Commonwealth of Pennsylvania Public School Empls Retrmt SYS Raises Stock Position in CME Group Inc. $CME

Commonwealth of Pennsylvania Public School Empls Retrmt SYS increased its holdings in shares of CME Group Inc. (NASDAQ:CME) by 7.2% in the second quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The firm owned 88,379 shares of the financial services provider’s stock after purchasing an additional 5,970 shares during the period. Commonwealth of Pennsylvania Public School Empls Retrmt SYS’s holdings in CME Group were worth $24,359,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission.

Other large investors have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Webster Bank N. A. lifted its stake in shares of CME Group by 206.9% during the second quarter. Webster Bank N. A. now owns 89 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $25,000 after purchasing an additional 60 shares in the last quarter. Highline Wealth Partners LLC grew its stake in shares of CME Group by 84.3% in the second quarter. Highline Wealth Partners LLC now owns 94 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $26,000 after buying an additional 43 shares in the last quarter. Trifecta Capital Advisors LLC raised its holdings in shares of CME Group by 59.2% during the 2nd quarter. Trifecta Capital Advisors LLC now owns 113 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $31,000 after buying an additional 42 shares during the period. Ransom Advisory Ltd purchased a new stake in shares of CME Group during the 1st quarter valued at about $31,000. Finally, Westside Investment Management Inc. lifted its position in CME Group by 105.0% during the 2nd quarter. Westside Investment Management Inc. now owns 123 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $34,000 after acquiring an additional 63 shares in the last quarter. 87.75% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

CME Group Stock Performance

CME Group stock opened at $285.04 on Friday. CME Group Inc. has a 52 week low of $222.56 and a 52 week high of $290.79. The company has a current ratio of 1.02, a quick ratio of 1.02 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.12. The stock has a market cap of $102.79 billion, a P/E ratio of 27.62, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 4.41 and a beta of 0.38. The stock has a 50 day moving average of $267.33 and a 200-day moving average of $272.85.

CME Group (NASDAQ:CME) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, October 22nd. The financial services provider reported $2.68 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $2.63 by $0.05. The business had revenue of $1.54 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $1.56 billion. CME Group had a net margin of 58.84% and a return on equity of 14.61%. The business’s revenue was down 3.0% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter in the previous year, the firm earned $2.68 earnings per share. On average, analysts expect that CME Group Inc. will post 10.49 EPS for the current fiscal year.

CME Group Dividend Announcement

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, December 30th. Stockholders of record on Friday, December 12th will be paid a $1.25 dividend. This represents a $5.00 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 1.8%. The ex-dividend date is Friday, December 12th. CME Group’s dividend payout ratio is 48.45%.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several analysts have issued reports on CME shares. Weiss Ratings reaffirmed a “buy (b)” rating on shares of CME Group in a research report on Wednesday, October 8th. Raymond James Financial reduced their target price on shares of CME Group from $309.00 to $307.00 and set an “outperform” rating on the stock in a research report on Monday, October 13th. TD Cowen upped their target price on shares of CME Group from $288.00 to $290.00 and gave the company a “hold” rating in a research note on Thursday, October 23rd. Jefferies Financial Group lowered their price target on shares of CME Group from $313.00 to $304.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a report on Friday, October 10th. Finally, Oppenheimer boosted their price objective on shares of CME Group from $300.00 to $303.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a report on Thursday, July 24th. Eight investment analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, seven have given a Hold rating and three have issued a Sell rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, CME Group currently has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $287.65.

Insider Buying and Selling at CME Group

In other news, Director William R. Shepard purchased 262 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, September 25th. The stock was acquired at an average cost of $265.19 per share, for a total transaction of $69,479.78. Following the completion of the purchase, the director owned 258,459 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $68,540,742.21. This trade represents a 0.10% increase in their ownership of the stock. The purchase was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through the SEC website. Also, Director Harold Eugene Jr. Ford sold 1,000 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated Monday, November 3rd. The shares were sold at an average price of $263.53, for a total value of $263,530.00. Following the completion of the sale, the director directly owned 1,091 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $287,511.23. This represents a 47.82% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The SEC filing for this sale provides additional information. In the last ninety days, insiders have sold 14,043 shares of company stock valued at $3,791,486. Corporate 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.