Insider Selling: CME Group Inc. (NASDAQ:CME) Insider Sells 3,984 Shares of Stock

CME Group Inc. (NASDAQ:CME) insider Hilda Harris Piell sold 3,984 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction on Thursday, February 27th. The stock was sold at an average price of $250.47, for a total transaction of $997,872.48. Following the completion of the transaction, the insider now directly owns 27,046 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $6,774,211.62. This represents a 12.84 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is accessible through this link.

CME Group Stock Up 1.2 %

Shares of NASDAQ CME traded up $2.91 during mid-day trading on Friday, hitting $252.76. The company had a trading volume of 1,075,276 shares, compared to its average volume of 1,775,928. CME Group Inc. has a 1-year low of $190.70 and a 1-year high of $254.40. The company has a market capitalization of $91.08 billion, a PE ratio of 26.07, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 6.76 and a beta of 0.57. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.10, a current ratio of 1.01 and a quick ratio of 1.02. The business’s 50-day simple moving average is $238.12 and its 200 day simple moving average is $228.59.

CME Group (NASDAQ:CME) last announced 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 return on equity of 13.62% and a net margin of 57.52%. On average, analysts predict that CME Group Inc. will post 10.49 earnings per share for the current year.

CME Group Increases Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, March 26th. Stockholders of record on Friday, March 7th will be issued a $1.25 dividend. This represents a $5.00 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 1.98%. This is a positive change from CME Group’s previous quarterly dividend of $1.15. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, March 7th. CME Group’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 51.71%.

CME Group declared that its Board of Directors has approved a share repurchase program on Thursday, December 5th that permits the company to buyback $3.00 billion in shares. This buyback authorization permits the financial services provider to buy up to 3.4% of its stock through open market purchases. Stock buyback programs are usually an indication that the company’s management believes its stock is undervalued.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of equities research analysts recently commented on CME shares. Morgan Stanley lifted their target price on CME Group from $256.00 to $263.00 and gave the stock an “equal weight” rating in a report on Wednesday, February 19th. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods increased their price target on CME Group from $256.00 to $257.00 and gave the stock a “market perform” rating in a research report on Friday, February 14th. Piper Sandler boosted their target price on shares of CME Group from $250.00 to $258.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research note on Tuesday, January 7th. Oppenheimer boosted their price target on CME Group from $258.00 to $269.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a research report on Thursday, February 13th. Finally, JPMorgan Chase & Co. boosted their target price on CME Group from $209.00 to $212.00 and gave the stock an “underweight” rating in a report on Thursday, February 13th. Four equities research analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, eight have assigned a hold rating and three have issued a buy rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the company currently has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus target price of $236.13.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On CME Group

Several large investors have recently bought and sold shares of the business. SJS Investment Consulting Inc. raised its holdings 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 purchasing an additional 97 shares in the last quarter. Truvestments Capital LLC purchased a new position in shares of CME Group in the 3rd quarter valued at $26,000. Dunhill Financial LLC raised its stake in CME Group by 188.4% during the 3rd quarter. Dunhill Financial LLC now owns 124 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $27,000 after acquiring an additional 81 shares in the last quarter. New Age Alpha Advisors LLC lifted its position in CME Group by 50.0% in the fourth quarter. New Age Alpha Advisors LLC now owns 129 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $30,000 after acquiring an additional 43 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Financial Life Planners acquired a new position in CME Group in the fourth quarter valued at $32,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 87.75% of the company’s stock.

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.