FNY Investment Advisers LLC Makes New Investment in CME Group Inc. (NASDAQ:CME)

FNY Investment Advisers LLC acquired a new stake in CME Group Inc. (NASDAQ:CME - Free Report) during the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The institutional investor acquired 16,500 shares of the financial services provider's stock, valued at approximately $3,831,000. CME Group comprises approximately 2.0% of FNY Investment Advisers LLC's portfolio, making the stock its 6th biggest position.

A number of other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also bought and sold shares of the business. Truvestments Capital LLC purchased a new stake in shares of CME Group in the third quarter valued at approximately $26,000. Dunhill Financial LLC raised its position in CME Group by 188.4% during the 3rd quarter. Dunhill Financial LLC now owns 124 shares of the financial services provider's stock valued at $27,000 after purchasing an additional 81 shares in the last quarter. Fortitude Family Office LLC lifted its holdings in shares of CME Group by 120.3% in the 4th quarter. Fortitude Family Office LLC now owns 152 shares of the financial services provider's stock worth $35,000 after buying an additional 83 shares during the period. Thurston Springer Miller Herd & Titak Inc. grew its position in shares of CME Group by 62.2% during the 3rd quarter. Thurston Springer Miller Herd & Titak Inc. now owns 193 shares of the financial services provider's stock worth $43,000 after buying an additional 74 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Anchor Investment Management LLC increased its stake in shares of CME Group by 52.4% during the third quarter. Anchor Investment Management LLC now owns 378 shares of the financial services provider's stock valued at $83,000 after buying an additional 130 shares during the period. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 87.75% of the company's stock.

CME Group Stock Up 1.0 %

Shares of CME stock traded up $2.28 during trading hours on Tuesday, reaching $231.73. 1,427,823 shares of the company's stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 2,010,376. CME Group Inc. has a 1 year low of $190.70 and a 1 year high of $249.02. The company has a current ratio of 1.02, a quick ratio of 1.02 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.09. The stock has a market cap of $83.51 billion, a PE ratio of 24.37, a PEG ratio of 5.41 and a beta of 0.56. The stock's fifty day moving average price is $232.81 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $219.36.

CME Group (NASDAQ:CME - Get Free Report) last released its earnings results on Wednesday, October 23rd. The financial services provider reported $2.68 earnings per share for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $2.65 by $0.03. The company had revenue of $1.58 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $1.59 billion. CME Group had a net margin of 57.34% and a return on equity of 13.39%. CME Group's revenue was up 18.4% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter in the previous year, the firm earned $2.25 EPS. Research analysts predict that CME Group Inc. will post 10.22 EPS for the current year.

CME Group declared that its Board of Directors has initiated a share buyback plan on Thursday, December 5th that authorizes the company to repurchase $3.00 billion in shares. This repurchase authorization authorizes the financial services provider to purchase up to 3.4% of its shares through open market purchases. Shares repurchase plans are usually a sign that the company's management believes its stock is undervalued.

CME Group Increases Dividend

The company also recently announced a dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, January 16th. Investors of record on Friday, December 27th will be given a $5.80 dividend. This is an increase from CME Group's previous dividend of $2.50. The ex-dividend date is Friday, December 27th. CME Group's dividend payout ratio is presently 48.37%.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other news, Director Martin J. Gepsman sold 400 shares of the stock in a transaction on Monday, November 4th. The shares were sold at an average price of $222.92, for a total value of $89,168.00. Following the sale, the director now owns 25,067 shares in the company, valued at $5,587,935.64. This represents a 1.57 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through the SEC website. Also, insider Sunil Cutinho sold 4,500 shares of the business's stock in a transaction on Wednesday, October 30th. The shares were sold at an average price of $226.64, for a total transaction of $1,019,880.00. Following the transaction, the insider now owns 27,053 shares of the company's stock, valued at $6,131,291.92. This represents a 14.26 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders sold 7,274 shares of company stock worth $1,648,071 in the last 90 days. Insiders own 0.30% of the company's stock.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

CME has been the subject of a number of research reports. Barclays upped their price objective on shares of CME Group from $231.00 to $257.00 and gave the stock an "equal weight" rating in a research note on Monday, December 9th. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods lowered their price target on shares of CME Group from $260.00 to $256.00 and set a "market perform" rating for the company in a research report on Monday. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft cut their price objective on shares of CME Group from $227.00 to $226.00 and set a "hold" rating on the stock in a report on Monday, November 11th. Redburn Atlantic lowered CME Group from a "buy" rating to a "neutral" rating and set a $244.00 target price for the company. in a report on Tuesday, October 8th. Finally, Royal Bank of Canada reaffirmed a "sector perform" rating and set a $235.00 target price on shares of CME Group in a research report on Monday, January 6th. Four equities research 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's stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the stock has an average rating of "Hold" and a consensus price target of $229.27.

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.