Dai ichi Life Insurance Company Ltd Has $20.57 Million Stock Holdings in CME Group Inc. $CME

Dai ichi Life Insurance Company Ltd trimmed its stake in shares of CME Group Inc. (NASDAQ:CME) by 13.0% in the first quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the SEC. The firm owned 69,647 shares of the financial services provider’s stock after selling 10,402 shares during the quarter. Dai ichi Life Insurance Company Ltd’s holdings in CME Group were worth $20,570,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Other large investors also recently modified their holdings of the company. Whipplewood Advisors LLC increased its position in shares of CME Group by 2,075.0% in the first quarter. Whipplewood Advisors LLC now owns 87 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $26,000 after purchasing an additional 83 shares during the period. Asset Dedication LLC lifted its position in CME Group by 64.9% during the fourth quarter. Asset Dedication LLC now owns 94 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $26,000 after purchasing an additional 37 shares during the period. FNY Investment Advisers LLC acquired a new stake in CME Group during the fourth quarter worth about $27,000. Elkhorn Partners Limited Partnership acquired a new stake in CME Group during the fourth quarter worth about $27,000. Finally, Hilton Head Capital Partners LLC bought a new position in CME Group in the 4th quarter valued at about $28,000. 87.75% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several equities analysts have recently commented on CME shares. Wall Street Zen cut shares of CME Group from a “hold” rating to a “sell” rating in a research report on Sunday, July 12th. Weiss Ratings downgraded shares of CME Group from a “buy (b)” rating to a “buy (b-)” rating in a research report on Monday, July 13th. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft cut their target price on CME Group from $342.00 to $322.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a research note on Thursday, April 23rd. Barclays reduced their target price on CME Group from $316.00 to $270.00 and set an “equal weight” rating on the stock in a report on Thursday, July 9th. Finally, Raymond James Financial reissued an “outperform” rating and set a $320.00 price target on shares of CME Group in a report on Thursday, July 2nd. Eleven equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, four have given a Hold rating and three have assigned a Sell rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the stock presently has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus target price of $291.81.

Insider Activity at CME Group

In other CME Group news, Director William R. Shepard bought 325 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, June 25th. The shares were acquired at an average cost of $230.57 per share, for a total transaction of $74,935.25. Following the transaction, the director directly owned 260,442 shares in the company, valued at approximately $60,050,111.94. This represents a 0.12% increase in their ownership of the stock. The purchase was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this hyperlink. Also, CEO Terrence A. Duffy sold 35,000 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, May 15th. The stock was sold at an average price of $298.51, for a total transaction of $10,447,850.00. Following the sale, the chief executive officer directly owned 55,630 shares in the company, valued at $16,606,111.30. The trade was a 38.62% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale is available in the SEC filing. 0.30% of the stock is owned by company insiders.

CME Group News Roundup

Here are the key news stories impacting CME Group this week:

• Positive Sentiment: CME Group’s Q2 results topped expectations, and the stock was reported higher on the earnings beat. US Stock Market: CME shares jump 6% after Q2 profit beats estimates; strong hedging demand boosts results
• Positive Sentiment: Analysts noted strong fundamentals and at least one rating upgrade following the earnings release, which can support investor confidence. CME Group: Q2 Earnings Results Lead To A Rating Upgrade
• Neutral Sentiment: UBS reiterated a Hold rating and kept its $260 target, signaling solid fundamentals but limited upside at current valuation. Neutral Stance Reiterated on CME as Solid Fundamentals Meet Valuation Limits; $260 Price Target Maintained
• Negative Sentiment: Bank of America and JPMorgan both maintained bearish/underweight views, even though they slightly raised price targets, highlighting ongoing caution about upside. Analyst price target updates
• Negative Sentiment: Short-interest data showed no meaningful short position, so this headline is unlikely to be a real stock driver and does not change the core thesis.

CME Group Trading Up 0.4%

Shares of CME Group stock opened at $255.31 on Friday. The firm’s 50 day moving average is $254.13 and its 200 day moving average is $281.22. The firm has a market capitalization of $92.51 billion, a PE ratio of 21.65, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 3.16 and a beta of 0.25. CME Group Inc. has a 1 year low of $218.31 and a 1 year high of $329.16. The company has a current ratio of 1.02, a quick ratio of 1.02 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.13.

CME Group (NASDAQ:CME) last posted its earnings results on Wednesday, July 22nd. The financial services provider reported $2.99 EPS for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $2.91 by $0.08. CME Group had a return on equity of 15.60% and a net margin of 63.30%.The firm had revenue of $1.71 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $1.68 billion. During the same period last year, the company earned $2.96 earnings per share. The business’s quarterly revenue was up .8% on a year-over-year basis. Equities research analysts forecast that CME Group Inc. will post 12.18 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

CME Group Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Thursday, June 25th. Investors of record on Tuesday, June 9th were issued a $1.30 dividend. This represents a $5.20 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 2.0%. The ex-dividend date was Tuesday, June 9th. CME Group’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 44.11%.

About CME Group

CME Group Inc is a global markets company that operates some of the world’s largest and most liquid derivatives exchanges, including the Chicago Mercantile Exchange (CME), the Chicago Board of Trade (CBOT), the New York Mercantile Exchange (NYMEX) and COMEX. The firm offers futures and options contracts across a broad range of asset classes — including interest rates, equity indexes, foreign exchange, energy, agricultural commodities and metals — and serves a diverse client base of institutional investors, commercial hedgers, brokers and retail participants.

The company’s core services include electronic trading on the CME Globex platform, central clearing through CME Clearing, and distribution of market data, indexes and analytics.