CME Group Inc. (NASDAQ:CME) Receives $226.20 Consensus PT from Brokerages

Shares of CME Group Inc. (NASDAQ:CME) have earned a consensus rating of “Hold” from the fifteen ratings firms that are currently covering the stock, Marketbeat.com reports. Four analysts have rated the stock with a sell recommendation, seven have issued a hold recommendation and four have given a buy recommendation to the company. The average twelve-month price objective among brokers that have covered the stock in the last year is $229.33.

Several brokerages have commented on CME. Oppenheimer raised their price target on shares of CME Group from $245.00 to $258.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a report on Thursday, October 24th. Morgan Stanley lifted their price objective on CME Group from $210.00 to $233.00 and gave the company an “equal weight” rating in a research note on Thursday, October 17th. Royal Bank of Canada restated a “sector perform” rating and issued a $235.00 target price on shares of CME Group in a research note on Thursday, October 24th. Piper Sandler lifted their price target on CME Group from $240.00 to $250.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research report on Monday, October 28th. Finally, Redburn Atlantic lowered CME Group from a “buy” rating to a “neutral” rating and set a $244.00 price objective for the company. in a report on Tuesday, October 8th.

CME Group Price Performance

CME Group stock opened at $238.53 on Friday. The firm has a market capitalization of $85.96 billion, a P/E ratio of 25.08, a PEG ratio of 5.41 and a beta of 0.56. CME Group has a one year low of $190.70 and a one year high of $249.02. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.09, a current ratio of 1.02 and a quick ratio of 1.02. The business has a fifty day moving average price of $230.71 and a 200-day moving average price of $214.98.

CME Group (NASDAQ:CME) last issued its earnings results on Wednesday, October 23rd. The financial services provider reported $2.68 EPS for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $2.65 by $0.03. CME Group had a return on equity of 13.39% and a net margin of 57.34%. The business had revenue of $1.58 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $1.59 billion. During the same quarter last year, the company earned $2.25 EPS. The firm’s revenue was up 18.4% compared to the same quarter last year. As a group, equities research analysts forecast that CME Group will post 10.22 EPS for the current year.

CME Group declared that its board has approved a stock buyback program on Thursday, December 5th that authorizes the company to repurchase $3.00 billion in outstanding shares. This repurchase authorization authorizes the financial services provider to buy up to 3.4% of its stock through open market purchases. Stock repurchase programs are typically an indication that the company’s management believes its shares are undervalued.

CME Group Increases Dividend

The firm also recently declared a dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, January 16th. Shareholders of record on Friday, December 27th will be paid a $5.80 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, December 27th. This is an increase from CME Group’s previous dividend of $2.50. CME Group’s payout ratio is currently 48.37%.

Insider Activity

In related news, insider Sunil Cutinho sold 4,500 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, October 30th. The stock was sold at an average price of $226.64, for a total value of $1,019,880.00. Following the sale, the insider now directly owns 27,053 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $6,131,291.92. This trade represents a 14.26 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this link. Also, Director Martin J. Gepsman sold 400 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, November 4th. The shares were sold at an average price of $222.92, for a total value of $89,168.00. Following the transaction, the director now directly owns 25,067 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $5,587,935.64. The trade was a 1.57 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last quarter, insiders sold 7,274 shares of company stock valued at $1,648,071. Insiders own 0.30% of the company’s stock.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On CME Group

Several hedge funds have recently made changes to their positions in the business. Harbor Capital Advisors Inc. lifted its stake in CME Group by 0.6% in the 3rd quarter. Harbor Capital Advisors Inc. now owns 7,810 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $1,723,000 after purchasing an additional 45 shares in the last quarter. CVA Family Office LLC lifted its position in shares of CME Group by 11.8% in the third quarter. CVA Family Office LLC now owns 436 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $96,000 after buying an additional 46 shares in the last quarter. Lester Murray Antman dba SimplyRich boosted its stake in CME Group by 0.7% during 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 during the last quarter. Zions Bancorporation N.A. grew its holdings in CME Group by 3.7% during the 3rd quarter. Zions Bancorporation N.A. now owns 1,530 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $338,000 after buying an additional 54 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Quent Capital LLC increased its stake in CME Group by 10.2% in 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 during the last quarter. 87.75% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

About CME Group

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.