CME Group Inc. (NASDAQ:CME) Shares Sold by Phoenix Wealth Advisors

Phoenix Wealth Advisors lowered its holdings in CME Group Inc. (NASDAQ:CME) by 3.5% in the 4th quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 11,622 shares of the financial services provider’s stock after selling 416 shares during the period. CME Group makes up 1.2% of Phoenix Wealth Advisors’ portfolio, making the stock its 25th biggest position. Phoenix Wealth Advisors’ holdings in CME Group were worth $2,699,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Several other large investors also recently made changes to their positions in CME. Meyer Handelman Co. acquired a new stake in CME Group during the 4th quarter valued at $6,144,000. Worldquant Millennium Advisors LLC grew its holdings in CME Group by 58.4% during the 3rd quarter. Worldquant Millennium Advisors LLC now owns 613,828 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $135,441,000 after purchasing an additional 226,306 shares in the last quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC grew its holdings in 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 valued at $1,823,964,000 after purchasing an additional 142,692 shares in the last quarter. Bank of Montreal Can grew its holdings in CME Group by 41.8% during the 3rd quarter. Bank of Montreal Can now owns 1,028,090 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $224,432,000 after purchasing an additional 303,169 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Massachusetts Financial Services Co. MA grew its holdings in CME Group by 18.3% during the 3rd quarter. Massachusetts Financial Services Co. MA now owns 1,826,501 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $403,017,000 after purchasing an additional 283,171 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 87.75% of the company’s stock.

CME Group Stock Down 0.2 %

CME stock opened at $232.25 on Wednesday. CME Group Inc. has a 52 week low of $190.70 and a 52 week high of $249.02. The company has a market capitalization of $83.69 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 24.42, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 5.28 and a beta of 0.56. The firm’s 50-day moving average is $233.55 and its two-hundred day moving average is $220.60. The company has a current ratio of 1.02, a quick ratio of 1.02 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.09.

CME Group (NASDAQ:CME) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, October 23rd. The financial services provider reported $2.68 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $2.65 by $0.03. The company had revenue of $1.58 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $1.59 billion. CME Group had a net margin of 57.34% and a return on equity of 13.39%. The business’s revenue was up 18.4% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter in the previous year, the company posted $2.25 EPS. On average, analysts forecast that CME Group Inc. will post 10.18 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

CME Group Increases Dividend

The firm also recently disclosed a dividend, which was paid on Thursday, January 16th. Stockholders of record on Friday, December 27th were paid a $5.80 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Friday, December 27th. This is a boost from CME Group’s previous dividend of $2.50. CME Group’s payout ratio is currently 48.37%.

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

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several brokerages have weighed in on CME. TD Cowen began coverage on shares of CME Group in a report on Thursday, September 26th. They set a “hold” rating and a $221.00 price objective for the company. Oppenheimer raised their price objective on shares of CME Group from $245.00 to $258.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a report on Thursday, October 24th. Citigroup lowered shares of CME Group from a “buy” rating to a “neutral” rating and decreased their price objective for the stock from $255.00 to $250.00 in a report on Monday, January 6th. Piper Sandler raised their price target on shares of CME Group from $250.00 to $258.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research report on Tuesday, January 7th. Finally, Barclays raised their price target on shares of CME Group from $231.00 to $257.00 and gave the stock an “equal weight” rating in a research report on Monday, December 9th. Four equities research analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, eight have given a hold rating and three have given a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the stock has an average rating of “Hold” and an average target price of $229.27.

Insider Transactions at CME Group

In related news, Director Timothy S. Bitsberger sold 1,000 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, October 30th. The shares were sold at an average price of $226.96, for a total transaction of $226,960.00. Following the completion of the sale, the director now directly owns 10,589 shares in the company, valued at approximately $2,403,279.44. This trade represents a 8.63 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which can be accessed through the SEC website. Also, Director Martin J. Gepsman sold 400 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, November 4th. The stock was sold at an average price of $222.92, for a total transaction of $89,168.00. Following the sale, the director now owns 25,067 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $5,587,935.64. This represents a 1.57 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders have sold 7,274 shares of company stock valued at $1,648,071 in the last quarter. Insiders own 0.30% of the company’s stock.

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.