Analysts Set CME Group Inc. (NASDAQ:CME) Price Target at $229.27

CME Group Inc. (NASDAQ:CME) has received a consensus recommendation of “Reduce” from the fifteen research firms that are covering the firm, MarketBeat Ratings reports. Four research analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, eight have assigned a hold rating and three have given a buy rating to the company. The average 1-year price objective among brokers that have issued ratings on the stock in the last year is $229.27.

Several research analysts have issued reports on CME shares. The Goldman Sachs Group lifted their price target on shares of CME Group from $195.00 to $198.00 and gave the stock a “sell” rating in a research report on Thursday, October 3rd. Piper Sandler boosted their target price on CME Group from $250.00 to $258.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research report on Tuesday, January 7th. Bank of America increased their price target on CME Group from $177.00 to $180.00 and gave the company an “underperform” rating in a research report on Thursday, October 3rd. Oppenheimer lifted their price target on CME Group from $245.00 to $258.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a research note on Thursday, October 24th. Finally, Keefe, Bruyette & Woods reduced their price objective on shares of CME Group from $260.00 to $256.00 and set a “market perform” rating for the company in a research note on Monday, January 13th.

Insider Activity at CME Group

In other news, Director Martin J. Gepsman sold 400 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction on Monday, November 4th. The shares were sold at an average price of $222.92, for a total transaction of $89,168.00. Following the transaction, the director now owns 25,067 shares in the company, valued at approximately $5,587,935.64. This trade represents a 1.57 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this link. Also, insider Sunil Cutinho sold 4,500 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on Wednesday, October 30th. The stock was sold at an average price of $226.64, for a total transaction of $1,019,880.00. Following the completion of the sale, the insider now owns 27,053 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $6,131,291.92. This represents a 14.26 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Over the last 90 days, insiders sold 7,274 shares of company stock valued at $1,648,071. Insiders own 0.30% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Trading of CME Group

Large investors have recently made changes to their positions in the stock. Coronation Fund Managers Ltd. bought a new stake in shares of CME Group during the 2nd quarter worth $313,000. Private Advisor Group LLC increased its stake in shares of CME Group by 13.1% in the second quarter. Private Advisor Group LLC now owns 5,193 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $1,021,000 after purchasing an additional 601 shares during the period. LPL Financial LLC lifted its position in shares of CME Group by 3.5% during the 2nd quarter. LPL Financial LLC now owns 181,373 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $35,658,000 after purchasing an additional 6,178 shares during the last quarter. American Century Companies Inc. boosted its stake in CME Group by 2.8% during the 2nd quarter. American Century Companies Inc. now owns 47,606 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $9,359,000 after purchasing an additional 1,294 shares during the period. Finally, Federated Hermes Inc. grew its holdings in CME Group by 2.1% in the 2nd quarter. Federated Hermes Inc. now owns 26,286 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $5,168,000 after buying an additional 532 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors own 87.75% of the company’s stock.

CME Group Stock Up 0.2 %

CME opened at $232.71 on Tuesday. The stock’s fifty day moving average is $233.29 and its 200-day moving average is $220.09. CME Group has a one year low of $190.70 and a one year high of $249.02. The company has a market capitalization of $83.86 billion, a PE ratio of 24.47, a P/E/G ratio of 4.93 and a beta of 0.56. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.09, a quick ratio of 1.02 and a current ratio of 1.02.

CME Group (NASDAQ:CME) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, October 23rd. The financial services provider reported $2.68 earnings per share for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $2.65 by $0.03. The company had revenue of $1.58 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $1.59 billion. CME Group had a net margin of 57.34% and a return on equity of 13.39%. CME Group’s revenue was up 18.4% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period in the prior year, the company earned $2.25 EPS. On average, equities analysts predict that CME Group will post 10.2 EPS for the current fiscal year.

CME Group Increases Dividend

The business also recently announced a dividend, which was paid on Thursday, January 16th. Shareholders of record on Friday, December 27th were paid a dividend of $5.80 per share. The ex-dividend date was Friday, December 27th. This is a positive change from CME Group’s previous dividend of $2.50. CME Group’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 48.37%.

CME Group announced that its Board of Directors has initiated a stock buyback 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 purchase 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 shares are undervalued.

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.