CME Group Inc. $CME Shares Sold by Victory Financial Group LLC

Key Points

• Victory Financial Group cut its CME Group position by 75.9% in the third quarter, selling 3,727 shares and retaining 1,186 shares valued at approximately $311,000. Institutional investors overall own 87.75% of the company.
• CME Group reported better-than-expected quarterly results, with EPS of $3.02 versus a $2.99 estimate and revenue of $1.74 billion versus $1.71 billion expected. Revenue increased 10.6% year over year.
• Analysts maintain a consensus “Hold” rating, with a target price of $313.29; CME also declared a $1.30 quarterly dividend, equivalent to a $5.20 annualized payout and a 1.8% yield.

Victory Financial Group LLC lowered its position in CME Group Inc. (NASDAQ:CME - Free Report) by 75.9% in the 3rd quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the SEC. The fund owned 1,186 shares of the financial services provider's stock after selling 3,727 shares during the quarter. Victory Financial Group LLC's holdings in CME Group were worth $311,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Bridgewater Advisors Inc. purchased a new position in CME Group in the 2nd quarter valued at approximately $612,000. Focus Financial Network Inc. bought a new stake in CME Group during the 3rd quarter valued at $1,513,000. The Manufacturers Life Insurance Company bought a new stake in CME Group during the 2nd quarter valued at $53,671,000. Haverford Trust Co bought a new stake in CME Group during the 2nd quarter valued at $13,818,000. Finally, Bowie Capital Management LLC purchased a new stake in shares of CME Group during the second quarter worth $22,991,000. 87.75% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of equities analysts have recently commented on CME shares. Weiss Ratings raised CME Group from a "buy (b-)" rating to a "buy (b)" rating in a report on Friday, October 23rd. Morgan Stanley boosted their price objective on CME Group from $337.00 to $359.00 and gave the company an "overweight" rating in a research note on Thursday, October 22nd. Wall Street Zen upgraded CME Group from a "strong sell" rating to a "sell" rating in a research note on Saturday, October 3rd. Bank of America increased their price objective on CME Group from $226.00 to $230.00 and gave the stock an "underperform" rating in a report on Thursday, July 23rd. Finally, Barclays raised their target price on CME Group from $281.00 to $321.00 and gave the stock an "equal weight" rating in a research note on Thursday, October 22nd. Ten investment analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, six have given a Hold rating and two have issued a Sell rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat, CME Group has a consensus rating of "Hold" and a consensus target price of $313.29.

CME Group Stock Performance

CME Group stock opened at $296.42 on Friday. The firm's 50 day simple moving average is $279.69 and its 200 day simple moving average is $279.82. The company has a current ratio of 1.02, a quick ratio of 1.02 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.13. The firm has a market capitalization of $106.59 billion, a PE ratio of 24.32, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 3.59 and a beta of 0.24. CME Group Inc. has a 1-year low of $218.31 and a 1-year high of $329.16.

CME Group (NASDAQ:CME - Get Free Report) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, October 21st. The financial services provider reported $3.02 EPS for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $2.99 by $0.03. The firm had revenue of $1.74 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $1.71 billion. CME Group had a net margin of 63.33% and a return on equity of 16.23%. The business's quarterly revenue was up 10.6% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period last year, the firm earned $2.68 EPS. As a group, analysts expect that CME Group Inc. will post 12.34 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

CME Group Dividend Announcement

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, September 25th. Stockholders of record on Wednesday, September 9th were issued a $1.30 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Wednesday, September 9th. This represents a $5.20 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 1.8%. CME Group's dividend payout ratio is presently 42.66%.

Insider Buying and Selling

In related news, Director Elizabeth Cook sold 500 shares of the stock in a transaction on Monday, September 14th. The stock was sold at an average price of $280.11, for a total value of $140,055.00. Following the sale, the director owned 17,916 shares in the company, valued at approximately $5,018,450.76. This trade represents a 2.72% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is accessible through the SEC website. Also, Director Martin Gepsman sold 400 shares of CME Group stock in a transaction on Thursday, October 22nd. The shares were sold at an average price of $302.50, for a total value of $121,000.00. Following the sale, the director directly owned 25,244 shares of the company's stock, valued at $7,636,310. This represents a 1.56% decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale is available in the SEC filing. Insiders have sold a total of 20,900 shares of company stock valued at $5,871,155 in the last ninety days. 0.30% of the stock is owned by insiders.

About CME Group

CME Group Inc operates global derivatives marketplaces that provide trading, clearing and settlement services for futures and options contracts. Its products cover major asset classes, including interest rates, equity indexes, foreign currencies, agricultural commodities, energy and metals. The company also provides market data, benchmark information and related services used by financial institutions, corporations, producers, investors and other market participants.

CME Group's exchange portfolio includes CME, the Chicago Board of Trade, the New York Mercantile Exchange and COMEX.

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