Asset Management One Co. Ltd. Acquires 2,382 Shares of CME Group Inc. (NASDAQ:CME)

Asset Management One Co. Ltd. increased its position in CME Group Inc. (NASDAQ:CME - Free Report) by 1.2% in the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The firm owned 207,729 shares of the financial services provider's stock after purchasing an additional 2,382 shares during the quarter. Asset Management One Co. Ltd. owned approximately 0.06% of CME Group worth $48,505,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Other institutional investors and hedge funds have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Truvestments Capital LLC acquired a new stake in shares of CME Group during the 3rd quarter worth approximately $26,000. SJS Investment Consulting Inc. boosted its stake 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 valued at $26,000 after acquiring an additional 97 shares during the last quarter. Dunhill Financial LLC boosted its stake in CME Group by 188.4% in the third quarter. Dunhill Financial LLC now owns 124 shares of the financial services provider's stock valued at $27,000 after acquiring an additional 81 shares during the last quarter. Financial Life Planners acquired a new stake in CME Group during the 4th quarter worth $32,000. Finally, Fortitude Family Office LLC raised its position in shares of CME Group by 120.3% during the 4th quarter. Fortitude Family Office LLC now owns 152 shares of the financial services provider's stock valued at $35,000 after acquiring an additional 83 shares during the last quarter. 87.75% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several research analysts have recently issued reports on the company. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods raised their price target on CME Group from $256.00 to $257.00 and gave the stock a "market perform" rating in a research report on Friday. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft reduced their target price on CME Group from $227.00 to $226.00 and set a "hold" rating on the stock in a report on Monday, November 11th. Piper Sandler upped their price target on CME Group from $250.00 to $258.00 and gave the company an "overweight" rating in a research note on Tuesday, January 7th. Royal Bank of Canada lifted their price objective on shares of CME Group from $235.00 to $269.00 and gave the stock a "sector perform" rating in a research note on Thursday, February 13th. Finally, Citigroup downgraded shares of CME Group from a "buy" rating to a "neutral" rating and lowered their target price for the company from $255.00 to $250.00 in a research note on Monday, January 6th. Four investment analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, eight have issued a hold rating and three have assigned a buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the stock has an average rating of "Hold" and an average target price of $234.13.

CME Group Stock Up 1.0 %

CME traded up $2.38 during trading on Tuesday, hitting $247.86. The company had a trading volume of 1,316,699 shares, compared to its average volume of 1,848,600. The firm's 50-day moving average price is $236.12 and its 200 day moving average price is $226.35. The company has a market capitalization of $89.32 billion, a PE ratio of 26.06, a PEG ratio of 5.54 and a beta of 0.57. The company has a quick ratio of 1.02, a current ratio of 1.02 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.09. CME Group Inc. has a one year low of $190.70 and a one year high of $253.53.

CME Group (NASDAQ:CME - Get Free Report) last issued its quarterly earnings results 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 13.39% and a net margin of 57.34%. As a group, equities analysts expect that CME Group Inc. will post 10.18 earnings per share for the current year.

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. The ex-dividend date is Friday, March 7th. This represents a $5.00 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 2.02%. This is an increase from CME Group's previous quarterly dividend of $1.15. CME Group's dividend payout ratio is 48.37%.

CME Group announced that its Board of Directors has approved a share repurchase plan on Thursday, December 5th that permits the company to repurchase $3.00 billion in shares. This repurchase authorization permits the financial services provider to buy up to 3.4% of its stock through open market purchases. Stock repurchase plans are typically an indication that the company's board of directors believes its stock is undervalued.

Insider Transactions at CME Group

In related news, insider Julie Winkler sold 11,592 shares of the stock in a transaction on Thursday, February 13th. The shares were sold at an average price of $249.17, for a total transaction of $2,888,378.64. Following the completion of the transaction, the insider now owns 21,885 shares in the company, valued at approximately $5,453,085.45. This represents a 34.63 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. Company 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.