CME Group Inc. (NASDAQ:CME) Shares Sold by Financial Counselors Inc.

Financial Counselors Inc. reduced its position in shares of CME Group Inc. (NASDAQ:CME) by 17.7% during the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The firm owned 3,784 shares of the financial services provider’s stock after selling 813 shares during the period. Financial Counselors Inc.’s holdings in CME Group were worth $879,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Other hedge funds have also recently bought and sold shares of the company. Truvestments Capital LLC acquired a new position in shares of CME Group in the 3rd quarter worth approximately $26,000. SJS Investment Consulting Inc. boosted its holdings in CME Group by 570.6% during the fourth quarter. SJS Investment Consulting Inc. now owns 114 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $26,000 after buying an additional 97 shares in the last quarter. Dunhill Financial LLC grew its position in CME Group by 188.4% in the third quarter. Dunhill Financial LLC now owns 124 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $27,000 after buying an additional 81 shares during the last quarter. Financial Life Planners acquired a new position in CME Group in the fourth quarter worth approximately $32,000. Finally, Knuff & Co LLC bought a new position in shares of CME Group in the fourth quarter valued at $33,000. 87.75% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

CME Group Trading Down 0.3 %

Shares of NASDAQ:CME opened at $261.85 on Friday. CME Group Inc. has a 12-month low of $190.70 and a 12-month high of $267.91. The company has a quick ratio of 1.02, a current ratio of 1.01 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.10. The firm has a market capitalization of $94.36 billion, a P/E ratio of 27.08, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 6.76 and a beta of 0.53. The firm has a fifty day moving average of $249.06 and a two-hundred day moving average of $235.32.

CME Group (NASDAQ:CME) last issued its earnings results on Wednesday, February 12th. The financial services provider reported $2.52 EPS for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $2.46 by $0.06. CME Group had a return on equity of 13.62% and a net margin of 57.52%. On average, equities analysts expect that CME Group Inc. will post 10.49 EPS for the current fiscal year.

CME Group declared that its board has authorized a share buyback program on Thursday, December 5th that permits the company to buyback $3.00 billion in shares. This buyback authorization permits the financial services provider to buy up to 3.4% of its shares through open market purchases. Shares buyback programs are generally an indication that the company’s board of directors believes its shares are undervalued.

CME Group Increases Dividend

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Wednesday, March 26th. Investors of record on Friday, March 7th were given a dividend of $1.25 per share. This represents a $5.00 annualized dividend and a yield of 1.91%. The ex-dividend date was Friday, March 7th. This is a positive change from CME Group’s previous quarterly dividend of $1.15. CME Group’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 51.71%.

Insider Buying and Selling at CME Group

In related news, COO Suzanne Sprague sold 1,500 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, March 3rd. The stock was sold at an average price of $256.83, for a total value of $385,245.00. Following the transaction, the chief operating officer now directly owns 8,036 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $2,063,885.88. This trade represents a 15.73 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this link. Also, Director Howard J. Siegel sold 10,000 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, March 13th. The stock was sold at an average price of $260.00, for a total value of $2,600,000.00. Following the sale, the director now directly owns 21,873 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $5,686,980. The trade was a 31.37 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders sold 27,076 shares of company stock worth $6,871,496 over the last ninety days. 0.30% of the stock is currently owned by insiders.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of brokerages recently issued reports on CME. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods lifted their target price on CME Group from $256.00 to $257.00 and gave the stock a “market perform” rating in a report on Friday, February 14th. Morgan Stanley lifted their price target on CME Group from $256.00 to $263.00 and gave the stock an “equal weight” rating in a research note on Wednesday, February 19th. Piper Sandler upped their price objective on shares of CME Group from $250.00 to $258.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research note on Tuesday, January 7th. Citigroup downgraded shares of CME Group from a “buy” rating to a “neutral” rating and dropped their target price for the stock from $255.00 to $250.00 in a research report on Monday, January 6th. Finally, Barclays boosted their price target on shares of CME Group from $257.00 to $263.00 and gave the company an “equal weight” rating in a report on Thursday, February 13th. Four equities research analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, eight have issued a hold rating, three have assigned a buy rating and one has given a strong buy rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat, CME Group currently has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $238.93.

CME Group Company Profile

CME Group Inc, together with its subsidiaries, operates contract markets for the trading of futures and options on futures contracts worldwide. It offers futures and options products based on interest rates, equity indexes, foreign exchange, agricultural commodities, energy, and metals, as well as fixed income and foreign currency trading services.