Verdict: Side-by-side breakdown using the Bull Rankings model. ICE scored 78.0, NDAQ scored 79.0 — NDAQ leads.
Compare another set
ICE
Intercontinental Exchange, Inc.
Financial Data & Stock Exchanges · Financial strength
52.4Fin
$156.19 · $87.7B
fundamentals as of
Strength gap
1.2
ICE leads
NDAQ
Nasdaq, Inc.
Financial Data & Stock Exchanges · Financial strength
51.2Fin
$93.65 · $52.3B
fundamentals as of
At a glance · who leads each dimension, on the model's own rules
CheapestICE21.9x
Fastest growthNDAQ+11.6%
Strongest balance sheetICE0.69
Side by side · every name on one set of axes
Growth against the P/E multiple. Up and to the right is cheaper and faster — the quality-growth idea in one picture. Points beyond the axis are pinned to the edge and marked off-scale rather than allowed to compress everything else.
Fundamentals, head-to-head
ICE
NDAQ
$4.6bB
FCF
$2.0bC+
+7.5%B
Rev
+11.6%B
0.69B
D/E
0.78B
21.9xC
P/E
27.3xC
2.15C
PEG
1.47B
Winner per row is the stronger grade; where grades tie, the better figure breaks it. A true tie or a missing value shows no highlight.
The companies
ICEIntercontinental Exchange, Inc.
Financial Data & Stock Exchanges · $156.19 · beta 0.94
Why now
Financial Data & Stock Exchanges · market cap $87.7b. 11% off the 52-week high of $176.05. 15 sell-side analysts rate this a Buy with a mean 1-yr target of $186.00 (implying +19% upside).
Moat
Net margin 38% is exceptional — pricing-power territory rare outside premium software, branded staples, and specialty pharma. ROE 14% meets the long-run market sustainable threshold — solid but not differentiated; the durability comes from elsewhere. FCF converts 115% of net income — earnings translate cleanly into cash.
Risk
Mature compounder — the risk is paying up for quality at a moment when growth is decelerating. Watch for sequential revenue + margin trends; the inflection from "compounder" to "ex-compounder" is hard to spot until the multiple already started compressing.
NDAQNasdaq, Inc.
Financial Data & Stock Exchanges · $93.65 · beta 1.00
Why now
Financial Data & Stock Exchanges · market cap $52.3b. 8% off the 52-week high of $101.79. Revenue growing +12%, comfortably above the S&P median. 16 sell-side analysts rate this a Buy with a mean 1-yr target of $108.69 (implying +16% upside).
Moat
Net margin 35% is exceptional — pricing-power territory rare outside premium software, branded staples, and specialty pharma. ROE 17% is above 15% — the equity base is compounding at a rate the market struggles to discount accurately. FCF converts 99% of net income — earnings translate cleanly into cash.
Risk
Mature compounder — the risk is paying up for quality at a moment when growth is decelerating. Watch for sequential revenue + margin trends; the inflection from "compounder" to "ex-compounder" is hard to spot until the multiple already started compressing.
Verdict — model-derived comparison
Generating verdict… typically 5–10 seconds
Not investment advice. The Bull Rankings publishes a quantitative ranking model and accompanying analysis for general informational purposes only. Nothing on this page is a recommendation to buy, sell, or hold any security; nothing is personalized to your circumstances, risk tolerance, or tax situation. Investing carries the risk of loss — invest at your own risk and consider consulting a licensed financial professional before acting on anything you read here. See terms and methodology for full disclosures.
Common questions
Is NDAQ or ICE the better stock?
NDAQ scores higher: NDAQ 79.0, ICE 78.0 out of 100 on the Bull Rankings quality-growth score, which blends business quality, growth and valuation into one number. A higher score means a stronger business at a more reasonable price — it is not a price target or a recommendation.
How are NDAQ and ICE scored?
Each carries the same 0–100 quality-growth score used everywhere on the site, built from three pillars — quality (profitability and returns on capital), growth (revenue and earnings), and value (what you pay for them) — combined as a geometric mean, so a weak pillar cannot be papered over by a strong one.
How current is this comparison?
The whole universe is re-scored every trading day after the US market close, so the scores and fundamentals here reflect the latest published edition.