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

PineStone Asset Management Inc. boosted its holdings in shares of CME Group Inc. (NASDAQ:CME - Free Report) by 10.6% during the fourth quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The institutional investor owned 1,665,700 shares of the financial services provider's stock after buying an additional 159,718 shares during the period. CME Group comprises 3.6% of PineStone Asset Management Inc.'s portfolio, making the stock its 10th largest holding. PineStone Asset Management Inc. owned approximately 0.46% of CME Group worth $386,826,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

A number of other institutional investors have also recently bought and sold shares of the business. Truvestments Capital LLC acquired a new stake in shares of CME Group in the 3rd quarter valued at $26,000. SJS Investment Consulting Inc. boosted its stake in shares of CME Group by 570.6% in the 4th 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 in the last quarter. Dunhill Financial LLC boosted its stake in shares of CME Group by 188.4% in 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. Financial Life Planners acquired a new stake in shares of CME Group in the 4th quarter valued at $32,000. Finally, Fortitude Family Office LLC boosted its stake 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 valued at $35,000 after purchasing an additional 83 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 87.75% of the company's stock.

CME Group Trading Up 1.2 %

Shares of CME Group stock traded up $2.90 during trading on Wednesday, hitting $250.75. 1,171,264 shares of the company were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 1,827,433. The firm has a market capitalization of $90.36 billion, a P/E ratio of 25.93, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 6.75 and a beta of 0.57. CME Group Inc. has a 1-year low of $190.70 and a 1-year high of $253.53. The firm's fifty day moving average price is $236.29 and its 200 day moving average price is $226.68. 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 (NASDAQ:CME - Get Free Report) last posted its earnings results on Wednesday, February 12th. The financial services provider reported $2.52 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate 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 expect that CME Group Inc. will post 10.39 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

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

CME Group Increases Dividend

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, March 26th. Stockholders 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 dividend yield of 1.99%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, March 7th. CME Group's payout ratio is presently 47.57%.

Insider Transactions at CME Group

In related news, insider Julie Winkler sold 11,592 shares of the business's stock in a transaction that occurred 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 directly owns 21,885 shares in the company, valued at approximately $5,453,085.45. The trade was a 34.63 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. Corporate insiders own 0.30% of the company's stock.

Analyst Ratings Changes

CME has been the subject of a number of research analyst reports. Royal Bank of Canada lifted their price target on CME Group from $235.00 to $269.00 and gave the company a "sector perform" rating in a report on Thursday, February 13th. Citigroup cut CME Group from a "buy" rating to a "neutral" rating and cut their price target for the company from $255.00 to $250.00 in a report on Monday, January 6th. Piper Sandler lifted their price target on CME Group from $250.00 to $258.00 and gave the company an "overweight" rating in a report on Tuesday, January 7th. Morgan Stanley lifted their price target on CME Group from $256.00 to $263.00 and gave the company an "equal weight" rating in a report on Wednesday. Finally, JPMorgan Chase & Co. lifted their price target on CME Group from $209.00 to $212.00 and gave the company an "underweight" rating in a report on Thursday, February 13th. Four investment analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, eight have issued a hold rating and three have assigned a buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat, CME Group currently has an average rating of "Hold" and an average price target of $236.13.

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.