CME Group (NASDAQ:CME) Director Buys $78,746.68 in Stock

CME Group Inc. (NASDAQ:CME) Director William Shepard purchased 293 shares of CME Group stock in a transaction dated Friday, September 25th. The stock was bought at an average price of $268.76 per share, with a total value of $78,746.68. Following the acquisition, the director directly owned 263,289 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $70,761,551.64. This trade represents a 0.11% increase in their ownership of the stock. The acquisition was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through the SEC website.

CME Group Stock Down 0.5%

Shares of CME stock opened at $261.98 on Thursday. CME Group Inc. has a 12-month low of $218.31 and a 12-month high of $329.16. The company has a quick ratio of 1.02, a current ratio of 1.02 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.13. The firm has a fifty day moving average of $270.66 and a 200-day moving average of $272.96. The company has a market capitalization of $94.20 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 22.22, a P/E/G ratio of 3.11 and a beta of 0.24.

CME Group (NASDAQ:CME) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, July 22nd. The financial services provider reported $2.99 EPS for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $2.91 by $0.08. The business had revenue of $1.71 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $1.68 billion. CME Group had a net margin of 63.30% and a return on equity of 15.60%. The firm’s revenue was up .8% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period in the previous year, the firm posted $2.96 EPS. As a group, equities research analysts predict that CME Group Inc. will post 12.27 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

CME Group Dividend Announcement

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, September 25th. Stockholders of record on Wednesday, September 9th were given a dividend of $1.30 per share. This represents a $5.20 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 2.0%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Wednesday, September 9th. CME Group’s dividend payout ratio is currently 44.11%.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of equities research analysts recently issued reports on the company. Wall Street Zen raised CME Group from a “strong sell” rating to a “sell” rating in a research report on Saturday, August 29th. TD Cowen reaffirmed a “buy” rating and set a $292.00 price target on shares of CME Group in a research note on Monday. Raymond James Financial reiterated an “outperform” rating and issued a $320.00 price objective on shares of CME Group in a report on Thursday, July 2nd. UBS Group reduced their target price on shares of CME Group from $310.00 to $260.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a report on Monday, July 6th. Finally, Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft downgraded shares of CME Group from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating and decreased their target price for the company from $286.00 to $270.00 in a research report on Wednesday, August 19th. Eight equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, six have given a Hold rating and three have assigned a Sell rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, CME Group currently has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $289.07.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On CME Group

A number of institutional investors and hedge funds have recently made changes to their positions in CME. BlackRock Inc. bought a new position in shares of CME Group in the 2nd quarter valued at $6,749,965,000. Bank of New York Mellon Corp bought a new stake in shares of CME Group during the 2nd quarter worth $867,313,000. Alphabet Inc. acquired a new stake in CME Group in the second quarter valued at about $769,376,000. Mitsubishi UFJ Asset Management Co. Ltd. acquired a new stake in CME Group in the second quarter valued at about $629,771,000. Finally, Bank of America Corp DE bought a new position in CME Group in the second quarter valued at about $622,679,000. Institutional investors own 87.75% of the company’s stock.

About CME Group

CME Group Inc operates global derivatives marketplaces that enable customers to manage risk and trade futures and options contracts. Its exchanges offer products linked to interest rates, equity indexes, foreign currencies, agricultural commodities, energy, metals and other asset classes.

The company also provides central counterparty clearing, settlement and related risk-management services for transactions conducted on its markets. In addition, CME Group offers market data, benchmark products and technology services that support trading, analysis and connectivity for financial institutions, businesses, professional traders and other market participants.

CME Group’s history includes the Chicago Board of Trade, founded in 1848, and the Chicago Mercantile Exchange, established in 1898.