CME Group (NASDAQ:CME) Stock Rating Reaffirmed by Royal Bank of Canada

Royal Bank of Canada reissued their sector perform rating on shares of CME Group (NASDAQ:CME) in a report issued on Thursday morning, Benzinga reports. The brokerage currently has a $235.00 target price on the financial services provider’s stock.

Several other equities research analysts have also commented on the stock. Redburn Atlantic lowered shares of CME Group from a “buy” rating to a “neutral” rating and set a $244.00 price target for the company. in a research report on Tuesday, October 8th. Citigroup upped their target price on shares of CME Group from $250.00 to $255.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a report on Thursday. Piper Sandler lifted their price target on shares of CME Group from $225.00 to $240.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research note on Tuesday, October 8th. Barclays upped their price objective on CME Group from $219.00 to $231.00 and gave the stock an “equal weight” rating in a research note on Thursday. Finally, Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft lifted their target price on CME Group from $193.00 to $200.00 and gave the company a “hold” rating in a research report on Thursday, August 15th. Four equities research analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, seven have issued a hold rating and four have issued a buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the company currently has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $222.07.

CME Group Price Performance

NASDAQ CME opened at $226.14 on Thursday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.10, a quick ratio of 1.02 and a current ratio of 1.02. The company has a market capitalization of $81.43 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 25.73, a PEG ratio of 7.76 and a beta of 0.55. The stock has a 50-day moving average of $218.94 and a 200 day moving average of $208.87. CME Group has a one year low of $190.70 and a one year high of $230.36.

CME Group (NASDAQ:CME) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, October 23rd. The financial services provider reported $2.68 earnings per share for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $2.65 by $0.03. CME Group had a net margin of 56.98% and a return on equity of 12.82%. The company had revenue of $1.58 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $1.59 billion. During the same quarter in the prior year, the firm earned $2.25 earnings per share. The firm’s revenue for the quarter was up 18.4% compared to the same quarter last year. On average, sell-side analysts forecast that CME Group will post 10.04 EPS for the current year.

CME Group Dividend Announcement

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Wednesday, September 25th. Shareholders of record on Monday, September 9th were issued a dividend of $1.15 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Monday, September 9th. This represents a $4.60 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 2.03%. CME Group’s dividend payout ratio is currently 52.33%.

Insider Activity at CME Group

In other CME Group news, CFO Lynne Fitzpatrick sold 754 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated Sunday, September 15th. The shares were sold at an average price of $216.99, for a total value of $163,610.46. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief financial officer now directly owns 13,261 shares in the company, valued at approximately $2,877,504.39. The trade was a 0.00 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which can be accessed through the SEC website. In other CME Group news, Director Bryan T. Durkin sold 7,593 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction on Friday, August 30th. The shares were sold at an average price of $214.59, for a total value of $1,629,381.87. Following the completion of the transaction, the director now owns 55,607 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $11,932,706.13. This trade represents a 0.00 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is accessible through the SEC website. Also, CFO Lynne Fitzpatrick sold 754 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Sunday, September 15th. The shares were sold at an average price of $216.99, for a total value of $163,610.46. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief financial officer now directly owns 13,261 shares in the company, valued at $2,877,504.39. This represents a 0.00 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. 0.30% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On CME Group

Hedge funds have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the business. CVA Family Office LLC grew its stake in shares of CME Group by 11.8% during the 3rd quarter. CVA Family Office LLC now owns 436 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $96,000 after purchasing an additional 46 shares during the period. Capital Advisors Ltd. LLC grew its position in CME Group by 4.3% during the first quarter. Capital Advisors Ltd. LLC now owns 1,160 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $250,000 after buying an additional 48 shares during the period. Lester Murray Antman dba SimplyRich increased its holdings in CME Group by 0.7% in the second quarter. Lester Murray Antman dba SimplyRich now owns 7,667 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $1,507,000 after buying an additional 50 shares in the last quarter. Essex LLC raised its position in shares of CME Group by 3.3% in the first quarter. Essex LLC now owns 1,649 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $355,000 after acquiring an additional 52 shares during the period. Finally, Quent Capital LLC boosted its stake in shares of CME Group by 10.2% during the 3rd quarter. Quent Capital LLC now owns 593 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $131,000 after acquiring an additional 55 shares in the last quarter. 87.75% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

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.