2,396 Shares in CME Group Inc. (NASDAQ:CME) Acquired by Zions Bancorporation National Association UT

Key Points

• Zions Bancorporation National Association UT has acquired a new stake in CME Group Inc., purchasing 2,396 shares valued at approximately $636,000.
• CME Group announced a quarterly dividend of $1.25, which represents an annualized dividend yield of 1.8%.
• During the last quarter, CME Group reported an EPS of $2.96, exceeding analysts' expectations and showing a 10.4% year-over-year rise in revenue.

Zions Bancorporation National Association UT purchased a new position in shares of CME Group Inc. (NASDAQ:CME - Free Report) during the first quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the SEC. The institutional investor purchased 2,396 shares of the financial services provider's stock, valued at approximately $636,000.

Several other large investors have also bought and sold shares of the business. SeaCrest Wealth Management LLC grew its stake in shares of CME Group by 3.0% during the 1st quarter. SeaCrest Wealth Management LLC now owns 1,379 shares of the financial services provider's stock valued at $366,000 after purchasing an additional 40 shares during the period. OneAscent Financial Services LLC grew its holdings in CME Group by 4.0% during the 1st quarter. OneAscent Financial Services LLC now owns 1,106 shares of the financial services provider's stock worth $293,000 after acquiring an additional 43 shares in the last quarter. Ballentine Partners LLC boosted its stake in CME Group by 0.8% in the 1st quarter. Ballentine Partners LLC now owns 5,828 shares of the financial services provider's stock worth $1,546,000 after purchasing an additional 45 shares in the last quarter. Wealthcare Advisory Partners LLC grew its position in CME Group by 3.6% during the 1st quarter. Wealthcare Advisory Partners LLC now owns 1,342 shares of the financial services provider's stock worth $356,000 after purchasing an additional 47 shares during the period. Finally, Koshinski Asset Management Inc. increased its stake in shares of CME Group by 1.4% during the first quarter. Koshinski Asset Management Inc. now owns 3,522 shares of the financial services provider's stock worth $934,000 after purchasing an additional 48 shares in the last quarter. 87.75% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of research firms recently commented on CME. Morgan Stanley upped their price objective on CME Group from $301.00 to $304.00 and gave the company an "overweight" rating in a report on Thursday, April 24th. Citigroup boosted their price objective 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. Barclays set a $298.00 price objective on shares of CME Group and gave the company an "equal weight" rating in a research note on Thursday, July 24th. Erste Group Bank lowered CME Group from a "strong-buy" rating to a "hold" rating in a research report on Saturday, May 24th. Finally, Piper Sandler lifted their price objective 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. Four analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, nine have issued a hold rating and four have assigned a buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat.com, the company has a consensus rating of "Hold" and a consensus price target of $261.93.

CME Group Price Performance

Shares of CME Group stock traded up $1.40 on Thursday, reaching $275.32. The stock had a trading volume of 732,490 shares, compared to its average volume of 2,339,177. The company has a current ratio of 1.02, a quick ratio of 1.02 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.12. CME Group Inc. has a 1 year low of $204.16 and a 1 year high of $290.79. The company has a market cap of $99.22 billion, a P/E ratio of 26.65, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 4.89 and a beta of 0.44. The business's 50 day moving average is $275.53 and its two-hundred day moving average is $266.60.

CME Group (NASDAQ:CME - Get Free Report) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, July 23rd. The financial services provider reported $2.96 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 analysts' expectations of $1.68 billion. CME Group had a return on equity of 14.60% and a net margin of 58.48%. The business's revenue for the quarter was up 10.4% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period in the previous year, the firm posted $2.56 EPS. As a group, research analysts anticipate that CME Group Inc. will post 10.49 EPS for the current year.

CME Group Dividend Announcement

The company also recently announced 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 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 1.8%. The ex-dividend date is Tuesday, September 9th. CME Group's dividend payout ratio is currently 48.40%.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other CME Group news, Director Phyllis M. Lockett sold 1,060 shares of the company's stock in a transaction on Monday, May 19th. The shares were sold at an average price of $277.88, for a total transaction of $294,552.80. Following the completion of the transaction, the director directly 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 transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is accessible through this hyperlink. Also, Director William R. Shepard purchased 256 shares of CME Group stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, June 25th. The shares were 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 approximately $69,849,763.88. This trade represents a 0.10% increase in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this purchase can be found here. In the last ninety days, insiders sold 2,450 shares of company stock worth $676,663. 0.30% of the stock is owned by company insiders.

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.