CME Group Inc. $CME Shares Purchased by Westbourne Investments Inc.

Key Points

• Westbourne Investments Inc. increased its holdings in CME Group Inc. by 178.6%, acquiring an additional 4,734 shares, bringing its total to 7,384 shares valued at approximately $2,035,000.
• Several institutional investors significantly boosted their stakes in CME Group, with GQG Partners LLC increasing holdings by 7,676.3% and Wellington Management Group LLP by 370.5% in the first quarter.
• The company declared a quarterly dividend of $1.25 per share, which will be paid on September 25th, with a total annualized dividend yield of 1.9%.

Westbourne Investments Inc. raised its stake in CME Group Inc. (NASDAQ:CME - Free Report) by 178.6% in the 2nd quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The institutional investor owned 7,384 shares of the financial services provider's stock after acquiring an additional 4,734 shares during the period. CME Group accounts for approximately 1.1% of Westbourne Investments Inc.'s portfolio, making the stock its 26th largest position. Westbourne Investments Inc.'s holdings in CME Group were worth $2,035,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Several other large investors also recently bought and sold shares of CME. Wayfinding Financial LLC acquired a new stake in shares of CME Group during the first quarter worth about $25,000. Webster Bank N. A. raised its holdings in CME Group by 206.9% during the second quarter. Webster Bank N. A. now owns 89 shares of the financial services provider's stock worth $25,000 after purchasing an additional 60 shares in the last quarter. Cornerstone Planning Group LLC raised its holdings in CME Group by 122.2% during the first quarter. Cornerstone Planning Group LLC now owns 100 shares of the financial services provider's stock worth $26,000 after purchasing an additional 55 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 purchasing an additional 98 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Ransom Advisory Ltd purchased a new position in CME Group during the first quarter worth about $31,000. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 87.75% of the company's stock.

Insider Activity at CME Group

In other CME Group news, insider Timothy Francis Mccourt sold 379 shares of CME Group stock in a transaction on Tuesday, September 16th. The shares were sold at an average price of $259.83, for a total value of $98,475.57. Following the transaction, the insider owned 9,508 shares in the company, valued at $2,470,463.64. This trade represents a 3.83% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this link. Also, Director William R. Shepard purchased 256 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction on Wednesday, June 25th. The stock was bought at an average price of $270.53 per share, for a total transaction of $69,255.68. Following the acquisition, the director owned 258,196 shares in the company, valued at $69,849,763.88. The trade was a 0.10% increase in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this purchase can be found here. Insiders have sold 13,043 shares of company stock worth $3,527,956 in the last 90 days. Company insiders own 0.30% of the company's stock.

CME Group Trading Up 0.4%

NASDAQ CME traded up $0.94 during mid-day trading on Friday, reaching $261.53. 3,139,055 shares of the stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 2,291,844. CME Group Inc. has a 1-year low of $212.38 and a 1-year high of $290.79. The business's fifty day simple moving average is $272.25 and its 200 day simple moving average is $270.52. The stock has a market capitalization of $94.25 billion, a PE ratio of 25.32, a PEG ratio of 4.75 and a beta of 0.43. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.12, a quick ratio of 1.02 and a current ratio of 1.02.

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, topping analysts' consensus estimates of $2.91 by $0.05. The firm had revenue of $1.69 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $1.68 billion. CME Group had a net margin of 58.48% and a return on equity of 14.60%. CME Group's revenue was up 10.4% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter last year, the business earned $2.56 earnings per share. On average, research analysts anticipate that CME Group Inc. will post 10.49 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

CME Group Announces Dividend

The business also recently declared 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 dividend yield of 1.9%. The ex-dividend date is Tuesday, September 9th. CME Group's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 48.40%.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several research firms recently issued reports on CME. Piper Sandler increased their price target on shares of CME Group from $283.00 to $296.00 and gave the stock an "overweight" rating in a report on Tuesday, July 15th. Citigroup increased their price target on shares of CME Group from $265.00 to $275.00 and gave the stock a "neutral" rating in a report on Thursday, July 3rd. Erste Group Bank cut shares of CME Group from a "strong-buy" rating to a "hold" rating in a report on Saturday, May 24th. 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, Wall Street Zen cut shares of CME Group from a "hold" rating to a "sell" rating in a report on Sunday, July 13th. Four research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, nine have issued a Hold rating and three have assigned a Sell rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the company presently has a consensus rating of "Hold" and a consensus target price of $260.60.

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.