LGT Group Foundation Acquires 68,151 Shares of CME Group Inc. (NASDAQ:CME)

Key Points

• LGT Group Foundation increased its stake in CME Group Inc. by 3,544% in the first quarter, purchasing an additional 68,151 shares and bringing its total holdings to 70,074 shares valued at approximately $18.59 million.
• The company recently reported earnings per share of $2.96 for the most recent quarter, exceeding analysts' estimates, and also declared a quarterly dividend of $1.25 per share, translating to an annual yield of 1.7%.
• CME Group's stock now has an average price target of $261.93, with several analysts upgrading their ratings, while noting 87.75% of its stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

LGT Group Foundation lifted its position in shares of CME Group Inc. (NASDAQ:CME - Free Report) by 3,544.0% during the first quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the SEC. The institutional investor owned 70,074 shares of the financial services provider's stock after buying an additional 68,151 shares during the quarter. LGT Group Foundation's holdings in CME Group were worth $18,590,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

A number of other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also recently modified their holdings of CME. Price T Rowe Associates Inc. MD lifted its stake in shares of CME Group by 89.9% in the 4th quarter. Price T Rowe Associates Inc. MD now owns 8,280,785 shares of the financial services provider's stock valued at $1,923,047,000 after purchasing an additional 3,921,278 shares during the period. GAMMA Investing LLC raised its holdings in CME Group by 32,941.0% in the first quarter. GAMMA Investing LLC now owns 1,858,887 shares of the financial services provider's stock valued at $493,144,000 after acquiring an additional 1,853,261 shares in the last quarter. Nuveen LLC acquired a new stake in CME Group during the first quarter worth approximately $218,842,000. Egerton Capital UK LLP raised its position in CME Group by 79.4% in the 1st quarter. Egerton Capital UK LLP now owns 1,730,194 shares of the financial services provider's stock valued at $459,003,000 after purchasing an additional 765,773 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Massachusetts Financial Services Co. MA increased its stake in CME Group by 29.9% in the 1st quarter. Massachusetts Financial Services Co. MA now owns 2,818,590 shares of the financial services provider's stock valued at $747,744,000 after buying an additional 648,591 shares during the period. Institutional investors own 87.75% of the company's stock.

Insider Buying and Selling at CME Group

In related news, Director William R. Shepard bought 256 shares of the business's stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, June 25th. The stock was acquired at an average price of $270.53 per share, with a total value of $69,255.68. Following the completion of the purchase, the director directly owned 258,196 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $69,849,763.88. This trade represents a 0.10% increase in their ownership of the stock. The purchase was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available through the SEC website. Also, Director Phyllis M. Lockett sold 1,060 shares of the company's stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, May 19th. The stock was sold at an average price of $277.88, for a total transaction of $294,552.80. Following the completion of the transaction, the director owned 3,108 shares in the company, valued at approximately $863,651.04. This represents a 25.43% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last ninety days, insiders sold 2,450 shares of company stock valued at $676,663. Company insiders own 0.30% of the company's stock.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of research analysts have issued reports on CME shares. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods upped their target price on shares of CME Group from $265.00 to $273.00 and gave the company a "market perform" rating in a report on Thursday, April 24th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. cut their price target on shares of CME Group from $223.00 to $211.00 and set an "underweight" rating on the stock in a report on Thursday, April 24th. Piper Sandler lifted their price objective 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. UBS Group reissued a "neutral" rating and set a $305.00 price target on shares of CME Group in a research report on Thursday, July 24th. Finally, Oppenheimer lifted their price objective on shares of CME Group from $300.00 to $303.00 and gave the stock an "outperform" rating in a report on Thursday, July 24th. Four investment analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, nine have assigned a hold rating and four have issued a buy rating to the company's stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the stock has an average rating of "Hold" and a consensus target price of $261.93.

CME Group Stock Down 0.3%

CME Group stock traded down $0.78 during trading hours on Friday, hitting $273.92. 2,055,786 shares of the stock traded hands, compared to its average volume of 2,086,143. The firm's 50-day moving average price is $275.52 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $267.13. The company has a current ratio of 1.02, a quick ratio of 1.02 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.12. The company has a market cap of $98.72 billion, a PE ratio of 26.52, a PEG ratio of 4.87 and a beta of 0.44. CME Group Inc. has a one year low of $204.16 and a one year high of $290.79.

CME Group (NASDAQ:CME - Get Free Report) last posted its quarterly earnings data 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 firm had revenue of $1.69 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $1.68 billion. During the same period in the prior year, the business posted $2.56 EPS. CME Group's revenue was up 10.4% on a year-over-year basis. On average, research analysts forecast that CME Group Inc. will post 10.49 EPS for the current year.

CME Group Dividend Announcement

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, September 25th. Stockholders of record on Tuesday, September 9th will be paid a dividend of $1.25 per share. This represents a $5.00 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 1.8%. The ex-dividend date is Tuesday, September 9th. CME Group's payout ratio is presently 48.40%.

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.