Alliancebernstein L.P. Trims Stake in CME Group Inc. (NASDAQ:CME)

Alliancebernstein L.P. reduced its holdings in shares of CME Group Inc. (NASDAQ:CME - Free Report) by 0.8% in the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The firm owned 435,868 shares of the financial services provider's stock after selling 3,672 shares during the period. Alliancebernstein L.P. owned 0.12% of CME Group worth $101,222,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Other large investors have also added to or reduced their stakes in the company. SJS Investment Consulting Inc. grew its holdings in CME Group by 570.6% in the fourth quarter. SJS Investment Consulting Inc. now owns 114 shares of the financial services provider's stock worth $26,000 after purchasing an additional 97 shares during the period. Dunhill Financial LLC raised its stake in CME Group by 188.4% during the 3rd 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. New Age Alpha Advisors LLC increased its holdings in shares of CME Group by 50.0% during the fourth quarter. New Age Alpha Advisors LLC now owns 129 shares of the financial services provider's stock valued at $30,000 after acquiring an additional 43 shares in the last quarter. Financial Life Planners bought a new position in shares of CME Group in the 4th quarter worth $32,000. Finally, Knuff & Co LLC acquired a new stake in CME Group in the 4th quarter valued at $33,000. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 87.75% of the company's stock.

CME Group Price Performance

Shares of CME traded down $2.55 during mid-day trading on Monday, reaching $251.91. 2,825,545 shares of the stock traded hands, compared to its average volume of 2,085,794. CME Group Inc. has a 1 year low of $190.70 and a 1 year high of $273.42. The firm has a fifty day moving average price of $252.60 and a 200 day moving average price of $237.46. The company has a market cap of $90.78 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 26.05, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 6.76 and a beta of 0.43. 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 (NASDAQ:CME - Get Free Report) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, February 12th. The financial services provider reported $2.52 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping 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%. As a group, equities research analysts predict that CME Group Inc. will post 10.49 earnings per share for the current year.

CME Group Increases Dividend

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Wednesday, March 26th. Shareholders of record on Friday, March 7th were given a dividend of $1.25 per share. This is a boost from CME Group's previous quarterly dividend of $1.15. This represents a $5.00 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 1.98%. The ex-dividend date was Friday, March 7th. CME Group's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 51.71%.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In related news, insider Julie Winkler sold 11,592 shares of the business's stock in a transaction dated Thursday, February 13th. The stock was sold at an average price of $249.17, for a total transaction of $2,888,378.64. Following the transaction, the insider now owns 21,885 shares in the company, valued at $5,453,085.45. The trade was a 34.63 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this link. Also, Director Howard J. Siegel sold 10,000 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, March 13th. The stock was sold at an average price of $260.00, for a total value of $2,600,000.00. Following the completion of the sale, the director now owns 21,873 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $5,686,980. This trade represents a 31.37 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Over the last ninety days, insiders have sold 27,076 shares of company stock valued at $6,871,496. 0.30% of the stock is currently owned by corporate insiders.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several research analysts have weighed in on the stock. Erste Group Bank upgraded shares of CME Group to a "strong-buy" rating in a report on Monday, March 17th. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods upped their target price on shares of CME Group from $256.00 to $257.00 and gave the stock a "market perform" rating in a report on Friday, February 14th. Royal Bank of Canada reiterated a "sector perform" rating and set a $269.00 price target on shares of CME Group in a research note on Thursday. Bank of America lifted their target price on CME Group from $200.00 to $219.00 and gave the company an "underperform" rating in a research report on Wednesday, April 2nd. Finally, Barclays upped their target price on shares of CME Group from $263.00 to $279.00 and gave the stock an "equal weight" rating in a research note on Monday. Four equities research analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, eight have assigned a hold rating, three have assigned a buy rating and one has issued a strong buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat, CME Group has a consensus rating of "Hold" and an average price target of $242.60.

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.