3,525 Shares in CME Group Inc. (NASDAQ:CME) Purchased by Generali Asset Management SPA SGR

Generali Asset Management SPA SGR acquired a new position in shares of CME Group Inc. (NASDAQ:CME - Free Report) in the fourth quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The fund acquired 3,525 shares of the financial services provider's stock, valued at approximately $819,000.

A number of other large investors have also recently made changes to their positions in the company. Truvestments Capital LLC purchased a new position in shares of CME Group in the 3rd quarter valued at about $26,000. SJS Investment Consulting Inc. increased its stake in CME Group by 570.6% in the fourth quarter. SJS Investment Consulting Inc. now owns 114 shares of the financial services provider's stock valued at $26,000 after purchasing an additional 97 shares during the last quarter. Dunhill Financial LLC raised its holdings in CME Group by 188.4% during the third quarter. Dunhill Financial LLC now owns 124 shares of the financial services provider's stock worth $27,000 after purchasing an additional 81 shares in the last quarter. Financial Life Planners purchased a new stake in shares of CME Group during the 4th quarter worth approximately $32,000. Finally, Knuff & Co LLC acquired a new position in shares of CME Group in the 4th quarter valued at $33,000. 87.75% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several equities research analysts recently commented on the stock. Barclays lifted their price target on shares of CME Group from $257.00 to $263.00 and gave the stock an "equal weight" rating in a research note on Thursday, February 13th. Erste Group Bank upgraded CME Group to a "strong-buy" rating in a research report on Monday, March 17th. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods upped their target price on CME Group from $256.00 to $257.00 and gave the company a "market perform" rating in a research report on Friday, February 14th. Royal Bank of Canada lifted their price target on CME Group from $235.00 to $269.00 and gave the stock a "sector perform" rating in a research report on Thursday, February 13th. Finally, Piper Sandler increased 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. Four equities research analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, eight have issued a hold rating, three have issued a buy rating and one has given a strong buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat.com, the stock presently has a consensus rating of "Hold" and an average price target of $238.93.

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CME Group Price Performance

Shares of CME Group stock traded down $0.88 during trading on Tuesday, reaching $262.06. The company's stock had a trading volume of 2,584,290 shares, compared to its average volume of 1,928,388. The business has a 50 day moving average price of $247.17 and a 200-day moving average price of $234.65. CME Group Inc. has a 12-month low of $190.70 and a 12-month high of $267.91. The company has a market capitalization of $94.44 billion, a P/E ratio of 27.10, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 6.76 and a beta of 0.53. The company has a quick ratio of 1.02, a current ratio of 1.01 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.10.

CME Group (NASDAQ:CME - Get Free Report) last issued its earnings results on Wednesday, February 12th. The financial services provider reported $2.52 EPS for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $2.46 by $0.06. CME Group had a net margin of 57.52% and a return on equity of 13.62%. As a group, sell-side analysts anticipate that CME Group Inc. will post 10.49 EPS for the current year.

CME Group Increases Dividend

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, March 26th. Shareholders of record on Friday, March 7th will be 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 1.91%. The ex-dividend date is Friday, March 7th. CME Group's dividend payout ratio is presently 51.71%.

CME Group announced that its board has approved a share repurchase plan on Thursday, December 5th that authorizes the company to buyback $3.00 billion in outstanding shares. This buyback authorization authorizes the financial services provider to buy up to 3.4% of its shares through open market purchases. Shares buyback plans are typically an indication that the company's leadership believes its shares are undervalued.

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.

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.