Sarasin & Partners LLP Has $465.75 Million Stock Holdings in CME Group Inc. (NASDAQ:CME)

Sarasin & Partners LLP grew its position in CME Group Inc. (NASDAQ:CME - Free Report) by 1.1% in the 1st quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the SEC. The fund owned 1,755,615 shares of the financial services provider's stock after buying an additional 19,904 shares during the period. CME Group makes up about 4.6% of Sarasin & Partners LLP's investment portfolio, making the stock its 5th largest holding. Sarasin & Partners LLP owned about 0.49% of CME Group worth $465,747,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Other institutional investors also recently modified their holdings of the company. Fiduciary Alliance LLC boosted its position in CME Group by 1.6% in the first quarter. Fiduciary Alliance LLC now owns 23,856 shares of the financial services provider's stock worth $6,329,000 after purchasing an additional 371 shares during the last quarter. Czech National Bank grew its position in shares of CME Group by 5.9% during the 1st quarter. Czech National Bank now owns 82,768 shares of the financial services provider's stock valued at $21,958,000 after acquiring an additional 4,635 shares during the period. Rhumbline Advisers increased its stake in shares of CME Group by 3.4% in the 1st quarter. Rhumbline Advisers now owns 704,549 shares of the financial services provider's stock worth $186,910,000 after purchasing an additional 22,917 shares in the last quarter. Bowman & Co S.C. increased its stake in shares of CME Group by 7.1% in the 1st quarter. Bowman & Co S.C. now owns 9,226 shares of the financial services provider's stock worth $2,447,000 after purchasing an additional 614 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Meyer Handelman Co. raised its holdings in CME Group by 84.4% in the 1st quarter. Meyer Handelman Co. now owns 48,793 shares of the financial services provider's stock worth $12,944,000 after purchasing an additional 22,336 shares during the period. 87.75% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

CME Group Trading Down 2.9%

Shares of NASDAQ:CME traded down $8.40 during trading on Tuesday, reaching $282.31. The company's stock had a trading volume of 2,745,669 shares, compared to its average volume of 2,188,928. The stock has a market capitalization of $101.73 billion, a PE ratio of 29.19, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 6.76 and a beta of 0.45. CME Group Inc. has a 12 month low of $190.70 and a 12 month high of $290.79. The company has a current ratio of 1.01, a quick ratio of 1.02 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.10. The firm's 50 day simple moving average is $270.54 and its two-hundred day simple moving average is $251.90.

CME Group (NASDAQ:CME - Get Free Report) last announced its earnings results on Wednesday, April 23rd. The financial services provider reported $2.80 EPS for the quarter, topping analysts' consensus estimates of $2.61 by $0.19. CME Group had a return on equity of 13.62% and a net margin of 57.52%. The firm had revenue of $1.64 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $1.56 billion. During the same quarter in the previous year, the business earned $2.50 EPS. The company's quarterly revenue was up 10.4% on a year-over-year basis. On average, research analysts predict that CME Group Inc. will post 10.49 EPS for the current fiscal year.

CME Group Announces Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, June 25th. Shareholders of record on Monday, June 9th will be paid a $1.25 dividend. This represents a $5.00 annualized dividend and a yield of 1.77%. The ex-dividend date is Monday, June 9th. CME Group's payout ratio is currently 50.30%.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several research analysts have recently commented on CME shares. Piper Sandler raised their price objective on CME Group from $275.00 to $283.00 and gave the stock an "overweight" rating in a research note on Tuesday, April 8th. Morgan Stanley increased their price target on CME Group from $301.00 to $304.00 and gave the stock an "overweight" rating in a research note on Thursday, April 24th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. lowered their price objective on CME Group from $223.00 to $211.00 and set an "underweight" rating on the stock in a research report on Thursday, April 24th. Bank of America lifted their target price on CME Group from $200.00 to $219.00 and gave the company an "underperform" rating in a research note on Wednesday, April 2nd. Finally, Royal Bank of Canada reiterated a "sector perform" rating and set a $269.00 price objective on shares of CME Group in a research report on Thursday, April 3rd. Three analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, eight have assigned a hold rating and five have given a buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the company currently has a consensus rating of "Hold" and an average price target of $256.80.

Insider Buying and Selling at CME Group

In related news, Director Howard J. Siegel sold 10,000 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, March 13th. The stock was sold at an average price of $260.00, for a total value of $2,600,000.00. Following the transaction, the director now owns 21,873 shares of the company's stock, valued at $5,686,980. This represents a 31.37% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through the SEC website. Also, Director Charles P. Carey sold 3,000 shares of the stock in a transaction on Thursday, May 15th. The stock was sold at an average price of $272.56, for a total value of $817,680.00. Following the transaction, the director now directly owns 5,400 shares in the company, valued at $1,471,824. The trade was a 35.71% decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders sold 22,900 shares of company stock worth $6,147,935 over the last 90 days. Company insiders own 0.30% of the company's stock.

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.