Bleakley Financial Group LLC Buys 6,671 Shares of CME Group Inc. $CME

Key Points

• Bleakley Financial Group increased its CME Group stake by 32.8% in the fourth quarter, buying 6,671 shares and bringing its holdings to 26,996 shares worth about $7.37 million.
• CME Group posted solid quarterly results, with earnings of $3.36 per share beating estimates and revenue rising 14.5% year over year to $1.88 billion.
• The company also announced a quarterly dividend of $1.30 per share, payable June 25, for an annualized yield of 1.8%; meanwhile, analysts currently rate the stock a “Moderate Buy” with an average target of $305.29.

Bleakley Financial Group LLC lifted its stake in CME Group Inc. (NASDAQ:CME - Free Report) by 32.8% in the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the SEC. The firm owned 26,996 shares of the financial services provider's stock after buying an additional 6,671 shares during the period. Bleakley Financial Group LLC's holdings in CME Group were worth $7,372,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Several other hedge funds have also made changes to their positions in CME. Asset Dedication LLC lifted its stake in shares of CME Group by 64.9% in the fourth quarter. Asset Dedication LLC now owns 94 shares of the financial services provider's stock valued at $26,000 after buying an additional 37 shares during the period. FNY Investment Advisers LLC bought a new stake in shares of CME Group in the fourth quarter valued at about $27,000. Legacy Wealth Managment LLC ID lifted its stake in shares of CME Group by 191.9% in the fourth quarter. Legacy Wealth Managment LLC ID now owns 108 shares of the financial services provider's stock valued at $29,000 after buying an additional 71 shares during the period. Global Wealth Strategies & Associates lifted its stake in shares of CME Group by 1,250.0% in the fourth quarter. Global Wealth Strategies & Associates now owns 108 shares of the financial services provider's stock valued at $30,000 after buying an additional 100 shares during the period. Finally, Anfield Capital Management LLC lifted its stake in shares of CME Group by 197.4% in the fourth quarter. Anfield Capital Management LLC now owns 113 shares of the financial services provider's stock valued at $31,000 after buying an additional 75 shares during the period. Institutional investors own 87.75% of the company's stock.

CME Group Stock Performance

NASDAQ CME opened at $282.54 on Wednesday. The firm has a market cap of $102.38 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 24.11, a PEG ratio of 3.26 and a beta of 0.23. The company has a 50 day moving average of $295.40 and a 200-day moving average of $289.56. The company has a current ratio of 1.02, a quick ratio of 1.02 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.13. CME Group Inc. has a 1-year low of $257.17 and a 1-year high of $329.16.

CME Group (NASDAQ:CME - Get Free Report) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, April 22nd. The financial services provider reported $3.36 earnings per share for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $3.11 by $0.25. CME Group had a net margin of 63.19% and a return on equity of 15.42%. The firm had revenue of $1.88 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $1.77 billion. During the same quarter in the previous year, the company posted $2.80 EPS. CME Group's revenue was up 14.5% on a year-over-year basis. On average, equities analysts forecast that CME Group Inc. will post 12.28 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

CME Group Announces Dividend

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, June 25th. Investors of record on Tuesday, June 9th will be given a $1.30 dividend. This represents a $5.20 annualized dividend and a yield of 1.8%. The ex-dividend date is Tuesday, June 9th. CME Group's payout ratio is 44.37%.

Insider Buying and Selling

In related news, General Counsel Jonathan L. Marcus sold 3,291 shares of the business's stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, March 17th. The shares were sold at an average price of $333.37, for a total value of $1,097,120.67. Following the completion of the transaction, the general counsel owned 7,192 shares in the company, valued at $2,397,597.04. The trade was a 31.39% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available at the SEC website. Also, insider Hilda Harris Piell sold 5,753 shares of the business's stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, May 18th. The stock was sold at an average price of $304.63, for a total transaction of $1,752,536.39. Following the completion of the transaction, the insider owned 27,702 shares of the company's stock, valued at $8,438,860.26. This trade represents a 17.20% decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale is available in the SEC filing. Insiders sold 44,044 shares of company stock worth $13,297,507 in the last quarter. Insiders own 0.30% of the company's stock.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of research analysts have commented on the stock. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft cut their price target on shares of CME Group from $342.00 to $322.00 and set a "buy" rating for the company in a research note on Thursday, April 23rd. The Goldman Sachs Group cut their price target on shares of CME Group from $275.00 to $267.00 and set a "sell" rating for the company in a research note on Thursday, April 23rd. Argus restated a "hold" rating on shares of CME Group in a research note on Wednesday, March 4th. Erste Group Bank upgraded shares of CME Group from a "hold" rating to a "strong-buy" rating in a research note on Thursday, March 5th. Finally, UBS Group restated a "neutral" rating and set a $310.00 price target on shares of CME Group in a research note on Friday, February 6th. Two equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, eight have given a Buy rating, six have issued a Hold rating and two have given a Sell rating to the company's stock. According to MarketBeat.com, CME Group has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average price target of $305.29.

CME Group Profile

CME Group Inc is a global markets company that operates some of the world's largest and most liquid derivatives exchanges, including the Chicago Mercantile Exchange (CME), the Chicago Board of Trade (CBOT), the New York Mercantile Exchange (NYMEX) and COMEX. The firm offers futures and options contracts across a broad range of asset classes — including interest rates, equity indexes, foreign exchange, energy, agricultural commodities and metals — and serves a diverse client base of institutional investors, commercial hedgers, brokers and retail participants.

The company's core services include electronic trading on the CME Globex platform, central clearing through CME Clearing, and distribution of market data, indexes and analytics.

This instant news alert was generated by narrative science technology and financial data from MarketBeat in order to provide readers with the fastest reporting and unbiased coverage. Please send any questions or comments about this story to contact@marketbeat.com.