Blue Trust Inc. Purchases 952 Shares of CME Group Inc. $CME

Key Points

• Blue Trust Inc. increased its stake in CME Group Inc. by 69.8%, acquiring an additional 952 shares, bringing their total holdings to 2,316 shares valued at $638,000.
• Several hedge funds, including Wealth Enhancement Advisory Services LLC and GAMMA Investing LLC, have also recently modified their positions in CME Group, contributing to institutional ownership which stands at 87.75%.
• CME Group reported earnings of $2.96 per share for its latest quarter, exceeding analysts' expectations, while also announcing a quarterly dividend of $1.25 per share.

Blue Trust Inc. raised its position in CME Group Inc. (NASDAQ:CME - Free Report) by 69.8% in the 2nd quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The firm owned 2,316 shares of the financial services provider's stock after purchasing an additional 952 shares during the period. Blue Trust Inc.'s holdings in CME Group were worth $638,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

A number of other hedge funds have also recently made changes to their positions in CME. Wealthcare Advisory Partners LLC grew its position in CME Group by 3.6% during the first quarter. Wealthcare Advisory Partners LLC now owns 1,342 shares of the financial services provider's stock worth $356,000 after buying an additional 47 shares in the last quarter. GAMMA Investing LLC boosted its position in shares of CME Group by 24.5% during the 1st quarter. GAMMA Investing LLC now owns 7,007 shares of the financial services provider's stock valued at $1,859,000 after acquiring an additional 1,381 shares during the last quarter. Stock Yards Bank & Trust Co. purchased a new position in shares of CME Group during the first quarter worth about $210,000. Wealth Enhancement Advisory Services LLC increased its position in shares of CME Group by 63.0% in the first quarter. Wealth Enhancement Advisory Services LLC now owns 105,044 shares of the financial services provider's stock worth $27,867,000 after purchasing an additional 40,592 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Opal Wealth Advisors LLC purchased a new stake in CME Group in the first quarter valued at approximately $157,000. 87.75% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

CME has been the subject of a number of research reports. Barclays cut their price target on shares of CME Group from $298.00 to $280.00 and set an "equal weight" rating for the company in a research note on Wednesday. Morgan Stanley lifted their price objective on shares of CME Group from $303.00 to $312.00 and gave the stock an "overweight" rating in a report on Wednesday, October 1st. TD Cowen increased their target price on CME Group from $281.00 to $288.00 and gave the company a "hold" rating in a research note on Wednesday, October 8th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. raised their price target on CME Group from $246.00 to $252.00 and gave the company an "underweight" rating in a research report on Thursday, September 25th. Finally, Oppenheimer upped their price objective on CME Group from $300.00 to $303.00 and gave the stock an "outperform" rating in a report on Thursday, July 24th. Seven analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, seven have assigned a Hold rating and two have given a Sell rating to the company. According to MarketBeat, the stock presently has an average rating of "Hold" and a consensus price target of $281.00.

CME Group Stock Performance

CME Group stock opened at $271.45 on Monday. The company has a quick ratio of 1.02, a current ratio of 1.02 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.12. The company has a market capitalization of $97.83 billion, a PE ratio of 26.28, a P/E/G ratio of 5.72 and a beta of 0.41. The firm has a fifty day simple moving average of $268.89 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $271.29. CME Group Inc. has a twelve month low of $213.94 and a twelve month high of $290.79.

CME Group (NASDAQ:CME - Get Free Report) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, July 23rd. The financial services provider reported $2.96 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating analysts' consensus estimates of $2.91 by $0.05. CME Group had a return on equity of 14.60% and a net margin of 58.48%.The firm had revenue of $1.69 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $1.68 billion. During the same period last year, the firm earned $2.56 earnings per share. The company's revenue for the quarter was up 10.4% compared to the same quarter last year. Research analysts expect that CME Group Inc. will post 10.49 EPS for the current year.

CME Group Announces Dividend

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Thursday, September 25th. Stockholders of record on Tuesday, September 9th were paid a dividend of $1.25 per share. This represents a $5.00 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 1.8%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Tuesday, September 9th. CME Group's dividend payout ratio is 48.40%.

Insider Activity

In related news, General Counsel Jonathan L. Marcus sold 392 shares of CME Group stock in a transaction on Thursday, September 18th. The shares were sold at an average price of $262.00, for a total value of $102,704.00. Following the transaction, the general counsel directly owned 7,851 shares of the company's stock, valued at $2,056,962. The trade was a 4.76% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this link. Also, Director William R. Shepard purchased 262 shares of the company's stock in a transaction on Thursday, September 25th. The shares were purchased at an average cost of $265.19 per share, with a total value of $69,479.78. Following the transaction, the director directly owned 258,459 shares in the company, valued at $68,540,742.21. This trade represents a 0.10% increase in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this purchase can be found here. Insiders have sold a total of 13,043 shares of company stock worth $3,527,956 over the last ninety days. Company insiders own 0.30% of the company's stock.

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.

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