CME Group (NASDAQ:CME) Director Martin Gepsman Sells 400 Shares of Stock

CME Group Inc. (NASDAQ:CME) Director Martin Gepsman sold 400 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated Thursday, October 22nd. The shares were sold at an average price of $302.50, for a total transaction of $121,000.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the director directly owned 25,244 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $7,636,310. The trade was a 1.56% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through the SEC website.

CME Group Price Performance

CME Group stock opened at $305.98 on Friday. CME Group Inc. has a 12-month low of $218.31 and a 12-month high of $329.16. The stock has a market capitalization of $110.02 billion, a P/E ratio of 25.95, a P/E/G ratio of 3.81 and a beta of 0.24. The firm’s 50-day moving average is $276.89 and its two-hundred day moving average is $270.49. 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 (NASDAQ:CME) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, October 21st. The financial services provider reported $3.02 EPS for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $2.99 by $0.03. The business had revenue of $1.74 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $1.71 billion. CME Group had a net margin of 63.33% and a return on equity of 16.23%. The company’s quarterly revenue was up 10.6% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period in the previous year, the firm posted $2.68 earnings per share. Equities analysts predict that CME Group Inc. will post 12.31 earnings per share for the current year.

CME Group Announces Dividend

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, September 25th. Investors of record on Wednesday, September 9th were given a dividend of $1.30 per share. The ex-dividend date was Wednesday, September 9th. This represents a $5.20 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 1.7%. CME Group’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 44.11%.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On CME Group

A number of institutional investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in CME. BlackRock Inc. acquired a new position in shares of CME Group in the 2nd quarter valued at about $6,749,965,000. Bank of America Corp DE grew its holdings in shares of CME Group by 39.1% during the 1st quarter. Bank of America Corp DE now owns 4,019,944 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $1,187,290,000 after purchasing an additional 1,130,587 shares during the period. Bank of New York Mellon Corp acquired a new stake in CME Group during the 2nd quarter worth approximately $867,313,000. Alphabet Inc. acquired a new stake in CME Group during the 2nd quarter worth approximately $769,376,000. Finally, Mitsubishi UFJ Asset Management Co. Ltd. purchased a new position in CME Group in the second quarter valued at approximately $629,771,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 87.75% of the company’s stock.

Key Headlines Impacting CME Group

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

• Positive Sentiment: Record Q3 performance: CME reported revenue of $1.74 billion, up 10.6% year over year and ahead of the $1.71 billion consensus estimate. Adjusted EPS of $3.02 also exceeded expectations, while average daily volume reached a record 29.4 million contracts. Growth was supported by higher derivatives activity, transaction fees and market-data revenue. CME Group third-quarter results
• Positive Sentiment: Capital returns and operating momentum: CME returned nearly $1 billion to shareholders through dividends and share repurchases. Management also highlighted record participation, international volume growth and plans to launch CME Securities Clearing on December 7, potentially expanding its clearing business. CME Securities Clearing launch
• Positive Sentiment: JPMorgan upgrade: JPMorgan raised CME from “underweight” to “overweight” and established a $367 price target, implying substantial potential upside. The upgrade reflects confidence in CME’s volume growth and earnings outlook. JPMorgan CME rating
• Neutral Sentiment: Mixed analyst view: UBS raised its price target from $270 to $310 but maintained a “neutral” rating, suggesting analysts see limited near-term upside at the current valuation. UBS CME rating
• Negative Sentiment: Expense concerns and insider selling: The stock initially faced pressure because quarterly expenses disappointed despite the earnings beat. Director Martin Gepsman also sold 400 shares worth $121,000; the relatively small transaction leaves him with approximately 25,244 shares, so its signaling value appears limited. Martin Gepsman insider transaction

Analysts Set New Price Targets

CME has been the subject of several analyst reports. The Goldman Sachs Group cut their price target on CME Group from $267.00 to $245.00 and set a “sell” rating for the company in a report on Tuesday, June 30th. Wall Street Zen upgraded CME Group from a “strong sell” rating to a “sell” rating in a report on Saturday, October 3rd. TD Cowen lifted their price objective on CME Group from $292.00 to $300.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research report on Monday, October 5th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. upgraded CME Group from an “underweight” rating to an “overweight” rating and set a $367.00 target price for the company in a research note on Thursday. Finally, Barclays increased their target price on CME Group from $281.00 to $321.00 and gave the stock an “equal weight” rating in a research report on Thursday. Ten equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, six have given a Hold rating and two have given a Sell rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, CME Group presently has an average rating of “Hold” and an average target price of $313.29.

About CME Group

CME Group Inc operates global derivatives marketplaces that provide trading, clearing and settlement services for futures and options contracts. Its products cover major asset classes, including interest rates, equity indexes, foreign currencies, agricultural commodities, energy and metals. The company also provides market data, benchmark information and related services used by financial institutions, corporations, producers, investors and other market participants.

CME Group’s exchange portfolio includes CME, the Chicago Board of Trade, the New York Mercantile Exchange and COMEX.