CME Group Inc. (NASDAQ:CME) Shares Acquired by DnB Asset Management AS

DnB Asset Management AS raised its position in shares of CME Group Inc. (NASDAQ:CME - Free Report) by 0.8% during the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the SEC. The fund owned 138,981 shares of the financial services provider's stock after purchasing an additional 1,119 shares during the quarter. DnB Asset Management AS's holdings in CME Group were worth $32,276,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Several other hedge funds and other institutional investors also recently bought and sold shares of the business. SJS Investment Consulting Inc. boosted its stake in shares of 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 buying an additional 97 shares during the last quarter. Truvestments Capital LLC purchased a new stake in CME Group in the 3rd quarter worth approximately $26,000. Dunhill Financial LLC grew its stake in shares of 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 purchasing 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 4th quarter. New Age Alpha Advisors LLC now owns 129 shares of the financial services provider's stock valued at $30,000 after purchasing an additional 43 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Financial Life Planners acquired a new position in shares of CME Group in the 4th quarter valued at $32,000. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 87.75% of the company's stock.

CME Group Price Performance

Shares of CME Group stock traded up $0.82 on Wednesday, hitting $263.06. 790,834 shares of the company were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 2,049,449. CME Group Inc. has a 1-year low of $190.70 and a 1-year high of $267.91. The company has a quick ratio of 1.02, a current ratio of 1.01 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.10. The stock has a market capitalization of $94.80 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 27.20, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 6.76 and a beta of 0.53. The company has a 50-day moving average price of $250.90 and a 200 day moving average price of $236.53.

CME Group (NASDAQ:CME - Get Free Report) last issued its earnings results 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, sell-side analysts predict that CME Group Inc. will post 10.49 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

CME Group Increases Dividend

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Wednesday, March 26th. Shareholders of record on Friday, March 7th were issued a $1.25 dividend. This represents a $5.00 annualized dividend and a yield of 1.90%. This is a positive change from CME Group's previous quarterly dividend of $1.15. The ex-dividend date was Friday, March 7th. CME Group's payout ratio is presently 51.71%.

CME Group declared that its board has authorized a stock 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 repurchase up to 3.4% of its shares through open market purchases. Shares repurchase plans are generally an indication that the company's board of directors believes its stock is undervalued.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of research analysts have weighed in on CME shares. JPMorgan Chase & Co. upped their price objective on shares of CME Group from $209.00 to $212.00 and gave the stock an "underweight" rating in a research report on Thursday, February 13th. Raymond James raised CME Group from a "market perform" rating to an "outperform" rating and set a $287.00 price target for the company in a report on Monday, March 10th. Piper Sandler raised their price objective on CME Group from $250.00 to $258.00 and gave the company an "overweight" rating in a report on Tuesday, January 7th. Oppenheimer upped their target price on CME Group from $258.00 to $269.00 and gave the stock an "outperform" rating in a research note on Thursday, February 13th. Finally, Erste Group Bank upgraded CME Group to a "strong-buy" rating in a research report on Monday, March 17th. Four investment analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, eight have assigned a hold rating, three have assigned a buy rating and one has assigned a strong buy rating to the company's stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the company presently has a consensus rating of "Hold" and an average price target of $238.93.

Insider Activity

In related news, COO Suzanne Sprague sold 1,500 shares of the business's stock in a transaction dated Monday, March 3rd. The shares were sold at an average price of $256.83, for a total value of $385,245.00. Following the sale, the chief operating officer now directly owns 8,036 shares in the company, valued at approximately $2,063,885.88. The trade was a 15.73 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this link. Also, insider Hilda Harris Piell sold 3,984 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Thursday, February 27th. The stock was sold at an average price of $250.47, for a total transaction of $997,872.48. Following the transaction, the insider now directly owns 27,046 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $6,774,211.62. This trade represents a 12.84 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders sold a total of 27,076 shares of company stock valued at $6,871,496 in the last 90 days. Company insiders own 0.30% of the company's stock.

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.