CME Group (NASDAQ:CME) Insider Sells $1,493,500.00 in Stock

CME Group Inc. (NASDAQ:CME) insider Sunil Cutinho sold 5,000 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, October 27th. The shares were sold at an average price of $298.70, for a total transaction of $1,493,500.00. Following the completion of the sale, the insider owned 20,037 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $5,985,051.90. This trade represents a 19.97% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available at the SEC website.

CME Group Stock Performance

Shares of NASDAQ CME traded down $14.58 during midday trading on Tuesday, reaching $293.48. The company’s stock had a trading volume of 1,750,176 shares, compared to its average volume of 2,513,866. CME Group Inc. has a 12-month low of $218.31 and a 12-month high of $329.16. The firm has a 50 day moving average price of $277.37 and a 200-day moving average price of $279.18. The stock has a market capitalization of $105.53 billion, a P/E ratio of 24.08, a PEG ratio of 3.73 and a beta of 0.24. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.13, a current ratio of 1.02 and a quick ratio of 1.02.

CME Group (NASDAQ:CME) last released its earnings results on Wednesday, October 21st. The financial services provider reported $3.02 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $2.99 by $0.03. The company had revenue of $1.74 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $1.71 billion. CME Group had a return on equity of 16.23% and a net margin of 63.33%. CME Group’s quarterly revenue was up 10.6% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period in the prior year, the company posted $2.68 earnings per share. As a group, equities analysts predict that CME Group Inc. will post 12.35 earnings per share for the current year.

CME Group Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, September 25th. Shareholders of record on Wednesday, September 9th were given a $1.30 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Wednesday, September 9th. This represents a $5.20 annualized dividend and a yield of 1.8%. CME Group’s payout ratio is currently 42.66%.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of equities research analysts have recently commented on CME shares. Barclays lifted their target price on CME Group from $281.00 to $321.00 and gave the stock an “equal weight” rating in a research note on Thursday, October 22nd. Weiss Ratings upgraded shares of CME Group from a “buy (b-)” rating to a “buy (b)” rating in a research note on Friday. JPMorgan Chase & Co. upgraded shares of CME Group from an “underweight” rating to an “overweight” rating and set a $367.00 target price on the stock in a research note on Thursday, October 22nd. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft downgraded shares of CME Group from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating and reduced their target price for the company from $286.00 to $270.00 in a research report on Wednesday, August 19th. Finally, Wells Fargo & Company raised their price target on shares of CME Group from $315.00 to $333.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research note on Thursday, October 22nd. Ten investment analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, six have assigned a Hold rating and two have issued a Sell rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the stock has an average rating of “Hold” and an average price target of $313.29.

Key Headlines Impacting CME Group

Here are the key news stories impacting CME Group this week:

• Positive Sentiment: CME Group reported record third-quarter revenue of approximately $1.74 billion and record average daily volume of 29.4 million contracts. October activity is also tracking at the highest October average daily volume on record, supporting the company’s growth outlook. CME Group Slides as Investors Digest Recent Earnings and Mixed Post-Report Signals
• Positive Sentiment: Zacks upgraded CME Group to Rank #2, or “Buy,” citing improving optimism about the company’s earnings prospects. CME Upgraded to Buy: Here’s Why
• Positive Sentiment: Brazilian real futures traded a record daily volume following Brazil’s election, highlighting demand for CME’s products during periods of political and currency-market volatility. CME Group Brazilian Real Futures Set New Daily Volume Record Following Election
• Neutral Sentiment: Analyst price targets remain mixed, with a reported median target of $305 and recent targets ranging from $260 to $323, indicating support for the business but limited consensus on near-term upside.
• Negative Sentiment: Investors may be digesting last week’s earnings announcement after a significant share-price run-up. Although results were strong, they may not have exceeded elevated expectations enough to sustain momentum, prompting profit-taking or a valuation reset. CME Group Slides as Investors Digest Recent Earnings and Mixed Post-Report Signals
• Negative Sentiment: Insider Sunil Cutinho sold 5,000 shares worth approximately $1.49 million, reducing his direct holdings by nearly 20%. The transaction is a modest sentiment negative, although one insider sale does not necessarily indicate a change in CME’s fundamentals. Sunil Cutinho Insider Trading Activity

Hedge Funds Weigh In On CME Group

Several large investors have recently modified their holdings of CME. Brookmont Capital Management lifted its stake in CME Group by 0.6% in the 3rd quarter. Brookmont Capital Management now owns 5,661 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $1,483,000 after purchasing an additional 34 shares in the last quarter. Manchester Capital Management LLC boosted its holdings in CME Group by 2.9% in the 3rd quarter. Manchester Capital Management LLC now owns 1,297 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $340,000 after purchasing an additional 37 shares during the period. NBT Bank N A NY boosted its holdings in CME Group by 2.3% in the 1st quarter. NBT Bank N A NY now owns 1,666 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $492,000 after purchasing an additional 38 shares during the period. Resonant Capital Advisors LLC grew its position in shares of CME Group by 3.8% during the 1st quarter. Resonant Capital Advisors LLC now owns 1,073 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $317,000 after purchasing an additional 39 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Grove Bank & Trust grew its position in shares of CME Group by 0.8% during the 3rd quarter. Grove Bank & Trust now owns 5,038 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $1,320,000 after purchasing an additional 39 shares in the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 87.75% of the company’s stock.

About CME Group

CME Group Inc operates global derivatives marketplaces that provide trading, clearing and settlement services for futures and options contracts. Its products cover major asset classes, including interest rates, equity indexes, foreign currencies, agricultural commodities, energy and metals. The company also provides market data, benchmark information and related services used by financial institutions, corporations, producers, investors and other market participants.

CME Group’s exchange portfolio includes CME, the Chicago Board of Trade, the New York Mercantile Exchange and COMEX.