CME Group Inc. (NASDAQ:CME) Receives Consensus Rating of “Hold” from Brokerages

CME Group Inc. (NASDAQ:CME – Get Rating) has been given a consensus rating of “Hold” by the sixteen brokerages that are currently covering the company, Marketbeat.com reports. Two research analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, six have given a hold rating and five have given a buy rating to the company. The average twelve-month price target among brokerages that have issued a report on the stock in the last year is $219.71.

Several analysts have issued reports on the company. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft cut their price target on CME Group from $207.00 to $200.00 in a report on Wednesday, January 11th. Citigroup cut their price target on CME Group from $214.29 to $210.00 in a report on Thursday, January 12th. Piper Sandler cut their price target on CME Group from $270.00 to $250.00 and set an “overweight” rating for the company in a report on Monday, December 19th. Credit Suisse Group raised CME Group from a “neutral” rating to an “outperform” rating and set a $191.00 price target for the company in a report on Thursday, January 5th. Finally, Morgan Stanley cut their price target on CME Group from $208.00 to $196.00 and set an “equal weight” rating for the company in a report on Wednesday, January 11th.

CME Group Stock Down 0.9 %

CME Group stock opened at $174.27 on Friday. The stock has a market cap of $62.69 billion, a PE ratio of 23.71, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 3.54 and a beta of 0.40. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.12, a quick ratio of 1.02 and a current ratio of 1.02. CME Group has a one year low of $166.54 and a one year high of $256.94. The stock has a fifty day moving average of $174.20 and a 200 day moving average of $184.55.

CME Group (NASDAQ:CME – Get Rating) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, October 26th. The financial services provider reported $1.98 EPS for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.93 by $0.05. The company had revenue of $1.23 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $1.23 billion. CME Group had a return on equity of 10.06% and a net margin of 54.01%. As a group, sell-side analysts predict that CME Group will post 7.94 EPS for the current year.

CME Group Increases Dividend

The firm also recently declared a None dividend, which was paid on Wednesday, January 18th. Stockholders of record on Wednesday, December 28th were issued a $4.50 dividend. This is an increase from CME Group’s previous None dividend of $3.25. The ex-dividend date was Tuesday, December 27th. CME Group’s dividend payout ratio is presently 54.42%.

Insider Transactions at CME Group

In other news, Director William R. Shepard acquired 48,645 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, November 4th. The shares were bought at an average price of $170.00 per share, with a total value of $8,269,650.00. Following the completion of the purchase, the director now directly owns 247,843 shares in the company, valued at $42,133,310. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. Company insiders own 0.30% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Several hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently bought and sold shares of the company. AE Wealth Management LLC grew its stake in CME Group by 2.3% in the second quarter. AE Wealth Management LLC now owns 2,332 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $477,000 after purchasing an additional 52 shares in the last quarter. Thrivent Financial for Lutherans boosted its position in CME Group by 0.3% during the 2nd quarter. Thrivent Financial for Lutherans now owns 15,841 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $3,243,000 after acquiring an additional 52 shares in the last quarter. Meeder Asset Management Inc. boosted its position in CME Group by 1.4% during the 2nd quarter. Meeder Asset Management Inc. now owns 3,965 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $812,000 after acquiring an additional 55 shares in the last quarter. KC Investment Advisors LLC boosted its position in CME Group by 1.7% during the 1st quarter. KC Investment Advisors LLC now owns 3,343 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $795,000 after acquiring an additional 55 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Quent Capital LLC boosted its position in CME Group by 18.8% during the 2nd quarter. Quent Capital LLC now owns 361 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $74,000 after acquiring an additional 57 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors own 85.09% of the company’s stock.

About CME Group

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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 products.