CME Group Inc. $CME Shares Sold by Chicago Capital LLC

Key Points

• Chicago Capital LLC reduced its holdings in CME Group Inc. by 35.2% during the second quarter, owning 1,949 shares valued at $537,000 after selling 1,057 shares.
• CME Group reported a 10.4% increase in revenue year-over-year, with quarterly earnings of $2.96 EPS, exceeding expectations of $2.91.
• The company declared a quarterly dividend of $1.25 per share, resulting in an annualized dividend yield of 1.9% and a payout ratio of 48.40%.

Chicago Capital LLC trimmed its holdings in CME Group Inc. (NASDAQ:CME - Free Report) by 35.2% during the second quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The fund owned 1,949 shares of the financial services provider's stock after selling 1,057 shares during the period. Chicago Capital LLC's holdings in CME Group were worth $537,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Other hedge funds have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Wayfinding Financial LLC acquired a new stake in shares of CME Group in the first quarter worth approximately $25,000. Webster Bank N. A. grew its stake in shares of CME Group by 206.9% during the 2nd quarter. Webster Bank N. A. now owns 89 shares of the financial services provider's stock valued at $25,000 after buying an additional 60 shares during the period. Cornerstone Planning Group LLC grew its stake in shares of CME Group by 122.2% during the 1st quarter. Cornerstone Planning Group LLC now owns 100 shares of the financial services provider's stock valued at $26,000 after buying an additional 55 shares during the period. Highline Wealth Partners LLC grew its stake in shares of CME Group by 84.3% during the 2nd quarter. Highline Wealth Partners LLC now owns 94 shares of the financial services provider's stock valued at $26,000 after buying an additional 43 shares during the period. Finally, 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 valued at $30,000 after acquiring an additional 98 shares during the last quarter. 87.75% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

CME Group Stock Down 0.8%

Shares of CME Group stock opened at $270.19 on Wednesday. CME Group Inc. has a 1-year low of $213.94 and a 1-year high of $290.79. The company has a market capitalization of $97.37 billion, a PE ratio of 26.16, a P/E/G ratio of 4.93 and a beta of 0.43. 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 50-day moving average of $270.73 and a 200-day moving average of $271.13.

CME Group (NASDAQ:CME - Get Free Report) last released its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, July 23rd. The financial services provider reported $2.96 EPS for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $2.91 by $0.05. CME Group had a return on equity of 14.60% and a net margin of 58.48%.The business had revenue of $1.69 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $1.68 billion. During the same quarter in the previous year, the firm posted $2.56 earnings per share. The company's revenue was up 10.4% compared to the same quarter last year. As a group, equities analysts forecast that CME Group Inc. will post 10.49 EPS for the current fiscal year.

CME Group Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently announced 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 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 1.9%. The ex-dividend date was Tuesday, September 9th. CME Group's dividend payout ratio is 48.40%.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

CME has been the topic of a number of research analyst reports. Wall Street Zen cut CME Group from a "hold" rating to a "sell" rating in a report on Sunday, July 13th. Piper Sandler raised their target price on shares of CME Group from $283.00 to $296.00 and gave the company an "overweight" rating in a research note on Tuesday, July 15th. Citigroup upgraded shares of CME Group from a "neutral" rating to a "buy" rating and lifted their target price for the company from $275.00 to $300.00 in a report on Thursday, September 25th. Oppenheimer increased their price target on CME Group from $300.00 to $303.00 and gave the company an "outperform" rating in a report on Thursday, July 24th. Finally, Barclays set a $298.00 price objective on CME Group and gave the company an "equal weight" rating in a research report on Thursday, July 24th. Five analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, seven have issued a Hold rating and three have assigned a Sell rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the stock currently has an average rating of "Hold" and an average price target of $268.14.

Insider Activity at CME Group

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

CME Group Company 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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