CME Group Inc. (NASDAQ:CME) Stake Raised by BRITISH COLUMBIA INVESTMENT MANAGEMENT Corp

BRITISH COLUMBIA INVESTMENT MANAGEMENT Corp increased its holdings in CME Group Inc. (NASDAQ:CME) by 14.8% in the fourth quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The institutional investor owned 68,955 shares of the financial services provider’s stock after buying an additional 8,876 shares during the quarter. BRITISH COLUMBIA INVESTMENT MANAGEMENT Corp’s holdings in CME Group were worth $16,013,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Other hedge funds have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. SJS Investment Consulting Inc. increased its stake in shares of CME Group by 570.6% during the fourth quarter. SJS Investment Consulting Inc. now owns 114 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $26,000 after acquiring an additional 97 shares during the period. New Age Alpha Advisors LLC raised its stake in shares of CME Group by 50.0% in the 4th quarter. New Age Alpha Advisors LLC now owns 129 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $30,000 after buying an additional 43 shares in the last quarter. Financial Life Planners acquired a new stake in shares of CME Group in the fourth quarter valued at $32,000. Knuff & Co LLC bought a new position in CME Group during the fourth quarter valued at about $33,000. Finally, Banque Transatlantique SA acquired a new position in CME Group during the fourth quarter worth about $35,000. Institutional investors own 87.75% of the company’s stock.

CME Group Trading Up 1.4%

Shares of NASDAQ CME opened at $281.74 on Thursday. The company has a current ratio of 1.01, a quick ratio of 1.02 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.10. CME Group Inc. has a one year low of $190.70 and a one year high of $286.48. The business has a 50-day moving average price of $267.11 and a two-hundred day moving average price of $248.16. The firm has a market capitalization of $101.53 billion, a PE ratio of 29.14, a PEG ratio of 6.76 and a beta of 0.45.

CME Group (NASDAQ:CME) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, April 23rd. The financial services provider reported $2.80 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $2.61 by $0.19. The business had revenue of $1.64 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $1.56 billion. CME Group had a net margin of 57.52% and a return on equity of 13.62%. The firm’s revenue was up 10.4% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period in the prior year, the firm earned $2.50 earnings per share. As a group, analysts predict that CME Group Inc. will post 10.49 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

CME Group Announces Dividend

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, June 25th. Shareholders of record on Monday, June 9th will be given a $1.25 dividend. The ex-dividend date is Monday, June 9th. This represents a $5.00 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 1.77%. CME Group’s payout ratio is 50.30%.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of equities research analysts have weighed in on the stock. UBS Group upped their price target on shares of CME Group from $290.00 to $305.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a report on Friday, April 25th. Morgan Stanley raised their price objective on CME Group from $301.00 to $304.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research note on Thursday, April 24th. Oppenheimer lifted their target price on CME Group from $269.00 to $279.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a report on Friday, April 11th. Barclays upped their target price on CME Group from $279.00 to $283.00 and gave the company an “equal weight” rating in a report on Wednesday, April 23rd. Finally, Bank of America lifted their price target on CME Group from $200.00 to $219.00 and gave the stock an “underperform” rating in a research note on Wednesday, April 2nd. Three investment analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, seven have given a hold rating, five have issued a buy rating and one has issued a strong buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat, CME Group presently has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $256.80.

Insider Buying and Selling at CME Group

In related news, COO Suzanne Sprague sold 1,500 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, March 3rd. The stock was sold at an average price of $256.83, for a total value of $385,245.00. Following the completion of the sale, the chief operating officer now owns 8,036 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $2,063,885.88. The trade was a 15.73% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through this link. Also, insider Hilda Harris Piell sold 3,984 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, February 27th. The stock was sold at an average price of $250.47, for a total value of $997,872.48. Following the completion of the transaction, the insider now owns 27,046 shares in the company, valued at $6,774,211.62. This represents a 12.84% decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders sold 27,884 shares of company stock valued at $7,389,843 in the last quarter. Company 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.