Townsend & Associates Inc grew its holdings in CME Group Inc. (NASDAQ:CME - Free Report) by 3.4% during the third quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The firm owned 75,586 shares of the financial services provider's stock after purchasing an additional 2,465 shares during the period. CME Group comprises approximately 1.7% of Townsend & Associates Inc's holdings, making the stock its 24th largest holding. Townsend & Associates Inc's holdings in CME Group were worth $17,169,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.
Other large investors have also recently made changes to their positions in the company. Windward Capital Management Co. CA lifted its holdings in CME Group by 0.4% during the third quarter. Windward Capital Management Co. CA now owns 88,192 shares of the financial services provider's stock worth $19,460,000 after buying an additional 381 shares during the period. Leavell Investment Management Inc. lifted its holdings in shares of CME Group by 0.4% during the 3rd quarter. Leavell Investment Management Inc. now owns 22,492 shares of the financial services provider's stock valued at $4,963,000 after purchasing an additional 79 shares during the last quarter. Capital Performance Advisors LLP acquired a new stake in CME Group in the third quarter worth about $252,000. Stiles Financial Services Inc grew its position in CME Group by 4.2% during the 3rd quarter. Stiles Financial Services Inc now owns 14,304 shares of the financial services provider's stock worth $3,158,000 after purchasing an additional 583 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Comprehensive Financial Consultants Institutional Inc. increased its stake in CME Group by 3.1% during the 3rd quarter. Comprehensive Financial Consultants Institutional Inc. now owns 18,288 shares of the financial services provider's stock valued at $4,035,000 after purchasing an additional 547 shares in the last quarter. 87.75% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.
CME Group Stock Up 1.6 %
Shares of CME Group stock traded up $3.62 during trading hours on Friday, hitting $225.66. 1,798,000 shares of the company's stock traded hands, compared to its average volume of 1,483,283. 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 twelve month low of $190.70 and a twelve month high of $230.36. The stock has a 50 day simple moving average of $221.72 and a 200-day simple moving average of $209.91. The company has a market cap of $81.26 billion, a PE ratio of 23.73, a PEG ratio of 5.56 and a beta of 0.55.
CME Group (NASDAQ:CME - Get Free Report) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, October 23rd. The financial services provider reported $2.68 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $2.65 by $0.03. CME Group had a return on equity of 13.39% and a net margin of 57.34%. The firm had revenue of $1.58 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $1.59 billion. During the same quarter in the prior year, the firm posted $2.25 earnings per share. CME Group's revenue for the quarter was up 18.4% compared to the same quarter last year. Equities research analysts anticipate that CME Group Inc. will post 10.23 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.
CME Group Announces Dividend
The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, December 27th. Investors of record on Monday, December 9th will be issued a dividend of $1.15 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Monday, December 9th. This represents a $4.60 annualized dividend and a yield of 2.04%. CME Group's payout ratio is 48.37%.
Insider Buying and Selling at CME Group
In other news, Director Bryan T. Durkin sold 7,593 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction on Friday, August 30th. The stock was sold at an average price of $214.59, for a total transaction of $1,629,381.87. Following the completion of the sale, the director now directly owns 55,607 shares of the company's stock, valued at $11,932,706.13. This trade represents a 0.00 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available through this link. In other CME Group news, Director Martin J. Gepsman sold 400 shares of the company's stock in a transaction dated Monday, November 4th. The stock was sold at an average price of $222.92, for a total value of $89,168.00. Following the transaction, the director now directly owns 25,067 shares of the company's stock, valued at $5,587,935.64. This represents a 0.00 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available at this hyperlink. Also, Director Bryan T. Durkin sold 7,593 shares of CME Group stock in a transaction dated Friday, August 30th. The shares were sold at an average price of $214.59, for a total value of $1,629,381.87. Following the sale, the director now owns 55,607 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $11,932,706.13. This represents a 0.00 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last ninety days, insiders sold 15,621 shares of company stock valued at $3,441,063. 0.30% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.
Analyst Ratings Changes
Several research firms have commented on CME. Royal Bank of Canada restated a "sector perform" rating and issued a $235.00 price objective on shares of CME Group in a research report on Thursday, October 24th. Oppenheimer increased their target price on CME Group from $245.00 to $258.00 and gave the company an "outperform" rating in a research report on Thursday, October 24th. Morgan Stanley increased their target price on CME Group from $210.00 to $233.00 and gave the company an "equal weight" rating in a report on Thursday, October 17th. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft upped their price objective on shares of CME Group from $193.00 to $200.00 and gave the company a "hold" rating in a report on Thursday, August 15th. Finally, Redburn Atlantic lowered shares of CME Group from a "buy" rating to a "neutral" rating and set a $244.00 price objective on the stock. in a report on Tuesday, October 8th. Four analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, seven have given a hold rating and four have issued a buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the stock has a consensus rating of "Hold" and an average price target of $222.73.
Read Our Latest Analysis on CME
About CME Group
(
Free Report)
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.
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