CME Group Inc. (NASDAQ:CME) Shares Bought by Perigon Wealth Management LLC

Perigon Wealth Management LLC lifted its holdings in CME Group Inc. (NASDAQ:CME) by 0.7% during the 4th quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The fund owned 42,308 shares of the financial services provider’s stock after purchasing an additional 298 shares during the period. Perigon Wealth Management LLC’s holdings in CME Group were worth $9,829,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Several other hedge funds also recently made changes to their positions in the business. Berkshire Bank acquired a new position in shares of CME Group in the 4th quarter worth approximately $245,000. Mount Yale Investment Advisors LLC boosted its holdings in shares of CME Group by 0.6% in the fourth quarter. Mount Yale Investment Advisors LLC now owns 10,144 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $2,356,000 after buying an additional 56 shares during the period. Cornerstone Wealth Group LLC acquired a new position in shares of CME Group in the fourth quarter worth about $3,220,000. Blue Trust Inc. boosted its holdings in shares of CME Group by 4.7% in the fourth quarter. Blue Trust Inc. now owns 4,168 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $920,000 after buying an additional 186 shares during the period. Finally, Drive Wealth Management LLC boosted its holdings in shares of CME Group by 4.9% in the fourth quarter. Drive Wealth Management LLC now owns 1,426 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $339,000 after buying an additional 66 shares during the period. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 87.75% of the company’s stock.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several research analysts have commented on CME shares. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods decreased their target price on shares of CME Group from $260.00 to $256.00 and set a “market perform” rating for the company in a report on Monday, January 13th. Barclays raised their price target on shares of CME Group from $231.00 to $257.00 and gave the stock an “equal weight” rating in a report on Monday, December 9th. Morgan Stanley raised their price target on shares of CME Group from $210.00 to $233.00 and gave the stock an “equal weight” rating in a report on Thursday, October 17th. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft decreased their price target on shares of CME Group from $227.00 to $226.00 and set a “hold” rating for the company in a report on Monday, November 11th. Finally, Citigroup cut shares of CME Group from a “buy” rating to a “neutral” rating and decreased their price target for the stock from $255.00 to $250.00 in a report on Monday, January 6th. Four analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, eight have assigned a hold rating and three have assigned a buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, CME Group currently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and an average price target of $229.27.

Insider Buying and Selling

In related news, Director Martin J. Gepsman sold 400 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on Monday, November 4th. The shares were sold at an average price of $222.92, for a total transaction of $89,168.00. Following the completion of the sale, the director now directly owns 25,067 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $5,587,935.64. This represents a 1.57 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this hyperlink. Also, insider Sunil Cutinho sold 4,500 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on Wednesday, October 30th. The stock was sold at an average price of $226.64, for a total transaction of $1,019,880.00. Following the sale, the insider now directly owns 27,053 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $6,131,291.92. This represents a 14.26 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last three months, insiders sold 5,900 shares of company stock valued at $1,336,008. Company insiders own 0.30% of the company’s stock.

CME Group Price Performance

NASDAQ CME opened at $236.95 on Tuesday. The company has a quick ratio of 1.02, a current ratio of 1.02 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.09. The stock has a market capitalization of $85.39 billion, a PE ratio of 24.92, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 5.28 and a beta of 0.56. The company has a 50 day moving average price of $234.02 and a two-hundred day moving average price of $221.43. CME Group Inc. has a 12-month low of $190.70 and a 12-month high of $249.02.

CME Group Increases Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a dividend, which was paid on Thursday, January 16th. Investors of record on Friday, December 27th were issued a dividend of $5.80 per share. This is an increase from CME Group’s previous dividend of $2.50. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Friday, December 27th. CME Group’s dividend payout ratio is currently 48.37%.

CME Group declared that its board has approved a stock buyback plan on Thursday, December 5th that authorizes the company to buyback $3.00 billion in shares. This buyback authorization authorizes the financial services provider to purchase up to 3.4% of its stock through open market purchases. Stock buyback plans are generally an indication that the company’s board of directors believes its shares are undervalued.

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.