Admittedly, there are times when you wish you could trade stock when the market is closed. Maybe you catch a news report about some exciting new development in a sector, or you happen to see a company’s CEO embarrassing himself or herself in public for some reason. But you can’t always follow up on your hunches, and that makes some long for all-day, every-day trading. Current New York Stock Exchange (NYSE) owner Intercontinental Exchange (NYSE:ICE) is looking into doing just that, and the news sent it up fractionally in Monday afternoon’s trading.
Right now, Intercontinental is stretching out its collective feelers to find out what people think about going to a 24/7 format. Of course, this doesn’t mean that Wall Street will have new business hours soon, if ever; this is, at last report, one of just several surveys and studies that Intercontinental engages in. It’s possible nothing will come of it. But the fact that this study is taking place, to begin with, makes it pretty clear that there’s interest in a stock market that never closes.
On the One Hand…
Here’s where things get especially interesting, though. We know that the forex market is open 24 hours a day, thanks to the differences in time zones among the various participants therein. Sure, it’s only open five days a week as opposed to the seven being considered here, but we know that some markets can run non-stop over the course of a week.
However, there’s also a report from Bespoke Investment Group that says the stock market is actually at its best when it’s closed. Most of the SPDR S&P 500 ETF (NYSEARCA:SPY) gains were made outside of normal trading hours. By eliminating the “outside” hours, it may do unpleasant things to SPY.
Is Intercontinental Exchange a Good Stock to Buy?
Turning to Wall Street, analysts have a Strong Buy consensus rating on ICE stock based on 10 Buys and two Holds assigned in the past three months, as indicated by the graphic below. After a 23.98% rally in its share price over the past year, the average ICE price target of $155.09 per share implies 17.53% upside potential.
Is It Wise to Allocate $1,000 Toward ICE Stock Right Now?
Before you hurry to invest in ICE, think about the following:
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