IFM Investors Pty Ltd Raises Position in CME Group Inc. $CME

IFM Investors Pty Ltd increased its stake in CME Group Inc. (NASDAQ:CME) by 4.7% in the first quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the SEC. The institutional investor owned 73,156 shares of the financial services provider’s stock after buying an additional 3,304 shares during the quarter. IFM Investors Pty Ltd’s holdings in CME Group were worth $21,607,000 as of its most recent filing with the SEC.

A number of other large investors have also modified their holdings of the stock. Empowered Funds LLC grew its holdings in CME Group by 11.5% during the 1st quarter. Empowered Funds LLC now owns 10,027 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $2,660,000 after purchasing an additional 1,037 shares in the last quarter. Marshall Wace LLP lifted its holdings in CME Group by 103.1% in the 2nd quarter. Marshall Wace LLP now owns 3,692 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $1,018,000 after buying an additional 121,707 shares in the last quarter. Federated Hermes Inc. boosted its position in CME Group by 1,325.2% in the 2nd quarter. Federated Hermes Inc. now owns 23,572 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $6,497,000 after buying an additional 21,918 shares during the last quarter. Nebula Research & Development LLC acquired a new stake in shares of CME Group during the second quarter valued at about $992,000. Finally, The Manufacturers Life Insurance Company grew its stake in shares of CME Group by 2.6% during the second quarter. The Manufacturers Life Insurance Company now owns 287,876 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $79,344,000 after acquiring an additional 7,397 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 87.75% of the company’s stock.

Insider Buying and Selling at CME Group

In other CME Group news, insider Hilda Harris Piell sold 5,753 shares of CME Group stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, May 18th. The stock was sold at an average price of $304.63, for a total value of $1,752,536.39. Following the completion of the transaction, the insider directly owned 27,702 shares in the company, valued at $8,438,860.26. The trade was a 17.20% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available at this link. Also, Director William R. Shepard bought 325 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Thursday, June 25th. The shares were bought at an average cost of $230.57 per share, with a total value of $74,935.25. Following the completion of the acquisition, the director directly owned 260,442 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $60,050,111.94. The trade was a 0.12% increase in their position. The disclosure for this purchase is available in the SEC filing. 0.30% of the stock is currently owned by insiders.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several research analysts recently commented on the company. The Goldman Sachs Group cut their price target on CME Group from $267.00 to $245.00 and set a “sell” rating on the stock in a research note on Tuesday. Wall Street Zen upgraded CME Group from a “sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Saturday, June 13th. Piper Sandler set a $320.00 target price on CME Group in a research report on Wednesday, June 17th. Morgan Stanley cut their target price on CME Group from $362.00 to $353.00 and set an “overweight” rating on the stock in a research report on Thursday, April 23rd. Finally, Keefe, Bruyette & Woods upgraded CME Group from a “market perform” rating to an “outperform” rating and set a $305.00 target price for the company in a research note on Thursday, June 18th. Twelve research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, four have issued a Hold rating and two have given a Sell rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the stock presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $300.94.

CME Group Stock Up 1.0%

CME stock opened at $220.83 on Wednesday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.13, a current ratio of 1.02 and a quick ratio of 1.02. CME Group Inc. has a 1-year low of $218.31 and a 1-year high of $329.16. The firm has a fifty day moving average price of $270.24 and a two-hundred day moving average price of $285.17. The firm has a market cap of $80.02 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 18.84, a PEG ratio of 2.44 and a beta of 0.21.

CME Group (NASDAQ:CME) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, April 22nd. The financial services provider reported $3.36 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $3.11 by $0.25. CME Group had a net margin of 63.19% and a return on equity of 15.42%. The company had revenue of $1.88 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $1.77 billion. During the same period last year, the firm posted $2.80 EPS. The company’s revenue for the quarter was up 14.5% on a year-over-year basis. Research analysts predict that CME Group Inc. will post 12.28 EPS for the current year.

CME Group Announces Dividend

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Thursday, June 25th. Shareholders of record on Tuesday, June 9th were issued a $1.30 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Tuesday, June 9th. This represents a $5.20 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 2.4%. CME Group’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 44.37%.

CME Group News Summary

Here are the key news stories impacting CME Group this week:

• Positive Sentiment: Director William Shepard bought 325 shares of CME at $230.57, a small insider purchase that can signal confidence in the stock’s longer-term outlook. Insider Buying: CME Group (NASDAQ:CME) Director Purchases 325 Shares
• Positive Sentiment: A recent article highlighted CME as one of several oversold stocks, which may suggest the pullback has pushed the shares into technically attractive territory for some investors. CME Group (CME): 11 Oversold Tech Stocks to Buy Now
• Neutral Sentiment: Analysts expect CME’s next quarterly earnings report to show only low single-digit profit growth, implying steady but not especially strong near-term fundamentals. What to Expect From CME Group’s Next Quarterly Earnings Report
• Neutral Sentiment: A Seeking Alpha note said CME’s recent pullback does not change its hold-style view, suggesting some analysts see the decline as valuation-driven rather than a major change in business fundamentals. CME Group’s Pullback Does Not Change The Rating
• Negative Sentiment: Goldman Sachs lowered its price target on CME and maintained a sell rating, reinforcing a cautious outlook from at least one major Wall Street firm. Goldman Sachs adjusts price target on CME Group
• Negative Sentiment: A market recap said CME was among the financial sector’s losers in the quarter, adding to the tone of recent weakness in the shares. Financial sector climbs in Q2 as Robinhood leads gainers, CME heads losers

CME Group Company Profile

CME Group Inc is a global markets company that operates some of the world’s largest and most liquid derivatives exchanges, including the Chicago Mercantile Exchange (CME), the Chicago Board of Trade (CBOT), the New York Mercantile Exchange (NYMEX) and COMEX. The firm offers futures and options contracts across a broad range of asset classes — including interest rates, equity indexes, foreign exchange, energy, agricultural commodities and metals — and serves a diverse client base of institutional investors, commercial hedgers, brokers and retail participants.

The company’s core services include electronic trading on the CME Globex platform, central clearing through CME Clearing, and distribution of market data, indexes and analytics.