CME Group Target of Unusually High Options Trading (NASDAQ:CME)

CME Group Inc. (NASDAQ:CME) saw unusually large options trading on Monday. Investors acquired 4,184 call options on the company. This represents an increase of approximately 105% compared to the typical daily volume of 2,041 call options.

Insider Buying and Selling at CME Group

In related news, General Counsel Jonathan L. Marcus sold 392 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Thursday, September 18th. The shares were sold at an average price of $262.00, for a total transaction of $102,704.00. Following the transaction, the general counsel directly owned 7,851 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $2,056,962. This trade represents a 4.76% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through the SEC website. Also, Director William R. Shepard bought 262 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction on Thursday, September 25th. The shares were acquired at an average price of $265.19 per share, with a total value of $69,479.78. Following the completion of the purchase, the director directly owned 258,459 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $68,540,742.21. The trade was a 0.10% increase in their ownership of the stock. The SEC filing for this purchase provides additional information. Over the last ninety days, insiders have sold 2,147 shares of company stock valued at $562,079. 0.30% of the stock is currently owned by insiders.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On CME Group

Institutional investors and hedge funds have recently made changes to their positions in the business. Norges Bank purchased a new stake in CME Group during the second quarter valued at about $1,571,447,000. Sanders Capital LLC bought a new position in CME Group during the 3rd quarter worth approximately $1,006,932,000. Strive Asset Management LLC bought a new stake in CME Group in the 3rd quarter worth $636,487,000. GQG Partners LLC increased its position in shares of CME Group by 7,676.3% during the first quarter. GQG Partners LLC now owns 2,205,041 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $584,975,000 after buying an additional 2,176,685 shares during the period. Finally, Wellington Management Group LLP raised its holdings in CME Group by 370.5% in the first quarter. Wellington Management Group LLP now owns 2,653,957 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $704,068,000 after purchasing an additional 2,089,935 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors own 87.75% of the company’s stock.

CME Group Stock Performance

CME traded down $1.93 during trading on Monday, hitting $279.54. 410,399 shares of the company traded hands, compared to its average volume of 2,198,127. The firm has a market cap of $100.80 billion, a P/E ratio of 27.08, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 4.41 and a beta of 0.38. The company has a quick ratio of 1.02, a current ratio of 1.02 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.12. CME Group has a one year low of $224.62 and a one year high of $290.79. The stock’s fifty day moving average is $270.60 and its 200 day moving average is $272.79.

CME Group (NASDAQ:CME) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, October 22nd. The financial services provider reported $2.68 earnings per share for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate 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 return on equity of 14.61% and a net margin of 58.84%.CME Group’s revenue was down 3.0% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period in the prior year, the company earned $2.68 earnings per share. As a group, equities analysts predict that CME Group will post 10.49 EPS for the current fiscal year.

CME Group Announces Dividend

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, December 30th. Stockholders of record on Friday, December 12th will be issued 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 payout ratio is presently 48.45%.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of equities research analysts have recently weighed in on CME shares. Raymond James Financial reduced their price target on shares of CME Group from $309.00 to $307.00 and set an “outperform” rating on the stock in a research note on Monday, October 13th. UBS Group decreased their price objective on CME Group from $285.00 to $280.00 and set a “neutral” rating for the company in a report on Thursday, October 23rd. Citigroup upgraded CME Group from a “neutral” rating to a “buy” rating and lifted their target price for the stock from $275.00 to $300.00 in a report on Thursday, September 25th. Piper Sandler upped their price objective on shares of CME Group from $296.00 to $313.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a report on Thursday, November 13th. Finally, Keefe, Bruyette & Woods lifted their price objective on shares of CME Group from $283.00 to $287.00 and gave the stock a “market perform” rating in a report on Monday, October 13th. Eight equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, seven have issued a Hold rating and three have assigned a Sell rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat, the company has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $287.71.

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.