CME Group Inc. (NASDAQ:CME) Shares Sold by First Foundation Advisors

First Foundation Advisors reduced its stake in CME Group Inc. (NASDAQ:CME - Free Report) by 4.5% during the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 59,950 shares of the financial services provider's stock after selling 2,855 shares during the period. First Foundation Advisors' holdings in CME Group were worth $13,922,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

A number of other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also recently bought and sold shares of the stock. New Age Alpha Advisors LLC lifted its position 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 worth $30,000 after purchasing an additional 43 shares during the last quarter. Avidian Wealth Enterprises LLC boosted its position in shares of CME Group by 2.6% during the 4th quarter. Avidian Wealth Enterprises LLC now owns 1,769 shares of the financial services provider's stock worth $411,000 after acquiring an additional 45 shares in the last quarter. TFC Financial Management Inc. boosted its position in shares of CME Group by 8.4% during the 4th quarter. TFC Financial Management Inc. now owns 592 shares of the financial services provider's stock worth $137,000 after acquiring an additional 46 shares in the last quarter. Waldron Private Wealth LLC increased its holdings in shares of CME Group by 2.0% in the 4th quarter. Waldron Private Wealth LLC now owns 2,362 shares of the financial services provider's stock valued at $549,000 after acquiring an additional 47 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Venturi Wealth Management LLC raised its position in shares of CME Group by 12.1% during the 4th quarter. Venturi Wealth Management LLC now owns 437 shares of the financial services provider's stock worth $101,000 after acquiring an additional 47 shares in the last quarter. 87.75% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

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CME Group Stock Performance

Shares of CME stock traded up $0.90 during trading hours on Tuesday, reaching $264.59. 690,643 shares of the company's stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 2,134,163. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.10, a current ratio of 1.01 and a quick ratio of 1.02. CME Group Inc. has a 1 year low of $190.70 and a 1 year high of $273.42. The company has a market cap of $95.35 billion, a P/E ratio of 27.36, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 6.76 and a beta of 0.43. The company's 50 day moving average is $255.66 and its two-hundred day moving average is $239.56.

CME Group (NASDAQ:CME - Get Free Report) last released its 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 13.62% and a net margin of 57.52%. Equities research analysts anticipate that CME Group Inc. will post 10.49 EPS for the current fiscal year.

CME Group Increases Dividend

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Wednesday, March 26th. Shareholders of record on Friday, March 7th were given a dividend of $1.25 per share. This is a positive change from CME Group's previous quarterly dividend of $1.15. This represents a $5.00 annualized dividend and a yield of 1.89%. The ex-dividend date was Friday, March 7th. CME Group's dividend payout ratio is presently 51.71%.

Insider Buying and Selling at CME Group

In other news, insider Julie Winkler sold 11,592 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction on Thursday, February 13th. The stock was sold at an average price of $249.17, for a total value of $2,888,378.64. Following the completion of the transaction, the insider now owns 21,885 shares in the company, valued at $5,453,085.45. This trade represents a 34.63 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available through the SEC website. Also, Director Howard J. Siegel sold 10,000 shares of the business's stock in a transaction dated Thursday, March 13th. The stock was sold at an average price of $260.00, for a total transaction of $2,600,000.00. Following the completion of the sale, the director now owns 21,873 shares in the company, valued at $5,686,980. This represents a 31.37 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Over the last three months, insiders sold 27,076 shares of company stock valued at $6,871,496. Corporate insiders own 0.30% of the company's stock.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several brokerages have commented on CME. Morgan Stanley upgraded shares of CME Group from an "equal weight" rating to an "overweight" rating and set a $301.00 price target on the stock in a research note on Tuesday, April 8th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. boosted their price target on shares of CME Group from $209.00 to $212.00 and gave the company an "underweight" rating in a research report on Thursday, February 13th. Piper Sandler raised their price objective on CME Group from $275.00 to $283.00 and gave the stock an "overweight" rating in a report on Tuesday, April 8th. Barclays boosted their target price on CME Group from $263.00 to $279.00 and gave the company an "equal weight" rating in a report on Monday, April 7th. Finally, Erste Group Bank upgraded CME Group to a "strong-buy" rating in a research note on Monday, March 17th. Four analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, seven have assigned a hold rating, four have issued a buy rating and one has assigned a strong buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat, the stock presently has an average rating of "Hold" and a consensus price target of $247.47.

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.