CME Group (NASDAQ:CME) Price Target Raised to $255.00

CME Group (NASDAQ:CME) had its price objective hoisted by Citigroup from $250.00 to $255.00 in a research report released on Thursday morning, Benzinga reports. Citigroup currently has a buy rating on the financial services provider’s stock.

A number of other equities research analysts also recently weighed in on the company. Oppenheimer upped their target price on CME Group from $228.00 to $245.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a research report on Monday, October 14th. TD Cowen initiated coverage on CME Group in a report on Thursday, September 26th. They issued a “hold” rating and a $221.00 price objective for the company. Morgan Stanley raised their target price on CME Group from $210.00 to $233.00 and gave the company an “equal weight” rating in a research note on Thursday, October 17th. Barclays boosted their price target on shares of CME Group from $219.00 to $231.00 and gave the stock an “equal weight” rating in a research report on Thursday. Finally, The Goldman Sachs Group raised their price objective on shares of CME Group from $195.00 to $198.00 and gave the company a “sell” rating in a research report on Thursday, October 3rd. Four analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, seven have given a hold rating and four have given a buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat, the stock currently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and a consensus target price of $222.07.

CME Group Price Performance

Shares of NASDAQ:CME opened at $226.14 on Thursday. The firm’s 50 day moving average is $218.94 and its two-hundred day moving average is $208.87. The firm has a market capitalization of $81.43 billion, a P/E ratio of 25.73, a PEG ratio of 7.76 and a beta of 0.55. The company has a current ratio of 1.02, a quick ratio of 1.02 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.10. CME Group has a 52 week low of $190.70 and a 52 week high of $230.36.

CME Group (NASDAQ:CME) last issued its quarterly earnings data 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. CME Group had a net margin of 56.98% and a return on equity of 12.82%. The business had revenue of $1.58 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $1.59 billion. During the same period in the previous year, the business earned $2.25 earnings per share. The company’s revenue was up 18.4% on a year-over-year basis. Analysts anticipate that CME Group will post 10.04 earnings per share for the current year.

CME Group Announces Dividend

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Wednesday, September 25th. Stockholders of record on Monday, September 9th were given a dividend of $1.15 per share. This represents a $4.60 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 2.03%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Monday, September 9th. CME Group’s dividend payout ratio is currently 52.33%.

Insider Activity at CME Group

In other CME Group news, CFO Lynne Fitzpatrick sold 754 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Sunday, September 15th. The stock was sold at an average price of $216.99, for a total value of $163,610.46. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief financial officer now owns 13,261 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $2,877,504.39. This represents a 0.00 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available at this link. In related news, Director Bryan T. Durkin sold 7,593 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Friday, August 30th. The shares were sold at an average price of $214.59, for a total value of $1,629,381.87. Following the completion of the transaction, the director now owns 55,607 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $11,932,706.13. This represents a 0.00 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available at this hyperlink. Also, CFO Lynne Fitzpatrick sold 754 shares of CME Group stock in a transaction that occurred on Sunday, September 15th. The shares were sold at an average price of $216.99, for a total value of $163,610.46. Following the sale, the chief financial officer now directly owns 13,261 shares in the company, valued at $2,877,504.39. The trade was a 0.00 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. 0.30% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On CME Group

Institutional investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Solidarity Wealth LLC raised its holdings in shares of CME Group by 48.8% in the third quarter. Solidarity Wealth LLC now owns 18,610 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $4,106,000 after buying an additional 6,100 shares during the last quarter. Oak Harvest Investment Services raised its stake in shares of CME Group by 5.2% in the third quarter. Oak Harvest Investment Services now owns 53,775 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $11,865,000 after acquiring an additional 2,639 shares during the last quarter. Pinnacle Associates Ltd. raised its stake in shares of CME Group by 88.4% in the third quarter. Pinnacle Associates Ltd. now owns 6,907 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $1,455,000 after acquiring an additional 3,241 shares during the last quarter. First Trust Direct Indexing L.P. lifted its position in shares of CME Group by 23.2% during the third quarter. First Trust Direct Indexing L.P. now owns 11,887 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $2,623,000 after purchasing an additional 2,238 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Trajan Wealth LLC grew its stake in shares of CME Group by 11.3% during the third quarter. Trajan Wealth LLC now owns 18,790 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $4,146,000 after purchasing an additional 1,905 shares during the last quarter. 87.75% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

About CME Group

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.