Oppenheimer Raises CBOE Q1 Estimates

Oppenheimer is modestly raising its Q1 2011 estimates “based on company reported volume and pricing statistics.” “CBOE Holdings, Inc. CBOE has posted volume numbers for all three months of the first quarter and average pricing data for two months,” Oppenheimer writes. “Based on this, our Q1 EPS estimate increases by 2 cents and FY2012E increases by 1 cent. Our outlook and investment opinion are unchanged as well—we believe CBOE offers investors a strong secular growth opportunity at a reasonable valuation that is comparable with CME Group Inc. CME and IntercontinentalExchange, Inc. ICE, while at the same time offering the possibility of being acquired at a significant premium given the consolidation trends in the industry.” CBOE Holdings closed Thursday at $27.01.