ICE 2Q Earnings Rise Amid NYSE Integration

Intercontinental Exchange Inc on Thursday reported higher second-quarter earnings as the exchange and clearing house operator worked to integrate its $11 billion purchase of the New York Stock Exchange's parent company.

ICE said it had earned $226 million, or $1.95 a share. That compared with $154 million, or $2.09 a share, a year earlier, before it completed the NYSE deal, which diluted per-share earnings.

Excluding one-time items such as acquisition costs, ICE earned $2.10 a share, topping the analysts' average estimate by 8 cents, according to Thomson Reuters I/B/E/S.

Revenue rose to $750 million from $319 million, helped by higher transaction and clearing fees, and market data and listings revenues. Analysts had expected revenue of $777.01 million.

ICE closed its acquisition of NYSE Euronext in November, giving it an entry to the interest rate futures business through control of Liffe, Europe's No. 2 derivatives market.

The Atlanta-based company spun off European exchange operator Euronext in an initial public offering in June. It also said in June that it had found buyers for parts of NYSE Technologies.

Euronext said on Thursday that its operating profit increased 4.6 percent, boosted by cost-cutting and a rise in stock market listings. (Reporting by John McCrank in New York; Editing by Lisa Von Ahn)