Citigroup Raises CME Group (NASDAQ:CME) Price Target to $255.00

CME Group (NASDAQ:CME) had its price objective raised by stock analysts at Citigroup from $250.00 to $255.00 in a research report issued to clients and investors on Thursday, Benzinga reports. The firm presently has a “buy” rating on the financial services provider’s stock. Citigroup’s price objective suggests a potential upside of 12.76% from the stock’s current price.

A number of other equities analysts also recently weighed in on CME. Barclays raised their target price on shares of CME Group from $219.00 to $231.00 and gave the company an “equal weight” rating in a research note on Thursday. Bank of America raised their price objective on CME Group from $177.00 to $180.00 and gave the company an “underperform” rating in a research report on Thursday, October 3rd. Redburn Atlantic downgraded CME Group from a “buy” rating to a “neutral” rating and set a $244.00 target price on the stock. in a report on Tuesday, October 8th. Royal Bank of Canada restated a “sector perform” rating and set a $235.00 price target on shares of CME Group in a report on Thursday, October 3rd. Finally, The Goldman Sachs Group upped their price target on shares of CME Group from $195.00 to $198.00 and gave the stock a “sell” rating in a research note on Thursday, October 3rd. Four investment analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, seven have given a hold rating and four have given a buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the stock has an average rating of “Hold” and an average price target of $222.07.

CME Group Price Performance

Shares of CME stock opened at $226.14 on Thursday. The business’s fifty day moving average is $218.57 and its 200 day moving average is $208.81. 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 $81.43 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 25.70, a PEG ratio of 7.76 and a beta of 0.55. CME Group has a twelve month low of $190.70 and a twelve month high of $230.36.

CME Group (NASDAQ:CME) last released its earnings results on Wednesday, October 23rd. The financial services provider reported $2.68 earnings per share for the quarter, topping 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 firm had revenue of $1.58 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $1.59 billion. During the same period in the prior year, the firm earned $2.25 EPS. The company’s revenue was up 18.4% compared to the same quarter last year. Research analysts expect that CME Group will post 10.04 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Insider Activity at CME Group

In other news, CFO Lynne Fitzpatrick sold 754 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction on Sunday, September 15th. The stock was sold at an average price of $216.99, for a total value of $163,610.46. Following the transaction, the chief financial officer now directly owns 13,261 shares in the company, valued at $2,877,504.39. This trade represents a 0.00 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available at this link. In other news, CFO Lynne Fitzpatrick sold 754 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Sunday, September 15th. The shares were sold at an average price of $216.99, for a total transaction of $163,610.46. Following the completion of the sale, the chief financial officer now owns 13,261 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $2,877,504.39. This represents a 0.00 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this link. Also, Director Bryan T. Durkin sold 7,593 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on 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 directly owns 55,607 shares in the company, valued at approximately $11,932,706.13. The trade was a 0.00 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. 0.30% of the stock is owned by insiders.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On CME Group

A number of hedge funds have recently modified their holdings of the business. Oak Harvest Investment Services increased its position in CME Group by 66.5% in the first quarter. Oak Harvest Investment Services now owns 45,093 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $9,708,000 after buying an additional 18,017 shares in the last quarter. Wealth Enhancement Advisory Services LLC increased its holdings in CME Group by 21.2% in the 2nd quarter. Wealth Enhancement Advisory Services LLC now owns 48,205 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $9,477,000 after acquiring an additional 8,443 shares in the last quarter. Duality Advisers LP bought a new stake in CME Group during the 1st quarter worth approximately $1,455,000. SG Americas Securities LLC lifted its holdings in CME Group by 312.2% during the first quarter. SG Americas Securities LLC now owns 56,768 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $12,222,000 after purchasing an additional 42,996 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Cetera Investment Advisers lifted its holdings in CME Group by 429.1% during the first quarter. Cetera Investment Advisers now owns 47,521 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $10,231,000 after purchasing an additional 38,540 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors own 87.75% 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.