CME Group Inc. (NASDAQ:CME) Shares Bought by Pittenger & Anderson Inc.

Pittenger & Anderson Inc. lifted its position in CME Group Inc. (NASDAQ:CME) by 0.7% in the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 66,062 shares of the financial services provider’s stock after acquiring an additional 482 shares during the quarter. Pittenger & Anderson Inc.’s holdings in CME Group were worth $15,342,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

A number of other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also added to or reduced their stakes in the stock. Harbor Capital Advisors Inc. boosted its position in CME Group by 0.6% during the 3rd quarter. Harbor Capital Advisors Inc. now owns 7,810 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $1,723,000 after purchasing an additional 45 shares during the period. Avidian Wealth Enterprises LLC boosted its position in CME Group by 2.6% during the 4th quarter. Avidian Wealth Enterprises LLC now owns 1,769 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $411,000 after purchasing an additional 45 shares during the period. TFC Financial Management Inc. boosted its position in CME Group by 8.4% during the 4th quarter. TFC Financial Management Inc. now owns 592 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $137,000 after purchasing an additional 46 shares during the period. Waldron Private Wealth LLC boosted its position in CME Group by 2.0% during the 4th quarter. Waldron Private Wealth LLC now owns 2,362 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $549,000 after acquiring an additional 47 shares during the period. Finally, First Affirmative Financial Network boosted its position in CME Group by 2.3% during the 4th quarter. First Affirmative Financial Network now owns 2,141 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $497,000 after acquiring an additional 49 shares during the period. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 87.75% of the company’s stock.

CME Group Stock Down 1.9 %

Shares of CME Group stock opened at $245.48 on Monday. The stock’s fifty day moving average is $235.95 and its 200-day moving average is $226.00. The firm has a market capitalization of $88.46 billion, a PE ratio of 25.81, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 5.54 and a beta of 0.57. The company has a quick ratio of 1.02, a current ratio of 1.02 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.09. CME Group Inc. has a 12-month low of $190.70 and a 12-month high of $253.53.

CME Group (NASDAQ:CME) last announced its earnings results on Wednesday, February 12th. The financial services provider reported $2.52 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $2.46 by $0.06. CME Group had a return on equity of 13.39% and a net margin of 57.34%. Equities analysts anticipate that CME Group Inc. will post 10.18 earnings per share for the current year.

CME Group declared that its Board of Directors has approved a share repurchase plan on Thursday, December 5th that permits the company to repurchase $3.00 billion in outstanding shares. This repurchase authorization permits the financial services provider to reacquire up to 3.4% of its stock through open market purchases. Stock repurchase plans are usually a sign that the company’s board of directors believes its stock is undervalued.

CME Group Increases Dividend

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, March 26th. Investors of record on Friday, March 7th will be given a dividend of $1.25 per share. This represents a $5.00 annualized dividend and a yield of 2.04%. This is a positive change from CME Group’s previous quarterly dividend of $1.15. The ex-dividend date is Friday, March 7th. CME Group’s payout ratio is presently 48.37%.

Insider Activity at CME Group

In related news, insider Julie Winkler sold 11,592 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on Thursday, February 13th. The stock was sold at an average price of $249.17, for a total transaction of $2,888,378.64. Following the transaction, the insider now directly owns 21,885 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $5,453,085.45. The trade was a 34.63 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through the SEC website. 0.30% of the stock is owned by insiders.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

CME has been the subject of a number of analyst reports. Citigroup lowered CME Group from a “buy” rating to a “neutral” rating and reduced their price target for the stock from $255.00 to $250.00 in a research report on Monday, January 6th. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods boosted their price target on CME Group from $256.00 to $257.00 and gave the stock a “market perform” rating in a research report on Friday. Royal Bank of Canada boosted their price target on CME Group from $235.00 to $269.00 and gave the stock a “sector perform” rating in a research report on Thursday. Oppenheimer boosted their price target on CME Group from $258.00 to $269.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a research report on Thursday. Finally, Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft reduced their price target on CME Group from $227.00 to $226.00 and set a “hold” rating for the company in a research report on Monday, November 11th. Four investment analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, eight have issued a hold rating and three have assigned a buy rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the company presently has an average rating of “Hold” and an average price target of $234.13.

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.