Impax Asset Management Group plc Sells 42,689 Shares of CME Group Inc. (NASDAQ:CME)

Impax Asset Management Group plc lowered its stake in shares of CME Group Inc. (NASDAQ:CME - Free Report) by 29.4% during the first quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The fund owned 102,635 shares of the financial services provider's stock after selling 42,689 shares during the quarter. Impax Asset Management Group plc's holdings in CME Group were worth $27,228,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Several other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in CME. Catalyst Capital Advisors LLC raised its position in shares of CME Group by 256.9% during the first quarter. Catalyst Capital Advisors LLC now owns 3,662 shares of the financial services provider's stock worth $971,000 after acquiring an additional 2,636 shares during the last quarter. Harel Insurance Investments & Financial Services Ltd. acquired a new stake in CME Group in the first quarter worth about $117,000. IFM Investors Pty Ltd raised its holdings in CME Group by 10.0% during the 1st quarter. IFM Investors Pty Ltd now owns 73,216 shares of the financial services provider's stock worth $19,423,000 after purchasing an additional 6,653 shares during the last quarter. OneDigital Investment Advisors LLC lifted its position in CME Group by 18.2% during the 1st quarter. OneDigital Investment Advisors LLC now owns 2,937 shares of the financial services provider's stock valued at $779,000 after purchasing an additional 452 shares during the period. Finally, Calamos Advisors LLC boosted its stake in shares of CME Group by 1.3% in the 1st quarter. Calamos Advisors LLC now owns 39,978 shares of the financial services provider's stock valued at $10,606,000 after purchasing an additional 495 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 87.75% of the company's stock.

CME Group Stock Down 0.4%

CME stock traded down $1.00 during mid-day trading on Friday, hitting $274.83. 1,234,017 shares of the company were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 2,189,328. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.13, a quick ratio of 1.02 and a current ratio of 1.02. CME Group Inc. has a 1-year low of $193.17 and a 1-year high of $290.79. The firm's 50 day simple moving average is $276.40 and its 200 day simple moving average is $258.03. The firm has a market cap of $99.04 billion, a P/E ratio of 27.65, a P/E/G ratio of 3.75 and a beta of 0.44.

CME Group (NASDAQ:CME - Get Free Report) last issued its quarterly earnings data 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. The business had revenue of $1.64 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $1.56 billion. CME Group had a net margin of 57.71% and a return on equity of 14.03%. The firm's quarterly revenue was up 10.4% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period last year, the business posted $2.50 earnings per share. On average, sell-side analysts predict that CME Group Inc. will post 10.49 EPS for the current fiscal year.

CME Group Dividend Announcement

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Wednesday, June 25th. Stockholders of record on Monday, June 9th were issued a $1.25 dividend. The ex-dividend date was Monday, June 9th. This represents a $5.00 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 1.82%. CME Group's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 50.30%.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

CME has been the subject of a number of recent research reports. JPMorgan Chase & Co. dropped their price target on shares of CME Group from $223.00 to $211.00 and set an "underweight" rating for the company in a research note on Thursday, April 24th. Barclays upped their target price on shares of CME Group from $279.00 to $283.00 and gave the company an "equal weight" rating in a research report on Wednesday, April 23rd. UBS Group raised their price target on CME Group from $290.00 to $305.00 and gave the stock a "buy" rating in a research report on Friday, April 25th. Bank of America upped their price objective on CME Group from $200.00 to $219.00 and gave the company an "underperform" rating in a report on Wednesday, April 2nd. Finally, Citigroup raised their target price on CME Group from $265.00 to $275.00 and gave the stock a "neutral" rating in a report on Thursday. Three equities research analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, nine have assigned a hold rating and five have assigned a buy rating to the company's stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the company currently has a consensus rating of "Hold" and a consensus price target of $259.87.

Insider Transactions at CME Group

In related news, Director Phyllis M. Lockett sold 1,060 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction on Monday, May 19th. The shares were sold at an average price of $277.88, for a total value of $294,552.80. Following the completion of the transaction, the director owned 3,108 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $863,651.04. This trade represents a 25.43% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this hyperlink. Also, General Counsel Jonathan L. Marcus sold 390 shares of the business's stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, May 20th. The stock was sold at an average price of $277.50, for a total transaction of $108,225.00. Following the sale, the general counsel directly owned 6,708 shares in the company, valued at $1,861,470. This trade represents a 5.49% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last three months, insiders have sold 13,400 shares of company stock worth $3,680,610. Corporate 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.