TIAA Trust National Association Raises Stock Holdings in CME Group Inc. (NASDAQ:CME)

TIAA Trust National Association raised its holdings in CME Group Inc. (NASDAQ:CME) by 7.3% during the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The firm owned 3,142 shares of the financial services provider’s stock after purchasing an additional 214 shares during the period. TIAA Trust National Association’s holdings in CME Group were worth $730,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

A number of other institutional investors and hedge funds have also made changes to their positions in the business. Avidian Wealth Enterprises LLC grew its stake in CME Group by 2.6% in the 4th quarter. Avidian Wealth Enterprises LLC now owns 1,769 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $411,000 after acquiring an additional 45 shares during the period. TFC Financial Management Inc. lifted its holdings in CME Group by 8.4% during the fourth quarter. TFC Financial Management Inc. now owns 592 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $137,000 after purchasing an additional 46 shares in the last quarter. Waldron Private Wealth LLC grew its position in shares of CME Group by 2.0% in the fourth quarter. Waldron Private Wealth LLC now owns 2,362 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $549,000 after purchasing an additional 47 shares during the period. Venturi Wealth Management LLC increased its stake in shares of CME Group by 12.1% during the fourth quarter. Venturi Wealth Management LLC now owns 437 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $101,000 after purchasing an additional 47 shares in the last quarter. Finally, First Affirmative Financial Network raised its position in shares of CME Group by 2.3% during the 4th quarter. First Affirmative Financial Network now owns 2,141 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $497,000 after purchasing an additional 49 shares during the last quarter. 87.75% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several equities research analysts recently issued reports on the company. Royal Bank of Canada lifted their price objective on CME Group from $235.00 to $269.00 and gave the stock a “sector perform” rating in a report on Thursday, February 13th. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods lifted their price target 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. JPMorgan Chase & Co. increased their price objective on CME Group from $209.00 to $212.00 and gave the company an “underweight” rating in a research note on Thursday, February 13th. 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 note on Thursday, February 13th. Finally, Erste Group Bank raised shares of CME Group to a “strong-buy” rating in a report on Monday, March 17th. Four investment analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, eight have given a hold rating, three have issued a buy rating and one has given a strong buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat.com, CME Group presently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and an average price target of $238.93.

Insider Activity at CME Group

In other news, insider Julie Winkler sold 11,592 shares of CME Group stock in a transaction on 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 of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $5,453,085.45. The trade was a 34.63 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. Also, COO Suzanne Sprague sold 1,500 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Monday, March 3rd. The stock was sold at an average price of $256.83, for a total value of $385,245.00. Following the transaction, the chief operating officer now directly owns 8,036 shares in the company, valued at approximately $2,063,885.88. The trade was 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. Company insiders own 0.30% of the company’s stock.

CME Group Stock Performance

NASDAQ:CME opened at $261.85 on Friday. The company’s 50-day moving average is $249.06 and its two-hundred day moving average is $235.32. CME Group Inc. has a 1-year low of $190.70 and a 1-year high of $267.91. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.10, a current ratio of 1.01 and a quick ratio of 1.02. The firm has a market capitalization of $94.36 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 27.08, a PEG ratio of 6.76 and a beta of 0.53.

CME Group (NASDAQ:CME) last released its quarterly earnings data 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 return on equity of 13.62% and a net margin of 57.52%. Analysts forecast that CME Group Inc. will post 10.49 EPS for the current year.

CME Group Increases Dividend

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Wednesday, March 26th. Investors of record on Friday, March 7th were given a dividend of $1.25 per share. This represents a $5.00 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 1.91%. This is an increase from CME Group’s previous quarterly dividend of $1.15. The ex-dividend date was Friday, March 7th. CME Group’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 51.71%.

CME Group announced that its Board of Directors has initiated a stock buyback program on Thursday, December 5th that allows the company to buyback $3.00 billion in outstanding shares. This buyback authorization allows the financial services provider to buy up to 3.4% of its shares through open market purchases. Shares buyback programs are typically a sign that the company’s board believes its shares are undervalued.

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.