Meritage Portfolio Management Buys New Shares in CME Group Inc. (NASDAQ:CME)

Meritage Portfolio Management purchased a new position in CME Group Inc. (NASDAQ:CME) during the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The fund purchased 1,300 shares of the financial services provider’s stock, valued at approximately $274,000.

Several other hedge funds have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in CME. OFI Invest Asset Management purchased a new position in shares of CME Group in the third quarter worth approximately $25,000. Harbor Investment Advisory LLC raised its stake in CME Group by 966.7% during the 4th quarter. Harbor Investment Advisory LLC now owns 160 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $34,000 after purchasing an additional 145 shares during the period. Compagnie Lombard Odier SCmA acquired a new stake in shares of CME Group in the third quarter worth $37,000. BKM Wealth Management LLC purchased a new position in shares of CME Group during the fourth quarter valued at $38,000. Finally, Atticus Wealth Management LLC acquired a new position in CME Group during the third quarter valued at $40,000. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 87.75% of the company’s stock.

CME Group Stock Performance

CME Group stock opened at $210.94 on Friday. CME Group Inc. has a 1 year low of $175.73 and a 1 year high of $223.80. The company’s 50-day moving average is $214.73 and its two-hundred day moving average is $211.90. The company has a current ratio of 1.01, a quick ratio of 1.02 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.10. The company has a market cap of $75.94 billion, a PE ratio of 24.00, a PEG ratio of 5.92 and a beta of 0.49.

CME Group (NASDAQ:CME) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, April 24th. The financial services provider reported $2.50 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $2.44 by $0.06. CME Group had a net margin of 56.84% and a return on equity of 12.45%. The firm had revenue of $1.49 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $1.48 billion. During the same period last year, the firm earned $2.42 earnings per share. The business’s revenue for the quarter was up 3.2% on a year-over-year basis. Equities analysts anticipate that CME Group Inc. will post 9.67 earnings per share for the current year.

CME Group Increases Dividend

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Tuesday, March 26th. Investors of record on Friday, March 8th were given a $1.15 dividend. This is a boost from CME Group’s previous quarterly dividend of $1.10. This represents a $4.60 annualized dividend and a yield of 2.18%. The ex-dividend date was Thursday, March 7th. CME Group’s payout ratio is currently 52.33%.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

CME has been the subject of several recent research reports. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods increased their price objective on CME Group from $222.00 to $226.00 and gave the stock a “market perform” rating in a report on Thursday. Barclays upped their target price on shares of CME Group from $226.00 to $228.00 and gave the company an “equal weight” rating in a research note on Thursday. Argus raised their price objective on CME Group from $225.00 to $245.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research report on Wednesday, March 6th. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft reaffirmed a “hold” rating and set a $210.00 price objective (down from $235.00) on shares of CME Group in a report on Friday, April 5th. Finally, JPMorgan Chase & Co. boosted their price target on CME Group from $198.00 to $206.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a research note on Thursday. Two analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, seven have assigned a hold rating and two have issued a buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat, the stock currently has an average rating of “Hold” and an average price target of $217.80.

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.