Ascent Wealth Partners LLC Buys Shares of 3,713 CME Group Inc. (NASDAQ:CME)

Ascent Wealth Partners LLC acquired a new stake in CME Group Inc. (NASDAQ:CME - Free Report) in the 3rd quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the SEC. The firm acquired 3,713 shares of the financial services provider's stock, valued at approximately $819,000.

Other institutional investors also recently modified their holdings of the company. Y.D. More Investments Ltd bought a new position in CME Group in the second quarter valued at approximately $36,000. McClarren Financial Advisors Inc. increased its holdings in CME Group by 66.1% in the second quarter. McClarren Financial Advisors Inc. now owns 196 shares of the financial services provider's stock valued at $39,000 after purchasing an additional 78 shares during the last quarter. Asset Dedication LLC lifted its stake in CME Group by 515.2% in the second quarter. Asset Dedication LLC now owns 203 shares of the financial services provider's stock valued at $40,000 after buying an additional 170 shares during the period. Thurston Springer Miller Herd & Titak Inc. boosted its holdings in CME Group by 62.2% during the third quarter. Thurston Springer Miller Herd & Titak Inc. now owns 193 shares of the financial services provider's stock worth $43,000 after buying an additional 74 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Bank & Trust Co acquired a new position in shares of CME Group during the 2nd quarter worth about $76,000. 87.75% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

CME Group Stock Up 0.4 %

Shares of NASDAQ:CME traded up $0.87 during trading on Thursday, hitting $222.04. 1,999,477 shares of the company were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 1,919,227. CME Group Inc. has a fifty-two week low of $190.70 and a fifty-two week high of $230.36. The stock has a market cap of $79.96 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 23.40, a P/E/G ratio of 5.61 and a beta of 0.55. The company has a current ratio of 1.02, a quick ratio of 1.02 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.09. The firm has a fifty day moving average price of $221.36 and a two-hundred day moving average price of $209.75.

CME Group (NASDAQ:CME - Get Free Report) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, October 23rd. The financial services provider reported $2.68 EPS for the quarter, beating analysts' consensus estimates of $2.65 by $0.03. The firm had revenue of $1.58 billion during 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 company's revenue for the quarter was up 18.4% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter last year, the company posted $2.25 earnings per share. As a group, research analysts anticipate that CME Group Inc. will post 10.23 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

CME Group Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, December 27th. Shareholders of record on Monday, December 9th will be issued a dividend of $1.15 per share. This represents a $4.60 annualized dividend and a yield of 2.07%. CME Group's dividend payout ratio is 48.37%.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several research analysts recently weighed in on the stock. Morgan Stanley lifted their price objective on shares of CME Group from $210.00 to $233.00 and gave the stock an "equal weight" rating in a research note on Thursday, October 17th. TD Cowen started coverage on shares of CME Group in a report on Thursday, September 26th. They issued a "hold" rating and a $221.00 price target for the company. Barclays lifted their target price on CME Group from $219.00 to $231.00 and gave the stock an "equal weight" rating in a report on Thursday, October 24th. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods increased their price target on CME Group from $212.00 to $213.00 and gave the stock a "market perform" rating in a report on Thursday, July 25th. Finally, The Goldman Sachs Group lifted their price objective on CME Group from $195.00 to $198.00 and gave the company a "sell" rating in a report on Thursday, October 3rd. Four analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, seven have issued a hold rating and four have given a buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, CME Group currently has a consensus rating of "Hold" and a consensus target price of $222.73.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other CME Group news, insider Timothy Francis Mccourt sold 1,374 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Monday, October 28th. The shares were sold at an average price of $227.12, for a total value of $312,062.88. Following the transaction, the insider now directly owns 7,275 shares of the company's stock, valued at $1,652,298. This represents a 0.00 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this hyperlink. In other news, insider Timothy Francis Mccourt sold 1,374 shares of the business's stock in a transaction dated Monday, October 28th. The shares were sold at an average price of $227.12, for a total value of $312,062.88. Following the completion of the sale, the insider now owns 7,275 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $1,652,298. The trade was a 0.00 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through this link. Also, Director Timothy S. Bitsberger sold 1,000 shares of CME Group stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, October 30th. The stock was 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 owns 10,589 shares of the company's stock, valued at $2,403,279.44. This trade represents a 0.00 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders sold a total of 15,621 shares of company stock valued at $3,441,063 over the last ninety days. 0.30% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

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.