.8%).
- CME keeps more of each dollar of revenue as operating profit (65.1% vs 40.7%).
- On earnings, Intercontinental Exchange is the cheaper stock (22.6x vs 23.2x).
- CME's price assumes faster free cash flow growth: about 7% a year, against 7% for Intercontinental Exchange (reverse DCF).
Side by side
The stronger figure is shaded where higher (or, for valuation multiples, lower) reads as better. How the implied growth works.
| Measure | CME | ICE |
|---|---|---|
| Market cap | $98.5B | $87.9B |
| Share price | $270.27 | $156.19 |
| Revenue (last fiscal year) | $6.5B | $12.6B |
| Free cash flow (last fiscal year) | $4.2B | $3.9B |
| Revenue growth, last year | +0.8% | +10.7% |
| Revenue growth per year, last 5 fiscal years | +8.6% | +8.4% |
| Operating margin | 65.1% | 40.7% |
| Net margin | 63.1% | 30.1% |
| Return on equity | 16.1% | 13.7% |
| P/E (trailing) | 23.2x | 22.6x |
| Price / free cash flow | 23.5x | 20.5x |
| EV / EBITDA | 16.8x | 13.8x |
| FCF growth the price implies | 7.1% | 6.7% |
| Dividend yield | 1.9% | 1.2% |
| Debt / equity | 6.34x | 4.89x |
| Fundamental grade | C | C |
| Superinvestors holding it | 10 | 0 |
| Insider purchases, last 12 months | 9 | 10 |
Results from SEC filings
Revenue and free cash flow by fiscal year, from each company's 10-K filings.
CME
| Year | Revenue | Free cash flow | Op. margin |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2021 | $4.7B | $2.3B | 56.4% |
| 2022 | $5.0B | $3.0B | 60.1% |
| 2023 | $5.6B | $3.4B | 61.6% |
| 2024 | $6.1B | $3.6B | 64.1% |
| 2025 | $6.5B | $4.2B | 64.9% |
Intercontinental Exchange
| Year | Revenue | Free cash flow | Op. margin |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2021 | $9.2B | $2.7B | 37.6% |
| 2022 | $9.6B | $3.1B | 37.8% |
| 2023 | $9.9B | $3.1B | 37.3% |
| 2024 | $11.8B | $3.9B | 36.6% |
| 2025 | $12.6B | $3.9B | 39.0% |
Where the revenue comes from
CME · by products, 2025
Clearing and Transaction Fees$5.3B81%
MarketData$803M12%
OtherRevenue$436M7%
Intercontinental Exchange · by segments, 2025
Exchanges$8.1B64%
Fixed Income and Data Services$2.4B19%
Mortgage Technology$2.1B17%
Compare them in fullFifteen years of statements, quarterly results, DCF and IRR models, and any number of peers side by side.
Open CME in InvestinglyQuestions
Which is bigger, CME or Intercontinental Exchange?
CME (CME), at $98.5B against $87.9B.
Is CME or ICE cheaper?
By trailing P/E, Intercontinental Exchange (22.6x) is cheaper than CME (23.2x). A lower multiple can also mean the market expects less growth.
Which grows faster, CME or ICE?
Intercontinental Exchange: revenue grew +10.7% over the last year, against +0.8%.
Prices and ratios as of the last daily update; statements from SEC filings. Information only, not investment advice.