CME Group Inc. (NASDAQ:CME) Stock Holdings Increased by First United Bank & Trust

First United Bank & Trust grew its position in shares of CME Group Inc. (NASDAQ:CME) by 3.1% during the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The fund owned 3,505 shares of the financial services provider’s stock after buying an additional 105 shares during the period. First United Bank & Trust’s holdings in CME Group were worth $814,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Other hedge funds also recently made changes to their positions in the company. Franklin Resources Inc. lifted its stake in CME Group by 70.4% during the third quarter. Franklin Resources Inc. now owns 2,427,107 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $544,157,000 after purchasing an additional 1,003,119 shares during the last quarter. Ameriprise Financial Inc. lifted its position in shares of CME Group by 11.3% in the 2nd quarter. Ameriprise Financial Inc. now owns 5,283,196 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $1,038,676,000 after buying an additional 537,758 shares during the last quarter. International Assets Investment Management LLC boosted its holdings in shares of CME Group by 21,465.5% in the 3rd quarter. International Assets Investment Management LLC now owns 485,871 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $1,072,070,000 after buying an additional 483,618 shares during the period. Canoe Financial LP grew its position in shares of CME Group by 698.0% during the 4th quarter. Canoe Financial LP now owns 544,219 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $126,384,000 after buying an additional 476,019 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Janus Henderson Group PLC raised its stake in CME Group by 17.8% during the third quarter. Janus Henderson Group PLC now owns 2,514,040 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $554,707,000 after acquiring an additional 380,071 shares during the period. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 87.75% of the company’s stock.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In related news, insider Sunil Cutinho sold 4,500 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on Wednesday, October 30th. The shares were sold at an average price of $226.64, for a total value of $1,019,880.00. Following the completion of the sale, the insider now directly owns 27,053 shares in the company, valued at approximately $6,131,291.92. This represents a 14.26 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is accessible through this link. Also, Director Martin J. Gepsman sold 400 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Monday, November 4th. The shares were sold at an average price of $222.92, for a total value of $89,168.00. Following the transaction, the director now owns 25,067 shares in the company, valued at approximately $5,587,935.64. This trade represents a 1.57 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders sold a total of 7,274 shares of company stock worth $1,648,071 in the last quarter. 0.30% of the stock is currently owned by corporate insiders.

CME Group Price Performance

CME stock opened at $232.71 on Tuesday. CME Group Inc. has a one year low of $190.70 and a one year high of $249.02. The firm has a 50-day moving average of $233.29 and a two-hundred day moving average of $220.09. The firm has a market capitalization of $83.86 billion, a PE ratio of 24.47, a P/E/G ratio of 5.29 and a beta of 0.56. The company has a current ratio of 1.02, a quick ratio of 1.02 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.09.

CME Group (NASDAQ:CME) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, October 23rd. The financial services provider reported $2.68 EPS for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $2.65 by $0.03. CME Group had a net margin of 57.34% and a return on equity of 13.39%. The firm had revenue of $1.58 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $1.59 billion. During the same quarter last year, the business posted $2.25 EPS. The company’s revenue was up 18.4% on a year-over-year basis. On average, analysts forecast that CME Group Inc. will post 10.18 earnings per share for the current year.

CME Group declared that its Board of Directors has authorized a share buyback plan on Thursday, December 5th that authorizes the company to repurchase $3.00 billion in outstanding shares. This repurchase authorization authorizes the financial services provider to purchase up to 3.4% of its shares through open market purchases. Shares repurchase plans are generally a sign that the company’s board believes its shares are undervalued.

CME Group Increases Dividend

The business also recently disclosed a dividend, which was paid on Thursday, January 16th. Shareholders of record on Friday, December 27th were paid a $5.80 dividend. The ex-dividend date was Friday, December 27th. This is a positive change from CME Group’s previous dividend of $2.50. CME Group’s dividend payout ratio is currently 48.37%.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of analysts have recently weighed in on CME shares. Barclays increased their price target on CME Group from $231.00 to $257.00 and gave the stock an “equal weight” rating in a research report on Monday, December 9th. Citigroup cut CME Group from a “buy” rating to a “neutral” rating and cut their target price for the company from $255.00 to $250.00 in a research note on Monday, January 6th. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft reduced their price target on shares of CME Group from $227.00 to $226.00 and set a “hold” rating for the company in a report on Monday, November 11th. Bank of America lifted their price objective on shares of CME Group from $177.00 to $180.00 and gave the company an “underperform” rating in a research report on Thursday, October 3rd. Finally, TD Cowen initiated coverage on shares of CME Group in a research report on Thursday, September 26th. They issued a “hold” rating and a $221.00 target price for the company. Four analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, eight have given a hold rating and three have issued a buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat.com, CME Group currently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $229.27.

CME Group 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.