Mitsubishi UFJ Asset Management Co. Ltd. Sells 116,322 Shares of CME Group Inc. (NASDAQ:CME)

Key Points

• Mitsubishi UFJ Asset Management Co. Ltd. decreased its stake in CME Group Inc. by 3.8%, holding 2,938,058 shares valued at approximately $779 million.
• Multiple institutional investors, including Heartland Bank and Catalyst Capital Advisors, adjusted their positions in CME Group during the first quarter, indicating increased interest in the company.
• Wall Street analysts project growth for CME Group, with recent target price increases from firms like Oppenheimer and Morgan Stanley, positioning the stock with a consensus rating of "Hold."

Mitsubishi UFJ Asset Management Co. Ltd. reduced its stake in shares of CME Group Inc. (NASDAQ:CME - Free Report) by 3.8% in the 1st quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The firm owned 2,938,058 shares of the financial services provider's stock after selling 116,322 shares during the quarter. CME Group comprises 0.7% of Mitsubishi UFJ Asset Management Co. Ltd.'s portfolio, making the stock its 28th biggest position. Mitsubishi UFJ Asset Management Co. Ltd. owned 0.82% of CME Group worth $779,437,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission.

Several other institutional investors also recently modified their holdings of the stock. Vanguard Group Inc. lifted its holdings in shares of CME Group by 1.2% during the 1st quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 34,643,827 shares of the financial services provider's stock valued at $9,190,661,000 after purchasing an additional 400,737 shares in the last quarter. Price T Rowe Associates Inc. MD lifted its holdings in shares of CME Group by 89.9% during 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 in the last quarter. Northern Trust Corp lifted its holdings in shares of CME Group by 11.4% during the 4th quarter. Northern Trust Corp now owns 3,943,454 shares of the financial services provider's stock valued at $915,788,000 after purchasing an additional 403,920 shares in the last quarter. Janus Henderson Group PLC lifted its holdings in shares of CME Group by 24.7% during the 4th quarter. Janus Henderson Group PLC now owns 3,135,753 shares of the financial services provider's stock valued at $728,260,000 after purchasing an additional 621,713 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Massachusetts Financial Services Co. MA lifted its holdings in shares of CME Group by 29.9% during 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 purchasing an additional 648,591 shares in the last quarter. 87.75% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several equities research analysts have commented on the company. Morgan Stanley boosted their target price on CME Group from $301.00 to $304.00 and gave the company an "overweight" rating in a research note on Thursday, April 24th. Barclays set a $298.00 target price on CME Group and gave the company an "equal weight" rating in a research note on Thursday, July 24th. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods boosted their target price on CME Group from $265.00 to $273.00 and gave the company a "market perform" rating in a research note on Thursday, April 24th. Citigroup boosted their target price on CME Group from $265.00 to $275.00 and gave the company a "neutral" rating in a research note on Thursday, July 3rd. Finally, UBS Group restated a "neutral" rating and issued a $305.00 target price on shares of CME Group in a research note on Thursday, July 24th. Four analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, nine have assigned a hold rating and four have given a buy rating to the company's stock. According to MarketBeat, the company presently has a consensus rating of "Hold" and a consensus price target of $261.93.

Insider Transactions at CME Group

In other CME Group news, Director Martin J. Gepsman sold 300 shares of the company's stock in a transaction on Thursday, May 15th. The stock was sold at an average price of $273.17, for a total value of $81,951.00. Following the transaction, the director directly owned 24,767 shares of the company's stock, valued at $6,765,601.39. This represents a 1.20% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available through this hyperlink. Also, General Counsel Jonathan L. Marcus sold 390 shares of the stock in a transaction on Tuesday, May 20th. The stock was sold at an average price of $277.50, for a total value of $108,225.00. Following the sale, the general counsel directly owned 6,708 shares in the company, valued at approximately $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. Over the last quarter, insiders sold 5,750 shares of company stock worth $1,576,294. 0.30% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

CME Group Stock Performance

NASDAQ CME traded up $1.26 on Friday, reaching $282.21. The stock had a trading volume of 1,488,447 shares, compared to its average volume of 2,050,219. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.12, a current ratio of 1.02 and a quick ratio of 1.02. The firm has a fifty day moving average of $275.84 and a two-hundred day moving average of $265.67. CME Group Inc. has a 1-year low of $203.77 and a 1-year high of $290.79. The company has a market cap of $101.70 billion, a P/E ratio of 27.32, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 4.99 and a beta of 0.44.

CME Group (NASDAQ:CME - Get Free Report) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, July 23rd. The financial services provider reported $2.96 EPS for the quarter, beating analysts' consensus estimates 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 for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $1.68 billion. During the same period in the prior year, the firm posted $2.56 EPS. The company's revenue for the quarter was up 10.4% on a year-over-year basis. On average, equities research analysts anticipate that CME Group Inc. will post 10.49 EPS for the current year.

CME Group Dividend Announcement

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, September 25th. Shareholders of record on Tuesday, September 9th will be issued a $1.25 dividend. This represents a $5.00 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 1.8%. CME Group's dividend payout ratio is 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.