Impax Asset Management Group plc Has $27.23 Million Stake in CME Group Inc. (NASDAQ:CME)

Impax Asset Management Group plc reduced its position in shares of CME Group Inc. (NASDAQ:CME - Free Report) by 29.4% in the 1st quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The firm owned 102,635 shares of the financial services provider's stock after selling 42,689 shares during the period. Impax Asset Management Group plc's holdings in CME Group were worth $27,228,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Other institutional investors and hedge funds also recently modified their holdings of the company. New Age Alpha Advisors LLC raised its holdings in CME Group by 50.0% during the fourth quarter. New Age Alpha Advisors LLC now owns 129 shares of the financial services provider's stock worth $30,000 after acquiring an additional 43 shares in the last quarter. Golden State Wealth Management LLC raised its holdings in CME Group by 612.5% during 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. Alpine Bank Wealth Management bought a new stake in CME Group during the first quarter worth about $32,000. Knuff & Co LLC bought a new stake in CME Group during the fourth quarter worth about $33,000. Finally, Banque Transatlantique SA bought a new stake in CME Group during the fourth quarter worth about $35,000. 87.75% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

CME Group Price Performance

NASDAQ:CME traded up $5.85 during trading hours on Monday, reaching $282.55. 2,252,300 shares of the company were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 2,189,580. The business has a 50 day moving average of $276.69 and a 200 day moving average of $258.49. The company has a market capitalization of $101.82 billion, a P/E ratio of 28.43, a P/E/G ratio of 3.75 and a beta of 0.44. CME Group Inc. has a 1-year low of $193.17 and a 1-year high of $290.79. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.13, a current ratio of 1.02 and a quick ratio of 1.02.

CME Group (NASDAQ:CME - Get Free Report) last issued its earnings results on Wednesday, April 23rd. The financial services provider reported $2.80 earnings per share for the quarter, beating analysts' consensus estimates of $2.61 by $0.19. The firm had revenue of $1.64 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $1.56 billion. CME Group had a return on equity of 14.03% and a net margin of 57.71%. The company's revenue was up 10.4% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter last year, the business posted $2.50 EPS. Research analysts forecast that CME Group Inc. will post 10.49 EPS for the current year.

CME Group Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Wednesday, June 25th. Shareholders of record on Monday, June 9th were issued a $1.25 dividend. This represents a $5.00 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 1.77%. The ex-dividend date was Monday, June 9th. CME Group's dividend payout ratio is presently 50.30%.

Insider Transactions at CME Group

In other CME Group news, Director William R. Shepard bought 256 shares of CME Group stock in a transaction on Wednesday, June 25th. The shares were purchased at an average price of $270.53 per share, with a total value of $69,255.68. Following the acquisition, the director owned 258,196 shares in the company, valued at $69,849,763.88. This trade represents a 0.10% increase in their position. The acquisition was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through the SEC website. Also, Director Daniel G. Kaye sold 500 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction on Thursday, May 22nd. The shares were sold at an average price of $282.42, for a total value of $141,210.00. Following the sale, the director directly owned 3,668 shares in the company, valued at approximately $1,035,916.56. This trade represents a 12.00% decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last 90 days, insiders have sold 13,400 shares of company stock worth $3,680,610. 0.30% of the stock is owned by insiders.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

CME has been the topic of several research analyst reports. UBS Group upped their price objective on CME Group from $290.00 to $305.00 and gave the company a "buy" rating in a research note on Friday, April 25th. Oppenheimer upped their price objective on CME Group from $282.00 to $300.00 and gave the company an "outperform" rating in a research note on Wednesday, June 4th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. dropped their price objective on CME Group from $223.00 to $211.00 and set an "underweight" rating on the stock in a research note on Thursday, April 24th. Wall Street Zen upgraded CME Group from a "sell" rating to a "hold" rating in a research note on Saturday. Finally, Erste Group Bank lowered CME Group from a "strong-buy" rating to a "hold" rating in a research note on Saturday, May 24th. Three investment analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, nine have given a hold rating and five have assigned a buy rating to the company's stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the company presently has a consensus rating of "Hold" and an average price target of $259.87.

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.