Park Avenue Securities LLC Raises Stake in CME Group Inc. $CME

Key Points

• Park Avenue Securities LLC increased its stake in CME Group Inc. by 62.0%, now holding 21,829 shares valued at approximately $6 million.
• During the recent quarter, CME Group reported earnings per share (EPS) of $2.96, exceeding estimates and reflecting a 10.4% revenue increase year-over-year.
• CME Group announced a quarterly dividend of $1.25 per share, which will be paid to shareholders on September 25th, translating to an annualized dividend yield of 1.9%.

Park Avenue Securities LLC lifted its position in shares of CME Group Inc. (NASDAQ:CME - Free Report) by 62.0% in the second quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The institutional investor owned 21,829 shares of the financial services provider's stock after buying an additional 8,355 shares during the quarter. Park Avenue Securities LLC's holdings in CME Group were worth $6,017,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

A number of other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also modified their holdings of CME. Wayfinding Financial LLC purchased a new stake in shares of CME Group during the first quarter worth about $25,000. Webster Bank N. A. grew its holdings in CME Group by 206.9% in the second quarter. Webster Bank N. A. now owns 89 shares of the financial services provider's stock valued at $25,000 after purchasing an additional 60 shares during the period. Cornerstone Planning Group LLC grew its holdings in CME Group by 122.2% in the first quarter. Cornerstone Planning Group LLC now owns 100 shares of the financial services provider's stock valued at $26,000 after purchasing an additional 55 shares during the period. Golden State Wealth Management LLC grew its holdings in CME Group by 612.5% in the first quarter. Golden State Wealth Management LLC now owns 114 shares of the financial services provider's stock valued at $30,000 after purchasing an additional 98 shares during the period. Finally, Ransom Advisory Ltd purchased a new stake in CME Group in the first quarter valued at approximately $31,000. 87.75% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

CME Group Stock Performance

Shares of CME opened at $261.08 on Tuesday. The firm has a 50-day moving average price of $271.66 and a 200 day moving average price of $270.86. The firm has a market capitalization of $94.09 billion, a PE ratio of 25.27, a P/E/G ratio of 4.73 and a beta of 0.43. The company has a quick ratio of 1.02, a current ratio of 1.02 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.12. CME Group Inc. has a 52-week low of $212.60 and a 52-week high of $290.79.

CME Group (NASDAQ:CME - Get Free Report) last announced its earnings results on Wednesday, July 23rd. The financial services provider reported $2.96 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating analysts' consensus estimates of $2.91 by $0.05. CME Group had a net margin of 58.48% and a return on equity of 14.60%. The firm had revenue of $1.69 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $1.68 billion. During the same quarter in the prior year, the firm posted $2.56 EPS. CME Group's revenue was up 10.4% compared to the same quarter last year. On average, sell-side analysts anticipate that CME Group Inc. will post 10.49 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

CME Group Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, September 25th. Stockholders of record on Tuesday, September 9th will be given a dividend of $1.25 per share. The ex-dividend date is Tuesday, September 9th. This represents a $5.00 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 1.9%. CME Group's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 48.40%.

Insider Buying and Selling at CME Group

In other CME Group news, insider Sunil Cutinho sold 11,896 shares of the company's stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, August 26th. The shares were sold at an average price of $271.47, for a total transaction of $3,229,407.12. Following the completion of the sale, the insider directly owned 17,440 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $4,734,436.80. This represents a 40.55% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this hyperlink. Also, Director William R. Shepard acquired 256 shares of CME Group stock in a transaction on Wednesday, June 25th. The shares were purchased at an average cost 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 represents a 0.10% increase in their position. The disclosure for this purchase can be found here. In the last quarter, insiders have sold 13,043 shares of company stock worth $3,527,956. Company insiders own 0.30% of the company's stock.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of equities research analysts recently issued reports on CME shares. UBS Group lowered their target price on shares of CME Group from $305.00 to $285.00 and set a "neutral" rating for the company in a report on Monday, September 8th. Oppenheimer boosted their target price on shares of CME Group from $300.00 to $303.00 and gave the company an "outperform" rating in a report on Thursday, July 24th. Citigroup boosted their target price on shares of CME Group from $265.00 to $275.00 and gave the company a "neutral" rating in a report on Thursday, July 3rd. Barclays set a $298.00 target price on shares of CME Group and gave the company an "equal weight" rating in a report on Thursday, July 24th. Finally, Piper Sandler boosted their target price on shares of CME Group from $283.00 to $296.00 and gave the company an "overweight" rating in a report on Tuesday, July 15th. Four analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, nine have given a Hold rating and three have assigned a Sell rating to the company's stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the stock currently has an average rating of "Hold" and a consensus target price of $260.60.

CME Group 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.

Want to see what other hedge funds are holding CME? Visit HoldingsChannel.com to get the latest 13F filings and insider trades for CME Group Inc. (NASDAQ:CME - Free Report).

This instant news alert was generated by narrative science technology and financial data from MarketBeat in order to provide readers with the fastest and most accurate reporting. This story was reviewed by MarketBeat's editorial team prior to publication. Please send any questions or comments about this story to contact@marketbeat.com.