CME Group Inc. (NASDAQ:CME) Given Average Recommendation of “Reduce” by Brokerages

CME Group Inc. (NASDAQ:CME) has been given an average recommendation of “Reduce” by the fifteen research firms that are presently covering the firm, Marketbeat Ratings reports. Four research analysts have rated the stock with a sell recommendation, eight have issued a hold recommendation and three have issued a buy recommendation on the company. The average 1 year target price among analysts that have covered the stock in the last year is $229.27.

A number of equities research analysts recently issued reports on CME shares. Barclays upped their price objective on shares of CME Group from $231.00 to $257.00 and gave the stock an “equal weight” rating in a report on Monday, December 9th. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods lowered their price objective on CME Group from $260.00 to $256.00 and set a “market perform” rating on the stock in a report on Monday. Bank of America raised their price objective on CME Group from $177.00 to $180.00 and gave the company an “underperform” rating in a research note on Thursday, October 3rd. Morgan Stanley upped their target price on CME Group from $210.00 to $233.00 and gave the stock an “equal weight” rating in a research report on Thursday, October 17th. Finally, Piper Sandler lifted their price target on shares of CME Group from $250.00 to $258.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research report on Tuesday, January 7th.

CME Group Stock Up 0.1 %

Shares of CME Group stock opened at $229.45 on Tuesday. The firm has a market cap of $82.69 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 24.13, a P/E/G ratio of 5.41 and a beta of 0.56. The stock has a 50-day simple moving average of $232.68 and a 200-day simple moving average of $219.11. CME Group has a 52-week low of $190.70 and a 52-week high of $249.02. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.09, a current ratio of 1.02 and a quick ratio of 1.02.

CME Group (NASDAQ:CME) last posted its earnings results on Wednesday, October 23rd. The financial services provider reported $2.68 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $2.65 by $0.03. CME Group had a net margin of 57.34% and a return on equity of 13.39%. The firm had revenue of $1.58 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $1.59 billion. During the same period in the previous year, the company earned $2.25 earnings per share. The company’s revenue was up 18.4% compared to the same quarter last year. On average, equities research analysts expect that CME Group will post 10.22 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

CME Group declared that its Board of Directors has approved a share buyback plan on Thursday, December 5th that authorizes the company to buyback $3.00 billion in shares. This buyback authorization authorizes the financial services provider to reacquire up to 3.4% of its shares through open market purchases. Shares buyback plans are typically a sign that the company’s board believes its shares are undervalued.

CME Group Increases Dividend

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

Insider Activity at CME Group

In related news, Director Timothy S. Bitsberger sold 1,000 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, October 30th. The shares were sold at an average price of $226.96, for a total value of $226,960.00. Following the sale, the director now owns 10,589 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $2,403,279.44. The trade was a 8.63 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available through this hyperlink. Also, Director Martin J. Gepsman sold 400 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Monday, November 4th. The stock was sold at an average price of $222.92, for a total transaction of $89,168.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the director now directly owns 25,067 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $5,587,935.64. This trade represents a 1.57 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Over the last 90 days, insiders sold 7,274 shares of company stock worth $1,648,071. Company insiders own 0.30% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On CME Group

Large investors have recently modified their holdings of the stock. Geode Capital Management LLC lifted its position in shares of CME Group by 1.8% during the 3rd quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC now owns 8,284,745 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $1,823,964,000 after buying an additional 142,692 shares during the period. Ameriprise Financial Inc. raised its stake in CME Group by 11.3% during the second quarter. Ameriprise Financial Inc. now owns 5,283,196 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $1,038,676,000 after acquiring an additional 537,758 shares in the last quarter. Legal & General Group Plc lifted its holdings in shares of CME Group by 6.6% during the second quarter. Legal & General Group Plc now owns 2,835,075 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $557,371,000 after acquiring an additional 176,004 shares during the period. Janus Henderson Group PLC boosted its stake in shares of CME Group by 17.8% in the 3rd quarter. Janus Henderson Group PLC now owns 2,514,040 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $554,707,000 after purchasing an additional 380,071 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Franklin Resources Inc. grew its holdings in shares of CME Group by 70.4% in the 3rd quarter. Franklin Resources Inc. now owns 2,427,107 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $544,157,000 after purchasing an additional 1,003,119 shares during the last quarter. 87.75% of the stock is currently 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.