CBOE
Cboe Global Markets, Inc.
Financial Services · Financial Data & Stock Exchanges · United States · Stock
Score Breakdown
Scored for Dividend Income profile
Sub-scores are 0–20 each; Model Score is weighted by your selected investment goal. How it works →
Why Ranked Here
- The composite score of 71.8 is anchored by a near-maximum dividend sub-score of 18.8, reflecting FCF payout discipline, DPS growth consistency, and strong free cash flow coverage as directly reported in the FY 2025 10-K.
- High profitability (17.2) and growth (17.5) sub-scores confirm that Cboe is generating expanding earnings with wide margins, which provides the earnings quality foundation that supports the dividend profile and the overall score.
- The model's best-fit profile score of 79.2 under dividend income — versus the overall composite of 71.8 — shows the scoring is specifically rewarding Cboe's demonstrated shareholder return consistency rather than speculative growth potential.
Why Not Higher
- A theme sub-score of 0.0 out of 20 represents a complete absence of macro theme credit, which meaningfully drags the composite below what an otherwise strong set of financial sub-scores would otherwise produce.
- The financial health sub-score of 14.0 and momentum sub-score of 13.4 both fall in the mid-range, suggesting the balance sheet carries some leverage drag and that quarterly earnings trajectory is not strongly accelerating — both capping the composite ceiling.
Data Confidence
10 / 10
Very High — full data coverage
Research Summary
AI-generated analysis reflects data and conditions as of the report date shown above. Verify any specific figures through primary sources before acting on this analysis.
Cboe Global Markets, Inc. is one of the world's largest exchange operators, best known for running U.S. options markets including the flagship Chicago Board Options Exchange, as well as equity exchanges, futures markets, and global FX platforms. The company derives revenue from transaction fees, access and capacity fees, market data services, and proprietary index licensing — most notably around its VIX volatility index franchise. Its business model is characterized by high recurring revenue, strong operating leverage, and meaningful free cash flow generation, which together underpin the filing-derived model score of 71.8/100. The score reflects genuinely strong dividend and profitability sub-scores — 18.8 and 17.2 out of 20 respectively — alongside solid growth (17.5) and financial health (14.0) readings. The primary research tradeoff is that Cboe earns its highest composite score in the dividend income profile (79.2), supported by consistent dividend per share growth, strong FCF coverage of the payout, and a durable DPS streak, but the absence of identifiable macro theme exposures (a theme sub-score of 0.0) caps the overall composite and limits appeal to thematic or speculative research profiles.
Plain English
Cboe Global Markets runs the stock and options exchanges where traders buy and sell contracts, and it makes money from fees every time something gets traded on its platforms. A model score of 71.8 out of 100 means the research model sees this as a solid, well-run business — especially for investors focused on dividend income — but not an exceptional outlier in every category. The Medium risk rating reflects that while the company's financials are stable and its dividends well-covered, it operates in a regulated, competitive industry where earnings can shift with trading volumes. Think of it as a steady, mature financial infrastructure business with a strong dividend track record.
Bull Case vs. Bear Case
Bull Case
- The dividend sub-score of 18.8 out of 20 — the highest individual sub-score in the model — reflects a strong FCF payout ratio, a multi-year streak of dividend per share increases, and robust free cash flow coverage of distributions, all sourced directly from the 10-K filing.
- The profitability sub-score of 17.2 out of 20 indicates that Cboe sustains high net and operating margins alongside a solid return on assets, consistent with the exchange industry's inherently asset-light, fee-based revenue model.
- The growth sub-score of 17.5 out of 20 signals meaningful year-over-year improvement in revenue, net income, and EPS as reported in the FY 2025 10-K, suggesting the company is expanding its earnings base rather than standing still.
Bear Case
- The financial health sub-score of 14.0 out of 20 is the weakest operationally grounded sub-score, suggesting moderate leverage or interest coverage constraints on the balance sheet that merit attention relative to the company's stronger profitability metrics.
- The theme sub-score of 0.0 out of 20 means the model identified no macro theme exposures — such as AI infrastructure, energy transition, or emerging market growth — which limits upside scoring in thematic research profiles and may reflect a mature, domestically anchored business.
- The momentum sub-score of 13.4 out of 20, while not alarming, indicates that quarterly improvements in revenue, earnings, and margins have been moderate rather than accelerating, which could suggest the strong annual growth figures are not building meaningfully on a quarter-by-quarter basis.
What Could Change the Picture
Bullish Triggers
- Demonstrated acceleration in quarterly revenue and margin expansion in future filings would lift the momentum sub-score toward the 16–18 range, providing a more compelling near-term growth signal to complement the strong annual figures.
- Meaningful debt reduction or improved interest coverage ratios reported in subsequent 10-K filings would strengthen the financial health sub-score toward the upper quartile and reduce the one clear balance sheet concern visible in the current data.
Bearish Triggers
- A reversal in free cash flow generation or a reduction in dividend per share — as would be reflected in a future 10-K filing — would directly erode the 18.8 dividend sub-score, which is the single largest contributor to the current model score.
- Compression in net or operating margins reported in a future annual filing, potentially from rising technology infrastructure costs or competitive fee pressure in the exchange space, would weaken the profitability sub-score and reduce the overall composite.
Red Flags
- The financial health sub-score of 14.0 out of 20 is meaningfully below the profitability and dividend scores, pointing to balance sheet leverage or interest coverage metrics in the 10-K that warrant monitoring relative to peers in the exchange operator space.
Risk Profile
Medium RiskThe Medium risk rating for Cboe reflects a business with consistently high margins and strong dividend coverage, but one that operates in a regulated financial infrastructure sector where revenue is tied to trading volumes — which can be cyclical — and where the balance sheet shows moderate leverage as evidenced by the financial health sub-score of 14.0 out of 20.
Key Catalysts to Watch
The key factors to monitor in future SEC filings include the trajectory of free cash flow relative to dividend distributions — which underpins the model's highest sub-score — and any changes in leverage or interest coverage ratios that would signal improving or deteriorating balance sheet health.
This report is for educational and research purposes only. It does not constitute financial, investment, legal, or tax advice — always conduct your own due diligence before making investment decisions.