Paragon Capital Management Ltd Makes New Investment in CME Group Inc. $CME

Paragon Capital Management Ltd acquired a new position in shares of CME Group Inc. (NASDAQ:CME) in the 3rd quarter, HoldingsChannel reports. The institutional investor acquired 2,572 shares of the financial services provider’s stock, valued at approximately $674,000.

Other large investors have also recently bought and sold shares of the company. Whipplewood Advisors LLC lifted its holdings in CME Group by 2,075.0% during the 1st quarter. Whipplewood Advisors LLC now owns 87 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $26,000 after buying an additional 83 shares during the last quarter. First Community Trust NA purchased a new position in shares of CME Group in the 3rd quarter valued at about $26,000. North Point Portfolio Managers Corp OH acquired a new stake in shares of CME Group during the 3rd quarter worth about $26,000. Hilton Head Capital Partners LLC acquired a new stake in shares of CME Group during the 4th quarter worth about $28,000. Finally, Mowery & Schoenfeld Wealth Management LLC purchased a new stake in CME Group during the second quarter worth approximately $28,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 87.75% of the company’s stock.

CME Group Stock Performance

CME Group stock traded up $2.62 during trading hours on Friday, reaching $279.06. 994,895 shares of the stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 2,524,912. CME Group Inc. has a 52-week low of $218.31 and a 52-week high of $329.16. The stock has a market cap of $100.35 billion, a P/E ratio of 23.69, a P/E/G ratio of 3.54 and a beta of 0.24. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.13, a quick ratio of 1.02 and a current ratio of 1.02. The firm’s 50 day moving average is $271.81 and its 200 day moving average is $271.19.

CME Group (NASDAQ:CME) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, July 22nd. The financial services provider reported $2.99 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $2.91 by $0.08. The business had revenue of $1.71 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $1.68 billion. CME Group had a net margin of 63.30% and a return on equity of 15.60%. The business’s revenue was up .8% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period in the previous year, the business posted $2.96 earnings per share. Analysts predict that CME Group Inc. will post 12.28 EPS for the current fiscal year.

CME Group Announces Dividend

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, September 25th. Shareholders 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 annualized dividend and a yield of 1.9%. CME Group’s payout ratio is presently 44.11%.

Insider Transactions at CME Group

In other CME Group news, CEO Terrence A. Duffy sold 15,000 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction on Thursday, September 10th. The stock was sold at an average price of $274.44, for a total value of $4,116,600.00. Following the completion of the sale, the chief executive officer owned 40,630 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $11,150,497.20. This trade represents a 26.96% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through the SEC website. Also, Director William R. Shepard purchased 293 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Friday, September 25th. The shares were bought at an average cost of $268.76 per share, for a total transaction of $78,746.68. Following the completion of the purchase, the director owned 263,289 shares in the company, valued at approximately $70,761,551.64. This trade represents a 0.11% increase in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this purchase is available in the SEC filing. Company insiders own 0.30% of the company’s stock.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

CME has been the subject of a number of research analyst reports. Wall Street Zen raised CME Group from a “strong sell” rating to a “sell” rating in a report on Saturday, October 3rd. Rothschild & Co Redburn upgraded shares of CME Group from a “neutral” rating to a “buy” rating and boosted their price objective for the stock from $316.00 to $323.00 in a research report on Thursday, June 11th. Raymond James Financial restated an “outperform” rating and issued a $320.00 target price on shares of CME Group in a report on Thursday, July 2nd. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods raised shares of CME Group from a “market perform” rating to an “outperform” rating and set a $305.00 target price on the stock in a research report on Thursday, June 18th. Finally, TD Cowen lifted their price target on shares of CME Group from $292.00 to $300.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research note on Monday. Eight research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, seven have given a Hold rating and three have issued a Sell rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the stock presently has an average rating of “Hold” and an average target price of $292.06.

CME Group Profile

CME Group Inc operates global derivatives marketplaces that enable customers to manage risk and trade futures and options contracts. Its exchanges offer products linked to interest rates, equity indexes, foreign currencies, agricultural commodities, energy, metals and other asset classes.

The company also provides central counterparty clearing, settlement and related risk-management services for transactions conducted on its markets. In addition, CME Group offers market data, benchmark products and technology services that support trading, analysis and connectivity for financial institutions, businesses, professional traders and other market participants.

CME Group’s history includes the Chicago Board of Trade, founded in 1848, and the Chicago Mercantile Exchange, established in 1898.