Cibc World Markets Corp Cuts Stock Position in CME Group Inc. (NASDAQ:CME)

Cibc World Markets Corp lessened its holdings in CME Group Inc. (NASDAQ:CME) by 18.5% during the 4th quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the SEC. The fund owned 56,855 shares of the financial services provider’s stock after selling 12,886 shares during the period. Cibc World Markets Corp’s holdings in CME Group were worth $13,203,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Other hedge funds also recently bought and sold shares of the company. Truvestments Capital LLC bought a new position in shares of CME Group during the 3rd quarter valued at approximately $26,000. SJS Investment Consulting Inc. boosted its stake in CME Group by 570.6% during the fourth quarter. SJS Investment Consulting Inc. now owns 114 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $26,000 after buying an additional 97 shares during the period. Dunhill Financial LLC boosted its stake in CME Group by 188.4% during the third quarter. Dunhill Financial LLC now owns 124 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $27,000 after buying an additional 81 shares during the period. Financial Life Planners bought a new position in CME Group during the fourth quarter valued at $32,000. Finally, Knuff & Co LLC bought a new stake in shares of CME Group in the 4th quarter worth about $33,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 87.75% of the company’s stock.

Insider Activity

In other CME Group news, insider Julie Winkler sold 11,592 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Thursday, February 13th. The stock was 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 in the company, valued at approximately $5,453,085.45. This trade represents a 34.63 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through the SEC website. Also, COO Suzanne Sprague sold 1,500 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Monday, March 3rd. The shares were sold at an average price of $256.83, for a total transaction of $385,245.00. Following the transaction, the chief operating officer now owns 8,036 shares in the company, valued at approximately $2,063,885.88. This trade represents a 15.73 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last ninety days, insiders have sold 27,076 shares of company stock worth $6,871,496. Corporate insiders own 0.30% of the company’s stock.

CME Group Stock Performance

Shares of CME stock opened at $263.58 on Tuesday. The firm has a market cap of $94.98 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 27.26, a PEG ratio of 6.76 and a beta of 0.53. CME Group Inc. has a 52-week low of $190.70 and a 52-week high of $264.95. The company has a quick ratio of 1.02, a current ratio of 1.01 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.10. The company’s 50 day moving average is $243.56 and its 200 day moving average is $232.93.

CME Group (NASDAQ:CME) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, February 12th. The financial services provider reported $2.52 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $2.46 by $0.06. CME Group had a return on equity of 13.62% and a net margin of 57.52%. On average, sell-side analysts anticipate that CME Group Inc. will post 10.49 EPS for the current fiscal year.

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

CME Group Increases Dividend

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, March 26th. Shareholders of record on Friday, March 7th will be given a dividend of $1.25 per share. This represents a $5.00 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 1.90%. This is a positive change from CME Group’s previous quarterly dividend of $1.15. The ex-dividend date is Friday, March 7th. CME Group’s dividend payout ratio is presently 51.71%.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several equities analysts recently commented on the stock. Oppenheimer upped their price target on shares of CME Group from $258.00 to $269.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a report on Thursday, February 13th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. upped their target price on CME Group from $209.00 to $212.00 and gave the company an “underweight” rating in a research note on Thursday, February 13th. Barclays raised their price target on CME Group from $257.00 to $263.00 and gave the stock an “equal weight” rating in a research note on Thursday, February 13th. Royal Bank of Canada upped their price objective 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. Finally, Raymond James upgraded CME Group from a “market perform” rating to an “outperform” rating and set a $287.00 target price for the company in a research report on Monday, March 10th. Four equities research analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, eight have assigned a hold rating and three have assigned a buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the stock has a consensus rating of “Hold” and a consensus target price of $238.93.

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.