Candriam S.C.A. Raises Stock Holdings in CME Group Inc. $CME

Candriam S.C.A. increased its holdings in shares of CME Group Inc. (NASDAQ:CME) by 59.7% in the second quarter, according to its most recent filing with the SEC. The fund owned 132,581 shares of the financial services provider’s stock after acquiring an additional 49,537 shares during the period. Candriam S.C.A.’s holdings in CME Group were worth $36,544,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Several other hedge funds also recently bought and sold shares of the business. Webster Bank N. A. lifted its position in shares of CME Group by 206.9% during the second quarter. Webster Bank N. A. now owns 89 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $25,000 after purchasing an additional 60 shares during the last quarter. Highline Wealth Partners LLC increased its stake in CME Group by 84.3% in the 2nd quarter. Highline Wealth Partners LLC now owns 94 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $26,000 after buying an additional 43 shares during the period. Trifecta Capital Advisors LLC lifted its holdings in CME Group by 59.2% during the 2nd quarter. Trifecta Capital Advisors LLC now owns 113 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $31,000 after buying an additional 42 shares in the last quarter. Ransom Advisory Ltd purchased a new stake in CME Group in the 1st quarter valued at about $31,000. Finally, Westside Investment Management Inc. grew its stake in CME Group by 105.0% in the 2nd quarter. Westside Investment Management Inc. now owns 123 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $34,000 after acquiring an additional 63 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors own 87.75% of the company’s stock.

Insider Transactions at CME Group

In related news, General Counsel Jonathan L. Marcus sold 392 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, September 18th. The shares were sold at an average price of $262.00, for a total transaction of $102,704.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the general counsel owned 7,851 shares in the company, valued at $2,056,962. The trade was a 4.76% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available through this link. Also, Director Harold Eugene Jr. Ford sold 1,000 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, November 3rd. The shares were sold at an average price of $263.53, for a total transaction of $263,530.00. Following the completion of the sale, the director owned 1,091 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $287,511.23. This trade represents a 47.82% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale is available in the SEC filing. Over the last 90 days, insiders have sold 14,043 shares of company stock worth $3,791,486. 0.30% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several analysts have recently weighed in on CME shares. Argus decreased their price target on shares of CME Group from $308.00 to $295.00 in a research note on Friday, October 31st. JPMorgan Chase & Co. lifted their target price on CME Group from $252.00 to $256.00 and gave the company an “underweight” rating in a research report on Tuesday, October 14th. Morgan Stanley upped their target price on CME Group from $312.00 to $314.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a report on Thursday, October 23rd. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods raised their price target on CME Group from $283.00 to $287.00 and gave the company a “market perform” rating in a research note on Monday, October 13th. Finally, Weiss Ratings reaffirmed a “buy (b)” rating on shares of CME Group in a research note on Wednesday, October 8th. Eight analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, seven have given a Hold rating and three have assigned a Sell rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the company currently has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus target price of $286.06.

CME Group Trading Up 0.3%

Shares of NASDAQ:CME opened at $279.58 on Thursday. CME Group Inc. has a 12-month low of $222.56 and a 12-month high of $290.79. The business’s fifty day simple moving average is $266.55 and its 200-day simple moving average is $272.65. The company has a market capitalization of $100.82 billion, a PE ratio of 27.09, a P/E/G ratio of 4.41 and a beta of 0.38. The company has a current ratio of 1.02, a quick ratio of 1.02 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.12.

CME Group (NASDAQ:CME) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, October 22nd. The financial services provider reported $2.68 earnings per share for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $2.63 by $0.05. CME Group had a return on equity of 14.61% and a net margin of 58.84%.The firm had revenue of $1.54 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $1.56 billion. During the same period in the prior year, the business posted $2.68 EPS. The firm’s quarterly revenue was down 3.0% on a year-over-year basis. As a group, equities research analysts predict that CME Group Inc. will post 10.49 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

CME Group Announces Dividend

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, December 30th. Stockholders of record on Friday, December 12th will be issued a $1.25 dividend. This represents a $5.00 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 1.8%. The ex-dividend date is Friday, December 12th. CME Group’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 48.45%.

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.