Impax Asset Management Group plc Sells 45,805 Shares of CME Group Inc. (NASDAQ:CME)

Impax Asset Management Group plc trimmed its stake in CME Group Inc. (NASDAQ:CME) by 24.0% in the 4th quarter, Holdings Channel.com reports. The firm owned 145,324 shares of the financial services provider’s stock after selling 45,805 shares during the period. Impax Asset Management Group plc’s holdings in CME Group were worth $33,749,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Other institutional investors and hedge funds have also recently modified their holdings of the company. SJS Investment Consulting Inc. raised its position in CME Group by 570.6% in the 4th quarter. SJS Investment Consulting Inc. now owns 114 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $26,000 after purchasing an additional 97 shares during the period. Truvestments Capital LLC bought a new position in shares of CME Group during the third quarter valued at approximately $26,000. Dunhill Financial LLC raised its holdings in shares of CME Group by 188.4% in the third quarter. Dunhill Financial LLC now owns 124 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $27,000 after buying an additional 81 shares during the period. Financial Life Planners purchased a new stake in CME Group in the fourth quarter worth $32,000. Finally, Fortitude Family Office LLC raised its stake in shares of CME Group by 120.3% during the fourth quarter. Fortitude Family Office LLC now owns 152 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $35,000 after acquiring an additional 83 shares in the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 87.75% of the company’s stock.

CME Group Stock Up 0.2 %

CME Group stock opened at $248.88 on Monday. CME Group Inc. has a 12 month low of $190.70 and a 12 month high of $253.53. The stock has a market capitalization of $89.69 billion, a PE ratio of 25.74, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 6.76 and a beta of 0.57. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.10, a current ratio of 1.01 and a quick ratio of 1.02. The business has a 50 day simple moving average of $237.10 and a 200-day simple moving average of $227.69.

CME Group (NASDAQ:CME) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, February 12th. The financial services provider reported $2.52 earnings per share for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $2.46 by $0.06. CME Group had a net margin of 57.52% and a return on equity of 13.62%. On average, analysts anticipate that CME Group Inc. will post 10.49 EPS for the current fiscal year.

CME Group announced that its Board of Directors has initiated a share buyback program on Thursday, December 5th that allows the company to buyback $3.00 billion in outstanding shares. This buyback authorization allows the financial services provider to repurchase up to 3.4% of its stock through open market purchases. Stock buyback programs are usually a sign that the company’s board of directors 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. Shareholders of record on Friday, March 7th will be paid a $1.25 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, March 7th. This is an increase from CME Group’s previous quarterly dividend of $1.15. This represents a $5.00 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 2.01%. CME Group’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 51.71%.

Insider Transactions at CME Group

In related news, insider Julie Winkler sold 11,592 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Thursday, February 13th. The stock was sold at an average price of $249.17, for a total transaction of $2,888,378.64. Following the completion of the sale, the insider now directly owns 21,885 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $5,453,085.45. This trade represents 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. Insiders own 0.30% of the company’s stock.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several research analysts have issued reports on the stock. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods increased their target price on shares of CME Group from $256.00 to $257.00 and gave the stock a “market perform” rating in a report on Friday, February 14th. Citigroup downgraded shares of CME Group from a “buy” rating to a “neutral” rating and reduced their price objective for the stock from $255.00 to $250.00 in a research note 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. JPMorgan Chase & Co. lifted their target price on CME Group from $209.00 to $212.00 and gave the company an “underweight” rating in a research note on Thursday, February 13th. Finally, Barclays boosted their price objective 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. Four 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 company has a consensus rating of “Hold” and a consensus 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.