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what it is
Cboe runs exchanges and market data businesses that get paid every time people trade stocks, options, futures, and currencies.
how it gets paid
Last year Cboe made $4.7B in revenue. Options was the main engine at $1.85B, or 39% of sales.
why it's growing
Revenue grew 15.1% last year. Secular tailwinds, namely market volatility, boosted trading activity, lifting results across its derivative markets, cash and spot markets, and data vantage businesses.
what just happened
Cboe's latest quarter landed a 49.27% earnings beat, with EPS of $3.06 against a $2.05 estimate.
At a glance
A balance sheet — strong enough to weather a downturn
45/100 earnings predictability — expect surprises
30.5x trailing p/e — you're paying up for this one
1.0% dividend yield — cash in your pocket every quarter
12.0% return on capital — nothing to write home about
xvary composite: 76/100 — average
What they do
Cboe runs exchanges and market data businesses that get paid every time people trade stocks, options, futures, and currencies.
Liquidity network → more buyers and sellers in one place → tighter pricing → traders stick around. That matters because Cboe held 29.2% of total options market share in late 2025, according to Reuters coverage of its results. If you trade where everyone else trades, leaving usually means worse execution.
How they make money
$4.7B
annual revenue · their business grew +15.1% last year
Options
$1.85B
+12.0%
Data Vantage
$1.05B
+10.0%
North American Equities
$0.75B
+5.0%
Europe and APAC
$0.45B
+8.0%
Futures
$0.38B
+6.0%
FX
$0.22B
+3.0%
The products that matter
operates exchanges and sells market data
Exchange Operations and Data Services
$4.7B revenue · +15.1% growth
it's the whole reported revenue base in this snapshot, which tells you two things. First, the business is simpler than most financial companies. Second, if trading activity cools, there is nowhere to hide it.
fee engine
Key numbers
35.0%
operating margin
Operating margin → revenue left after operating costs → real staying power. Cboe keeps $0.35 from each $1 of revenue before interest and taxes.
0.6
beta
Beta → how much a stock moves versus the market → your stress level. At 0.6, Cboe has been far less jumpy than the broader market.
12.0%
return on capital
Return on capital → profit earned on money put into the business → whether management is worth trusting. At 12.0%, Cboe clears the 'good business' line, not the 'untouchable' line.
$1.4B
long-term debt
Long-term debt → money owed over many years → balance-sheet pressure. Here it is just 5% of capital, which is unusually light for a $26B company.
Financial health
A
strength
- balance sheet grade A — very strong financial position
- risk rank 1 — safer than 95% of stocks
- price stability 100 / 100
- long-term debt $1.4B (5% of capital)
- net profit margin 23.0% — keeps 23 cents of every dollar in revenue
- return on equity 14% — $0.14 profit for every $1 investors have put in
A with balance sheet grade and risk rank standing out. your money faces less risk here than at most public companies.
Total return vs. market
You invested $10,000 in CBOE 3 years ago → it's now worth $21,050.
The index would have given you $13,920.
source: institutional data · total return
What just happened
beat estimates
Cboe's latest quarter landed a 49.27% earnings beat, with EPS of $3.06 against a $2.05 estimate.
The business entered 2026 on strong footing after nine-month 2025 EPS growth of 38% and revenue growth of 8%, helped by strong index and multi-list options volume. Annual revenue also hit $4.7B, up 15.1% vs. prior year, based on SEC filings.
$3.5B
revenue
$7.45
eps
50.1%
gross margin
the number that mattered
The 49.27% earnings surprise matters most because exchange operators rarely post that kind of upside without real volume strength behind it.
-
cboe global markets likely closed 2025 on strong footing.
-
the exchange operator recorded impressive results over the first nine months of the year.
-
during the september period, earnings per share jumped 38% vs. prior year, while revenues rose 8%.secular tailwinds, namely market volatility, boosted trading activity, lifting results across its derivative markets, cash and spot markets, and data vantage businesses.
-
solid volume in its multi-list and proprietary index option products also helped.
-
plus, cboe’s data vantage registered hearty gains from new sales.
source: company earnings report, 2026
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What could go wrong
the main risk here is simple: cboe needs active markets to keep earning exchange and data fees at a premium multiple.
high
a quieter tape means fewer fees
cboe gets paid when people trade. If volatility and volume cool off together, the transaction engine slows down.
That pressure runs straight through a $4.7B revenue base. The stock's 30.5x trailing P/E leaves less room for a soft quarter.
med
fee or market-structure rules could change the math
exchange operators live inside regulation. Changes to pricing, access, or data monetization can reshape the economics faster than the business model suggests.
With a 21.3% net margin, cboe has room to absorb some pressure. But fee compression would still hit one of the cleanest profit streams in the company.
med
the valuation can disappoint before the business does
This is the stock risk, not the balance-sheet risk. A-rated finances and a stability score of 1 make the business sturdy. The price is the part that can punish you.
At $289.90, the shares sit above the listed 3–5 year midpoint target of $287. If growth cools while the multiple stays rich, upside disappears quickly.
if trading activity softens, the fee engine behind $4.7B of revenue feels it first. And when a stock already trades above its $287 midpoint target, you do not need a broken business to get a disappointing return.
source: institutional data · regulatory filings · risk analysis
Pay attention to
risk
quarterly trading volumes
If options and futures traffic cools, the toll booth collects less. This is your fastest read on whether the revenue engine is still doing its job.
metric
revenue growth versus EPS growth
The latest setup is 8% revenue growth and 38% EPS growth. If that gap narrows, the efficiency story is losing power.
trend
vix and broader volatility trends
The VIX is not just branding. It is a live read on how active traders may be across cboe's derivatives markets.
calendar
the next earnings release
You want to see whether $1.1B revenue and $2.20 EPS actually show up — and whether management can keep the story boring in the good way.
Analyst rankings
short-term outlook
average
momentum score 3 — in human-speak, analysts see a normal stock here, not a near-term slingshot.
risk profile
safest 5%
stability score 1 — lower downside risk than almost any stock in the market.
chart momentum
top 20%
technical score 2 — the chart has been stronger than most, even if the valuation already knows it.
earnings predictability
45 / 100
Results can swing more than the safety score suggests because exchange volume is never perfectly linear.
source: institutional data
Institutional activity
institutions have been net buying for 3 consecutive quarters — 419 buyers vs. 348 sellers in 3q2025. total institutional holdings: 90.4M shares. net buying for 3 quarters.
source: institutional data
Price targets
3-5 year target range
$213
$361
$290
current price
$287
target midpoint · 1% from current · 3-5yr high: $285 (+15% · 5% ann'l return)
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