Belpointe Asset Management LLC Grows Stock Position in CME Group Inc. $CME

Key Points

• Belpointe Asset Management LLC increased its holdings in CME Group Inc. by 88.9% during the first quarter, owning 6,787 shares valued at approximately $1.8 million.
• CME Group recently reported a quarterly EPS of $2.96, surpassing analysts' expectations, with revenue of $1.69 billion—a 10.4% increase from the same quarter last year.
• Analysts have varying perspectives on CME Group’s stock, with price targets ranging from $260.60 to $303.00, reflecting a consensus rating of "Hold."

Belpointe Asset Management LLC increased its stake in shares of CME Group Inc. (NASDAQ:CME - Free Report) by 88.9% during the 1st quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 6,787 shares of the financial services provider's stock after acquiring an additional 3,195 shares during the quarter. Belpointe Asset Management LLC's holdings in CME Group were worth $1,801,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also recently bought and sold shares of the company. Wayfinding Financial LLC acquired a new position in shares of CME Group during the first quarter valued at about $25,000. Cornerstone Planning Group LLC boosted its holdings in CME Group by 122.2% in the first quarter. Cornerstone Planning Group LLC now owns 100 shares of the financial services provider's stock worth $26,000 after acquiring an additional 55 shares in the last quarter. Golden State Wealth Management LLC boosted its holdings in CME Group by 612.5% in the first quarter. Golden State Wealth Management LLC now owns 114 shares of the financial services provider's stock worth $30,000 after acquiring an additional 98 shares in the last quarter. Ransom Advisory Ltd bought a new position in CME Group in the first quarter worth approximately $31,000. Finally, Alpine Bank Wealth Management bought a new position in CME Group in the first quarter worth approximately $32,000. 87.75% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

CME Group Stock Down 0.0%

Shares of CME stock traded down $0.08 during trading hours on Friday, reaching $262.30. The company had a trading volume of 1,537,684 shares, compared to its average volume of 1,837,493. CME Group Inc. has a 12 month low of $212.38 and a 12 month high of $290.79. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.12, a current ratio of 1.02 and a quick ratio of 1.02. The business has a fifty day simple moving average of $273.60 and a 200-day simple moving average of $270.29. The company has a market cap of $94.53 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 25.39, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 4.75 and a beta of 0.43.

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

CME Group Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, September 25th. Investors of record on Tuesday, September 9th will be issued a dividend of $1.25 per share. This represents a $5.00 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 1.9%. The ex-dividend date is Tuesday, September 9th. CME Group's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 48.40%.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In related news, insider Sunil Cutinho sold 11,896 shares of CME Group stock in a transaction on Tuesday, August 26th. The stock was sold at an average price of $271.47, for a total transaction of $3,229,407.12. Following the sale, the insider directly owned 17,440 shares in the company, valued at approximately $4,734,436.80. This trade represents a 40.55% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through this link. Also, Director William R. Shepard purchased 256 shares of the company's stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, June 25th. The shares were acquired at an average price of $270.53 per share, for a total transaction of $69,255.68. Following the completion of the acquisition, the director directly owned 258,196 shares of the company's stock, valued at $69,849,763.88. This trade represents a 0.10% increase in their position. The disclosure for this purchase can be found here. Company insiders own 0.30% of the company's stock.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several research analysts have issued reports on CME shares. Barclays set a $298.00 price target on CME Group and gave the stock an "equal weight" rating in a report on Thursday, July 24th. Wall Street Zen lowered CME Group from a "hold" rating to a "sell" rating in a report on Sunday, July 13th. Erste Group Bank lowered CME Group from a "strong-buy" rating to a "hold" rating in a report on Saturday, May 24th. Citigroup increased their price target on CME Group from $265.00 to $275.00 and gave the stock a "neutral" rating in a report on Thursday, July 3rd. Finally, UBS Group cut their price target on CME Group from $305.00 to $285.00 and set a "neutral" rating on the stock in a report on Monday, September 8th. Four equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, nine have given a Hold rating and three have given a Sell rating to the company's stock. According to MarketBeat.com, CME Group has an average rating of "Hold" and an average price target of $260.60.

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.