First Affirmative Financial Network Buys 362 Shares of CME Group Inc. (NASDAQ:CME)

First Affirmative Financial Network increased its position in CME Group Inc. (NASDAQ:CME) by 20.9% during the third quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The institutional investor owned 2,092 shares of the financial services provider’s stock after purchasing an additional 362 shares during the period. First Affirmative Financial Network’s holdings in CME Group were worth $462,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Several other institutional investors also recently bought and sold shares of CME. Salomon & Ludwin LLC purchased a new position in CME Group in the 1st quarter worth approximately $28,000. Y.D. More Investments Ltd purchased a new stake in shares of CME Group during the second quarter valued at $36,000. McClarren Financial Advisors Inc. increased its holdings in CME Group by 66.1% in the 2nd quarter. McClarren Financial Advisors Inc. now owns 196 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $39,000 after buying an additional 78 shares in the last quarter. Asset Dedication LLC raised its position in CME Group by 515.2% in the 2nd quarter. Asset Dedication LLC now owns 203 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $40,000 after buying an additional 170 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Rise Advisors LLC bought a new position in CME Group during the 1st quarter valued at about $41,000. 87.75% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other news, Director Bryan T. Durkin sold 7,593 shares of CME Group stock in a transaction dated Friday, August 30th. The stock was sold at an average price of $214.59, for a total value of $1,629,381.87. Following the sale, the director now directly owns 55,607 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $11,932,706.13. The trade was a 0.00 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. In other CME Group news, CFO Lynne Fitzpatrick sold 754 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction that occurred on 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 of the company’s stock, valued at $2,877,504.39. The trade was a 0.00 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available through this link. Also, Director Bryan T. Durkin sold 7,593 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, August 30th. The shares were sold at an average price of $214.59, for a total value of $1,629,381.87. Following the completion of the sale, the director now directly owns 55,607 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $11,932,706.13. The trade was a 0.00 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Corporate insiders own 0.30% of the company’s stock.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

CME has been the subject of several research reports. TD Cowen initiated coverage on shares of CME Group in a report on Thursday, September 26th. They set a “hold” rating and a $221.00 price objective for the company. The Goldman Sachs Group increased their price target on CME Group from $195.00 to $198.00 and gave the company a “sell” rating in a report on Thursday, October 3rd. Redburn Atlantic lowered CME Group from a “buy” rating to a “neutral” rating and set a $244.00 price objective for the company. in a report on Tuesday. Piper Sandler increased their target price on CME Group from $225.00 to $240.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a report on Tuesday. Finally, Citigroup upped their price target on shares of CME Group from $240.00 to $250.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research report on Thursday, October 3rd. Four research analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, seven have issued a hold rating and three have given a buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the company presently has an average rating of “Hold” and an average target price of $217.71.

CME Group Trading Up 0.2 %

Shares of CME stock opened at $221.72 on Friday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.10, a quick ratio of 1.02 and a current ratio of 1.02. The stock has a fifty day simple moving average of $214.61 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $207.97. The firm has a market capitalization of $79.84 billion, a PE ratio of 24.45, a PEG ratio of 7.76 and a beta of 0.55. CME Group Inc. has a 52-week low of $190.70 and a 52-week high of $226.78.

CME Group (NASDAQ:CME) last released its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, July 24th. The financial services provider reported $2.56 earnings per share for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $2.53 by $0.03. CME Group had a return on equity of 12.82% and a net margin of 56.98%. The firm had revenue of $1.53 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $1.53 billion. During the same quarter in the prior year, the company posted $2.30 earnings per share. The business’s quarterly revenue was up 12.7% compared to the same quarter last year. On average, analysts predict that CME Group Inc. will post 10.04 EPS for the current fiscal year.

CME Group Dividend Announcement

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Wednesday, September 25th. Shareholders of record on Monday, September 9th were issued a $1.15 dividend. The ex-dividend date was Monday, September 9th. This represents a $4.60 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 2.07%. CME Group’s dividend payout ratio is currently 50.72%.

About CME Group

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.