Analysts Set CME Group Inc. (NASDAQ:CME) Price Target at $258.20

Shares of CME Group Inc. (NASDAQ:CME - Get Free Report) have been assigned an average rating of "Hold" from the sixteen analysts that are covering the company, Marketbeat.com reports. Three analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, eight have assigned a hold rating and five have given a buy rating to the company. The average 1 year price target among brokerages that have issued ratings on the stock in the last year is $258.20.

Several equities analysts have issued reports on the company. Erste Group Bank cut CME Group from a "strong-buy" rating to a "hold" rating in a research report on Saturday, May 24th. Piper Sandler upped their price objective on CME Group from $275.00 to $283.00 and gave the stock an "overweight" rating in a report on Tuesday, April 8th. Barclays increased their price objective on CME Group from $279.00 to $283.00 and gave the stock an "equal weight" rating in a research report on Wednesday, April 23rd. UBS Group boosted their target price on shares of CME Group from $290.00 to $305.00 and gave the stock a "buy" rating in a research report on Friday, April 25th. Finally, Keefe, Bruyette & Woods lifted their price target on CME Group from $265.00 to $273.00 and gave the stock a "market perform" rating in a research note on Thursday, April 24th.

Insider Buying and Selling

In related news, General Counsel Jonathan L. Marcus sold 390 shares of the company's stock in a transaction on Tuesday, May 20th. The stock was sold at an average price of $277.50, for a total transaction of $108,225.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the general counsel now directly owns 6,708 shares in the company, valued at $1,861,470. This represents a 5.49% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this hyperlink. Also, Director Charles P. Carey sold 500 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction on Tuesday, June 10th. The shares were sold at an average price of $265.35, for a total value of $132,675.00. Following the completion of the sale, the director now owns 4,900 shares in the company, valued at $1,300,215. The trade was a 9.26% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last quarter, insiders sold 13,400 shares of company stock valued at $3,680,610. 0.30% of the stock is currently owned by corporate insiders.

Institutional Trading of CME Group

A number of large investors have recently modified their holdings of CME. Wayfinding Financial LLC acquired a new stake in shares of CME Group in the first quarter valued at approximately $25,000. Cornerstone Planning Group LLC increased its position in CME Group by 122.2% in the 1st quarter. Cornerstone Planning Group LLC now owns 100 shares of the financial services provider's stock valued at $26,000 after acquiring an additional 55 shares during the period. Golden State Wealth Management LLC increased its position in CME Group by 612.5% in the 1st quarter. Golden State Wealth Management LLC now owns 114 shares of the financial services provider's stock valued at $30,000 after acquiring an additional 98 shares during the period. Ransom Advisory Ltd bought a new stake in CME Group during the 1st quarter valued at $31,000. Finally, Alpine Bank Wealth Management acquired a new position in CME Group during the 1st quarter worth $32,000. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 87.75% of the company's stock.

CME Group Stock Performance

CME stock traded down $1.46 during trading on Friday, hitting $269.50. The company had a trading volume of 1,576,352 shares, compared to its average volume of 2,197,015. The firm has a 50-day moving average price of $272.44 and a 200-day moving average price of $254.03. CME Group has a 1-year low of $190.70 and a 1-year high of $290.79. The company has a quick ratio of 1.02, a current ratio of 1.01 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.10. The firm has a market cap of $97.12 billion, a PE ratio of 27.87, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 6.76 and a beta of 0.45.

CME Group (NASDAQ:CME - Get Free Report) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, April 23rd. The financial services provider reported $2.80 EPS for the quarter, topping analysts' consensus estimates of $2.61 by $0.19. CME Group had a net margin of 57.52% and a return on equity of 13.62%. The company had revenue of $1.64 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $1.56 billion. During the same quarter in the prior year, the firm earned $2.50 EPS. CME Group's quarterly revenue was up 10.4% on a year-over-year basis. On average, analysts expect that CME Group will post 10.49 earnings per share for the current year.

CME Group Dividend Announcement

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, June 25th. Stockholders of record on Monday, June 9th will be issued a dividend of $1.25 per share. This represents a $5.00 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 1.86%. The ex-dividend date is Monday, June 9th. CME Group's payout ratio is currently 50.30%.

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.