CME Group Inc. (NASDAQ:CME) Shares Purchased by Commerzbank Aktiengesellschaft FI

Commerzbank Aktiengesellschaft FI boosted its stake in CME Group Inc. (NASDAQ:CME) by 2.2% in the 4th quarter, according to its most recent filing with the SEC. The fund owned 48,391 shares of the financial services provider’s stock after purchasing an additional 1,036 shares during the period. Commerzbank Aktiengesellschaft FI’s holdings in CME Group were worth $11,238,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

A number of other institutional investors and hedge funds also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Bahl & Gaynor Inc. grew its stake in shares of CME Group by 10.3% in the fourth quarter. Bahl & Gaynor Inc. now owns 614,628 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $142,735,000 after buying an additional 57,439 shares in the last quarter. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. boosted its holdings in CME Group by 3.3% during the 4th quarter. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. now owns 2,047,687 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $475,534,000 after acquiring an additional 65,726 shares during the period. Steward Partners Investment Advisory LLC grew its position in CME Group by 2.0% in the 4th quarter. Steward Partners Investment Advisory LLC now owns 67,382 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $15,648,000 after acquiring an additional 1,328 shares in the last quarter. Unified Investment Management purchased a new stake in CME Group during the fourth quarter worth about $503,000. Finally, Marathon Asset Management Ltd lifted its position in shares of CME Group by 17.6% during the fourth quarter. Marathon Asset Management Ltd now owns 179,712 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $42,683,000 after purchasing an additional 26,913 shares in the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 87.75% of the company’s stock.

CME Group Stock Up 1.2 %

CME stock opened at $256.88 on Tuesday. The stock has a market cap of $92.57 billion, a P/E ratio of 26.56, a PEG ratio of 6.76 and a beta of 0.57. The company has a current ratio of 1.01, a quick ratio of 1.02 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.10. CME Group Inc. has a twelve month low of $190.70 and a twelve month high of $257.78. The company’s 50 day moving average is $238.80 and its two-hundred day moving average is $229.58.

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, topping the consensus estimate of $2.46 by $0.06. CME Group had a net margin of 57.52% and a return on equity of 13.62%. Research analysts expect that CME Group Inc. will post 10.49 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

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

CME Group Increases Dividend

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, March 26th. Investors of record on Friday, March 7th will be given a $1.25 dividend. This is an increase 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 yield of 1.95%. CME Group’s dividend payout ratio is 51.71%.

Insider Activity

In related news, insider Hilda Harris Piell sold 3,984 shares of CME Group stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, February 27th. The stock was sold at an average price of $250.47, for a total value of $997,872.48. Following the sale, the insider now directly owns 27,046 shares in the company, valued at $6,774,211.62. The trade was a 12.84 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this link. Also, insider Julie Winkler sold 11,592 shares of the firm’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 directly owns 21,885 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $5,453,085.45. This trade represents a 34.63 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Corporate insiders own 0.30% of the company’s stock.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of research analysts recently weighed in on the stock. Citigroup cut shares of CME Group from a “buy” rating to a “neutral” rating and dropped their price objective for the company from $255.00 to $250.00 in a report on Monday, January 6th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. upped their price objective on CME Group from $209.00 to $212.00 and gave the stock an “underweight” rating in a research report on Thursday, February 13th. Piper Sandler lifted their target price on CME Group from $250.00 to $258.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a report on Tuesday, January 7th. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods boosted their target price on CME Group from $256.00 to $257.00 and gave the stock a “market perform” rating in a research note on Friday, February 14th. Finally, Royal Bank of Canada increased their price target on CME Group from $235.00 to $269.00 and gave the company a “sector perform” rating in a research report on Thursday, February 13th. Four equities research analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, eight have issued a hold rating and three have given a buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, CME Group has a consensus rating of “Hold” and a consensus target price of $236.13.

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.