CME Group Inc. (NASDAQ:CME) Shares Sold by Ashton Thomas Securities LLC

Ashton Thomas Securities LLC lowered its position in shares of CME Group Inc. (NASDAQ:CME) by 3.0% during the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the SEC. The fund owned 10,180 shares of the financial services provider’s stock after selling 310 shares during the quarter. Ashton Thomas Securities LLC’s holdings in CME Group were worth $2,363,000 as of its most recent filing with the SEC.

Other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also recently bought and sold shares of the company. SJS Investment Consulting Inc. lifted its stake in shares of CME Group by 570.6% during the 4th quarter. SJS Investment Consulting Inc. now owns 114 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $26,000 after purchasing an additional 97 shares during the period. Truvestments Capital LLC acquired a new position in CME Group in the third quarter valued at $26,000. Dunhill Financial LLC increased its stake in CME Group by 188.4% in the third quarter. Dunhill Financial LLC now owns 124 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $27,000 after purchasing an additional 81 shares during the last quarter. Financial Life Planners purchased a new position in CME Group during the fourth quarter worth about $32,000. Finally, Knuff & Co LLC acquired a new stake in CME Group in the 4th quarter worth about $33,000. 87.75% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

CME Group Price Performance

CME stock opened at $262.94 on Tuesday. The firm has a market cap of $94.75 billion, a P/E ratio of 27.19, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 6.76 and a beta of 0.53. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.10, a quick ratio of 1.02 and a current ratio of 1.01. CME Group Inc. has a 1 year low of $190.70 and a 1 year high of $267.91. The stock has a 50-day simple moving average of $247.17 and a 200-day simple moving average of $234.65.

CME Group (NASDAQ:CME) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, February 12th. The financial services provider reported $2.52 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $2.46 by $0.06. CME Group had a net margin of 57.52% and a return on equity of 13.62%. On average, equities analysts predict that CME Group Inc. will post 10.49 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

CME Group announced that its Board of Directors has initiated a stock buyback plan on Thursday, December 5th that permits the company to buyback $3.00 billion in outstanding shares. This buyback authorization permits the financial services provider to buy up to 3.4% of its stock through open market purchases. Stock buyback plans are typically a sign that the company’s leadership believes its stock is undervalued.

CME Group Increases Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, March 26th. Shareholders of record on Friday, March 7th will be issued a $1.25 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, March 7th. This represents a $5.00 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 1.90%. This is a positive change from CME Group’s previous quarterly dividend of $1.15. CME Group’s payout ratio is currently 51.71%.

Insider Buying and Selling at CME Group

In related news, insider Hilda Harris Piell sold 3,984 shares of CME Group stock in a transaction on Thursday, February 27th. The shares were sold at an average price of $250.47, for a total value of $997,872.48. Following the completion of the sale, the insider now owns 27,046 shares in the company, valued at approximately $6,774,211.62. The trade was a 12.84 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this link. Also, insider Julie Winkler sold 11,592 shares of the stock in a transaction on Thursday, February 13th. The shares were 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 $5,453,085.45. This trade represents a 34.63 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders sold a total of 27,076 shares of company stock valued at $6,871,496 in the last ninety days. Insiders own 0.30% of the company’s stock.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of research analysts have recently commented on CME shares. Piper Sandler upped their price objective on shares of CME Group from $250.00 to $258.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research note on Tuesday, January 7th. Morgan Stanley upped their price target on shares of CME Group from $256.00 to $263.00 and gave the stock an “equal weight” rating in a research report on Wednesday, February 19th. Raymond James upgraded shares of CME Group from a “market perform” rating to an “outperform” rating and set a $287.00 price target on the stock in a report on Monday, March 10th. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods boosted their price objective on shares of CME Group from $256.00 to $257.00 and gave the company a “market perform” rating in a research note on Friday, February 14th. Finally, JPMorgan Chase & Co. increased their target price on CME Group from $209.00 to $212.00 and gave the stock an “underweight” rating in a research report on Thursday, February 13th. Four investment analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, eight have issued a hold rating, three have issued a buy rating and one has assigned a strong buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat, the company presently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and an average target price of $238.93.

CME Group Company Profile

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.