Truist Financial Corp Sells 8,291 Shares of CME Group Inc. (NASDAQ:CME)

Truist Financial Corp cut its stake in shares of CME Group Inc. (NASDAQ:CME) by 12.3% during the 4th quarter, HoldingsChannel reports. The firm owned 59,221 shares of the financial services provider’s stock after selling 8,291 shares during the period. Truist Financial Corp’s holdings in CME Group were worth $13,753,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Several other hedge funds and other institutional investors also recently made changes to their positions in the stock. CIBC Asset Management Inc grew its holdings in shares of CME Group by 1.0% during the 4th quarter. CIBC Asset Management Inc now owns 114,111 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $26,500,000 after purchasing an additional 1,106 shares during the last quarter. Pittenger & Anderson Inc. grew its holdings in shares of CME Group by 0.7% during the 4th quarter. Pittenger & Anderson Inc. now owns 66,062 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $15,342,000 after purchasing an additional 482 shares during the last quarter. Sanctuary Advisors LLC grew its holdings in shares of CME Group by 2.3% during the 4th quarter. Sanctuary Advisors LLC now owns 49,620 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $11,706,000 after purchasing an additional 1,098 shares during the last quarter. Principal Financial Group Inc. grew its holdings in shares of CME Group by 0.7% during the 4th quarter. Principal Financial Group Inc. now owns 422,268 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $98,063,000 after purchasing an additional 2,736 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Financiere des Professionnels Fonds d investissement inc. grew its holdings in shares of CME Group by 47.5% during the 4th quarter. Financiere des Professionnels Fonds d investissement inc. now owns 20,997 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $4,876,000 after purchasing an additional 6,761 shares during the last quarter. 87.75% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

Insider Transactions at CME Group

In other news, insider Julie Winkler sold 11,592 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on Thursday, February 13th. The shares were sold at an average price of $249.17, for a total value of $2,888,378.64. Following the completion of the sale, the insider now owns 21,885 shares in the company, valued at $5,453,085.45. This represents a 34.63 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available through this hyperlink. Company insiders own 0.30% of the company’s stock.

CME Group Stock Down 1.0 %

CME Group stock opened at $248.32 on Friday. The company has a quick ratio of 1.02, a current ratio of 1.01 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.10. CME Group Inc. has a 12-month low of $190.70 and a 12-month high of $253.53. The firm’s fifty day moving average is $236.87 and its 200 day moving average is $227.00. The company has a market capitalization of $89.48 billion, a PE ratio of 25.68, a PEG ratio of 6.77 and a beta of 0.57.

CME Group (NASDAQ:CME) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, February 12th. The financial services provider reported $2.52 EPS for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $2.46 by $0.06. CME Group had a net margin of 57.52% and a return on equity of 13.62%. As a group, sell-side analysts predict that CME Group Inc. will post 10.45 EPS for the current fiscal year.

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

CME Group Increases Dividend

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, March 26th. Stockholders of record on Friday, March 7th will be paid a $1.25 dividend. This is a positive change from CME Group’s previous quarterly dividend of $1.15. The ex-dividend date is Friday, March 7th. This represents a $5.00 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 2.01%. CME Group’s dividend payout ratio is presently 47.57%.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several equities research analysts recently commented on the stock. Morgan Stanley lifted their target price on shares of CME Group from $256.00 to $263.00 and gave the stock an “equal weight” rating in a research report on Wednesday. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods lifted their target price on shares of CME Group from $256.00 to $257.00 and gave the stock a “market perform” rating in a research report on Friday, February 14th. Oppenheimer lifted their target price on shares of CME Group from $258.00 to $269.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a research report on Thursday, February 13th. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft dropped their price target on shares of CME Group from $227.00 to $226.00 and set a “hold” rating on the stock in a research report on Monday, November 11th. Finally, JPMorgan Chase & Co. boosted their price target on shares of CME Group from $209.00 to $212.00 and gave the stock an “underweight” rating in a research report on Thursday, February 13th. Four investment analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, eight have given a hold rating and three have issued a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the stock currently has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus target price of $236.13.

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.