Franklin Resources Inc. Acquires 1,003,119 Shares of CME Group Inc. (NASDAQ:CME)

Franklin Resources Inc. increased its stake in CME Group Inc. (NASDAQ:CME - Free Report) by 70.4% during the third quarter, according to its most recent filing with the SEC. The fund owned 2,427,107 shares of the financial services provider's stock after buying an additional 1,003,119 shares during the quarter. Franklin Resources Inc. owned 0.67% of CME Group worth $544,157,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Several other institutional investors also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the stock. Ameriprise Financial Inc. grew its holdings in CME Group by 11.3% during the 2nd quarter. Ameriprise Financial Inc. now owns 5,283,196 shares of the financial services provider's stock valued at $1,038,676,000 after buying an additional 537,758 shares in the last quarter. International Assets Investment Management LLC grew its stake in CME Group by 21,465.5% during the third quarter. International Assets Investment Management LLC now owns 485,871 shares of the financial services provider's stock valued at $1,072,070,000 after acquiring an additional 483,618 shares in the last quarter. Janus Henderson Group PLC grew its stake in CME Group by 17.8% during the third quarter. Janus Henderson Group PLC now owns 2,514,040 shares of the financial services provider's stock valued at $554,707,000 after acquiring an additional 380,071 shares in the last quarter. Baillie Gifford & Co. bought a new stake in CME Group during the 3rd quarter worth approximately $79,692,000. Finally, Bank of Montreal Can lifted its stake in CME Group by 41.8% in the 3rd quarter. Bank of Montreal Can now owns 1,028,090 shares of the financial services provider's stock worth $224,432,000 after purchasing an additional 303,169 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors own 87.75% of the company's stock.

CME Group Trading Up 0.5 %

CME traded up $1.24 during trading on Friday, hitting $237.19. 1,810,553 shares of the stock traded hands, compared to its average volume of 1,966,121. The firm has a 50-day moving average of $229.18 and a 200 day moving average of $213.79. CME Group Inc. has a 12-month low of $190.70 and a 12-month high of $249.02. The firm has a market capitalization of $85.47 billion, a P/E ratio of 24.94, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 5.41 and a beta of 0.56. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.09, a current ratio of 1.02 and a quick ratio of 1.02.

CME Group (NASDAQ:CME - Get Free Report) last posted its earnings results on Wednesday, October 23rd. The financial services provider reported $2.68 earnings per share (EPS) 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 analysts' expectations of $1.59 billion. CME Group had a return on equity of 13.39% and a net margin of 57.34%. CME Group's quarterly revenue was up 18.4% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period last year, the firm earned $2.25 earnings per share. Equities research analysts anticipate that CME Group Inc. will post 10.22 EPS for the current year.

CME Group Increases Dividend

The firm also recently announced a dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, January 16th. Stockholders of record on Friday, December 27th will be paid a dividend of $5.80 per share. The ex-dividend date is Friday, December 27th. This is a boost from CME Group's previous dividend of $2.50. CME Group's payout ratio is 48.37%.

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

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of research analysts have recently commented on CME shares. Citigroup boosted their price target on shares of CME Group from $250.00 to $255.00 and gave the company a "buy" rating in a research report on Thursday, October 24th. The Goldman Sachs Group upped their target price on CME Group from $195.00 to $198.00 and gave the stock a "sell" rating in a research note on Thursday, October 3rd. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft dropped their price target on CME Group from $227.00 to $226.00 and set a "hold" rating for the company in a research report on Monday, November 11th. Redburn Atlantic cut shares of CME Group from a "buy" rating to a "neutral" rating and set a $244.00 price target for the company. in a research note on Tuesday, October 8th. Finally, Oppenheimer raised their price objective on shares of CME Group from $245.00 to $258.00 and gave the company an "outperform" rating in a research report on Thursday, October 24th. Four investment analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, seven have given a hold rating and four have assigned a buy rating to the company's stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the stock presently has a consensus rating of "Hold" and a consensus target price of $226.20.

Insider Activity at CME Group

In related news, Director Martin J. Gepsman sold 400 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Monday, November 4th. The shares were sold at an average price of $222.92, for a total value of $89,168.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the director now directly owns 25,067 shares in the company, valued at $5,587,935.64. This trade represents a 1.57 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this hyperlink. Also, CFO Lynne Fitzpatrick sold 754 shares of the business's stock in a transaction dated Sunday, September 15th. The stock was sold at an average price of $216.99, for a total transaction of $163,610.46. Following the sale, the chief financial officer now directly owns 13,261 shares in the company, valued at $2,877,504.39. The trade was a 5.38 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders sold a total of 8,028 shares of company stock worth $1,811,681 over the last quarter. 0.30% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

CME Group 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.