Oppenheimer Forecasts Strong Price Appreciation for CME Group (NASDAQ:CME) Stock

CME Group (NASDAQ:CME) had its target price upped by stock analysts at Oppenheimer from $258.00 to $269.00 in a research report issued on Thursday,Benzinga reports. The firm presently has an “outperform” rating on the financial services provider’s stock. Oppenheimer’s price objective suggests a potential upside of 9.58% from the stock’s previous close.

Several other analysts have also commented on the company. Barclays raised their target price on CME Group from $257.00 to $263.00 and gave the stock an “equal weight” rating in a report on Thursday. Royal Bank of Canada raised their target price on CME Group from $235.00 to $269.00 and gave the stock a “sector perform” rating in a report on Thursday. Piper Sandler raised their target price on CME Group from $250.00 to $258.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a report on Tuesday, January 7th. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft dropped their target price on CME Group from $227.00 to $226.00 and set a “hold” rating on the stock in a report on Monday, November 11th. Finally, Citigroup lowered CME Group from a “buy” rating to a “neutral” rating and dropped their target price for the stock from $255.00 to $250.00 in a report on Monday, January 6th. Four research analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, eight have assigned a hold rating and three have assigned a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat, the stock presently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and a consensus target price of $234.13.

CME Group Stock Down 1.9 %

Shares of CME stock opened at $245.48 on Thursday. The stock’s 50-day simple moving average is $235.82 and its 200-day simple moving average is $225.25. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.09, a quick ratio of 1.02 and a current ratio of 1.02. The firm has a market capitalization of $88.46 billion, a PE ratio of 25.81, a P/E/G ratio of 5.54 and a beta of 0.57. CME Group has a fifty-two week low of $190.70 and a fifty-two week high of $253.53.

CME Group (NASDAQ:CME) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, February 12th. The financial services provider reported $2.52 earnings per share for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $2.46 by $0.06. CME Group had a return on equity of 13.39% and a net margin of 57.34%. Equities analysts expect that CME Group will post 10.18 earnings per share for the current year.

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

Insider Activity

In related news, insider Julie Winkler sold 11,592 shares of CME Group stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, February 13th. The stock was sold at an average price of $249.17, for a total transaction of $2,888,378.64. Following the transaction, the insider now owns 21,885 shares in the company, valued at approximately $5,453,085.45. This trade represents a 34.63 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through this link. Company insiders own 0.30% of the company’s stock.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On CME Group

Institutional investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the stock. Truvestments Capital LLC purchased a new position in CME Group during the third quarter worth approximately $26,000. SJS Investment Consulting Inc. lifted its position in CME Group by 570.6% during the fourth quarter. SJS Investment Consulting Inc. now owns 114 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $26,000 after buying an additional 97 shares in the last quarter. Dunhill Financial LLC lifted its position in CME Group by 188.4% during the third quarter. Dunhill Financial LLC now owns 124 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $27,000 after buying an additional 81 shares in the last quarter. New Age Alpha Advisors LLC lifted its position in CME Group by 50.0% during the fourth quarter. New Age Alpha Advisors LLC now owns 129 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $30,000 after buying an additional 43 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Financial Life Planners purchased a new position in CME Group during the fourth quarter worth approximately $32,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 87.75% of the company’s stock.

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.