Lecap Asset Management Ltd. Takes $274,000 Position in CME Group Inc. (NASDAQ:CME)

Lecap Asset Management Ltd. purchased a new stake in CME Group Inc. (NASDAQ:CME) during the fourth quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the SEC. The firm purchased 1,301 shares of the financial services provider’s stock, valued at approximately $274,000.

A number of other institutional investors have also modified their holdings of the company. OFI Invest Asset Management acquired a new stake in CME Group in the 3rd quarter worth approximately $25,000. MayTech Global Investments LLC purchased a new position in CME Group during the 4th quarter worth approximately $25,000. Power Corp of Canada purchased a new position in CME Group during the 1st quarter worth approximately $26,000. Providence Capital Advisors LLC purchased a new position in CME Group during the 1st quarter worth approximately $30,000. Finally, Harbor Investment Advisory LLC raised its position in CME Group by 966.7% during the 4th quarter. Harbor Investment Advisory LLC now owns 160 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $34,000 after buying an additional 145 shares during the last quarter. 87.75% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

CME Group Trading Down 1.6 %

Shares of CME stock opened at $206.23 on Tuesday. The company’s 50-day moving average price is $214.01 and its 200-day moving average price is $211.60. The company has a current ratio of 1.02, a quick ratio of 1.02 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.13. The stock has a market cap of $74.24 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 23.25, a PEG ratio of 5.95 and a beta of 0.49. CME Group Inc. has a twelve month low of $175.73 and a twelve month high of $223.80.

CME Group (NASDAQ:CME) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, February 14th. The financial services provider reported $2.37 earnings per share for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $2.27 by $0.10. The firm had revenue of $1.44 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $1.43 billion. CME Group had a net margin of 57.83% and a return on equity of 12.32%. The company’s revenue was up 19.2% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter in the previous year, the company posted $1.92 EPS. As a group, equities analysts predict that CME Group Inc. will post 9.56 earnings per share for the current year.

CME Group Increases Dividend

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Tuesday, March 26th. Shareholders of record on Friday, March 8th were given a $1.15 dividend. The ex-dividend date was Thursday, March 7th. This represents a $4.60 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 2.23%. This is a boost from CME Group’s previous quarterly dividend of $1.10. CME Group’s dividend payout ratio is presently 51.86%.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

CME has been the subject of several recent research reports. Argus lifted their target price on shares of CME Group from $225.00 to $245.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a report on Wednesday, March 6th. The Goldman Sachs Group lowered shares of CME Group from a “neutral” rating to a “sell” rating and set a $195.00 target price for the company. in a report on Wednesday, January 3rd. Morgan Stanley lifted their target price on shares of CME Group from $222.00 to $225.00 and gave the company an “equal weight” rating in a report on Tuesday, April 9th. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods reaffirmed a “market perform” rating and set a $229.00 target price on shares of CME Group in a report on Wednesday, April 3rd. Finally, Rosenblatt Securities reaffirmed a “sell” rating and set a $180.00 target price on shares of CME Group in a report on Thursday, January 4th. Two equities research analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, seven have assigned a hold rating and two have assigned a buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat.com, CME Group has a consensus rating of “Hold” and an average price target of $215.70.

About CME Group

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.