Varma Mutual Pension Insurance Co Purchases 696 Shares of CME Group Inc. (NASDAQ:CME)

Varma Mutual Pension Insurance Co boosted its stake in CME Group Inc. (NASDAQ:CME) by 0.8% in the second quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The firm owned 86,896 shares of the financial services provider’s stock after purchasing an additional 696 shares during the period. Varma Mutual Pension Insurance Co’s holdings in CME Group were worth $17,084,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Other large investors have also added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Gold Investment Management Ltd. bought a new stake in CME Group in the 4th quarter worth approximately $26,000. Northwest Financial Advisors purchased a new position in shares of CME Group during the 4th quarter worth $28,000. Salomon & Ludwin LLC purchased a new position in shares of CME Group during the 1st quarter worth $28,000. McClarren Financial Advisors Inc. boosted its stake in shares of CME Group by 66.1% during the 2nd quarter. McClarren Financial Advisors Inc. now owns 196 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $39,000 after acquiring an additional 78 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Asset Dedication LLC boosted its stake in shares of CME Group by 515.2% during the 2nd quarter. Asset Dedication LLC now owns 203 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $40,000 after acquiring an additional 170 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors own 87.75% of the company’s stock.

CME Group Stock Up 0.5 %

Shares of CME stock opened at $220.50 on Monday. The company’s fifty day simple moving average is $203.51 and its two-hundred day simple moving average is $207.54. CME Group Inc. has a 52 week low of $190.70 and a 52 week high of $223.80. The company has a quick ratio of 1.02, a current ratio of 1.02 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.10. The stock has a market cap of $79.40 billion, a P/E ratio of 25.09, a PEG ratio of 8.92 and a beta of 0.55.

CME Group (NASDAQ:CME) last posted its earnings results on Wednesday, July 24th. The financial services provider reported $2.56 earnings per share for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $2.53 by $0.03. CME Group had a net margin of 56.98% and a return on equity of 12.82%. The firm had revenue of $1.53 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $1.53 billion. During the same period in the previous year, the firm posted $2.30 EPS. The business’s quarterly revenue was up 12.7% on a year-over-year basis. Analysts predict that CME Group Inc. will post 9.94 EPS for the current fiscal year.

CME Group Announces Dividend

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, September 25th. Stockholders of record on Monday, September 9th will be issued a $1.15 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Monday, September 9th. This represents a $4.60 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 2.09%. CME Group’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 52.33%.

Analyst Ratings Changes

CME has been the topic of several analyst reports. JPMorgan Chase & Co. lifted their price target on shares of CME Group from $187.00 to $191.00 and gave the stock an “underweight” rating in a research note on Thursday, July 25th. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods lifted their target price on shares of CME Group from $212.00 to $213.00 and gave the company a “market perform” rating in a research note on Thursday, July 25th. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft lifted their target price on shares of CME Group from $193.00 to $200.00 and gave the company a “hold” rating in a research note on Thursday, August 15th. Piper Sandler restated an “overweight” rating and set a $225.00 target price on shares of CME Group in a research note on Tuesday, August 20th. Finally, Barclays lifted their target price on shares of CME Group from $208.00 to $209.00 and gave the company an “equal weight” rating in a research note on Thursday, July 25th. Four investment analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, five have issued a hold rating and three have given a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, CME Group currently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $209.73.

Insider Transactions at CME Group

In other news, Director Bryan T. Durkin sold 7,593 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated 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 sale, the director now directly owns 55,607 shares in the company, valued at approximately $11,932,706.13. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is accessible through this link. In other CME Group news, Director Charles P. Carey sold 3,000 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Thursday, June 13th. The shares were sold at an average price of $195.44, for a total value of $586,320.00. Following the transaction, the director now directly owns 7,163 shares in the company, valued at approximately $1,399,936.72. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this hyperlink. Also, Director Bryan T. Durkin sold 7,593 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Friday, August 30th. The stock was sold at an average price of $214.59, for a total transaction of $1,629,381.87. Following the completion of the transaction, the director now owns 55,607 shares in the company, valued at $11,932,706.13. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders own 0.30% of the company’s stock.

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.