Kornitzer Capital Management Inc. KS Sells 1,304 Shares of CME Group Inc. (NASDAQ:CME)

Kornitzer Capital Management Inc. KS trimmed its position in shares of CME Group Inc. (NASDAQ:CME - Free Report) by 2.1% during the fourth quarter, according to its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The fund owned 61,386 shares of the financial services provider's stock after selling 1,304 shares during the quarter. Kornitzer Capital Management Inc. KS's holdings in CME Group were worth $14,256,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC).

Other institutional investors and hedge funds also recently made changes to their positions in the company. Creative Planning increased its position in shares of CME Group by 9.3% during the 3rd quarter. Creative Planning now owns 51,255 shares of the financial services provider's stock valued at $11,309,000 after purchasing an additional 4,354 shares during the last quarter. Blue Trust Inc. boosted its stake in CME Group by 83.1% in the third quarter. Blue Trust Inc. now owns 3,982 shares of the financial services provider's stock valued at $879,000 after acquiring an additional 1,807 shares during the last quarter. OLD National Bancorp IN grew its position in shares of CME Group by 20.0% during the 3rd quarter. OLD National Bancorp IN now owns 1,236 shares of the financial services provider's stock valued at $273,000 after acquiring an additional 206 shares during the period. Allspring Global Investments Holdings LLC increased its stake in shares of CME Group by 14.3% during the 3rd quarter. Allspring Global Investments Holdings LLC now owns 197,571 shares of the financial services provider's stock worth $43,594,000 after purchasing an additional 24,643 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Northwest Investment Counselors LLC raised its holdings in shares of CME Group by 0.8% in the 3rd quarter. Northwest Investment Counselors LLC now owns 18,529 shares of the financial services provider's stock worth $4,088,000 after purchasing an additional 152 shares during the period. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 87.75% of the company's stock.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of analysts have issued reports on CME shares. Citigroup downgraded CME Group from a "buy" rating to a "neutral" rating and decreased their target price for the stock from $255.00 to $250.00 in a research report on Monday, January 6th. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft decreased their price objective on CME Group from $227.00 to $226.00 and set a "hold" rating for the company in a report on Monday, November 11th. Royal Bank of Canada increased their target price on shares of CME Group from $235.00 to $269.00 and gave the stock a "sector perform" rating in a research report on Thursday, February 13th. Piper Sandler boosted their price target on shares of CME Group from $250.00 to $258.00 and gave the company an "overweight" rating in a research report on Tuesday, January 7th. Finally, Morgan Stanley lifted their price objective on shares of CME Group from $256.00 to $263.00 and gave the company an "equal weight" rating in a research note on Wednesday. Four 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. According to MarketBeat.com, the stock has a consensus rating of "Hold" and an average price target of $236.13.

Insider Activity

In other news, insider Julie Winkler sold 11,592 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on 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 completion of the sale, the insider now owns 21,885 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $5,453,085.45. This represents a 34.63 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. 0.30% of the stock is currently owned by corporate insiders.

CME Group Price Performance

Shares of CME traded down $1.02 during midday trading on Friday, reaching $247.31. The stock had a trading volume of 387,362 shares, compared to its average volume of 1,767,596. The company has a market capitalization of $89.12 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 25.58, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 6.83 and a beta of 0.57. 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 Inc. has a 12-month low of $190.70 and a 12-month high of $253.53. The company's 50-day moving average is $236.87 and its 200 day moving average is $227.00.

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 net margin of 57.52% and a return on equity of 13.62%. On average, equities analysts predict that CME Group Inc. will post 10.49 EPS for the current fiscal year.

CME Group Increases Dividend

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, March 26th. Stockholders of record on Friday, March 7th will be issued a $1.25 dividend. The ex-dividend date is Friday, March 7th. This represents a $5.00 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 2.02%. This is an increase from CME Group's previous quarterly dividend of $1.15. CME Group's payout ratio is currently 47.57%.

CME Group announced that its Board of Directors has authorized a stock buyback plan on Thursday, December 5th that permits the company to buyback $3.00 billion in shares. This buyback authorization permits the financial services provider to buy up to 3.4% of its shares through open market purchases. Shares buyback plans are generally a sign that the company's leadership believes its stock is undervalued.

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.