Harrell Investment Partners LLC Sells 820 Shares of CME Group Inc. (NASDAQ:CME)

Harrell Investment Partners LLC decreased its position in shares of CME Group Inc. (NASDAQ:CME) by 3.7% in the 3rd quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the SEC. The fund owned 21,079 shares of the financial services provider’s stock after selling 820 shares during the quarter. CME Group comprises approximately 1.3% of Harrell Investment Partners LLC’s investment portfolio, making the stock its 25th largest position. Harrell Investment Partners LLC’s holdings in CME Group were worth $4,651,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Other large investors also recently modified their holdings of the company. Capital International Investors grew its position in shares of CME Group by 24.1% during the 1st quarter. Capital International Investors now owns 15,809,175 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $3,403,557,000 after buying an additional 3,069,806 shares during the period. Ameriprise Financial Inc. raised its holdings in shares of CME Group by 11.3% during the second quarter. Ameriprise Financial Inc. now owns 5,283,196 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $1,038,676,000 after purchasing an additional 537,758 shares during the period. GUARDCAP ASSET MANAGEMENT Ltd grew its stake in shares of CME Group by 1.1% in the 1st quarter. GUARDCAP ASSET MANAGEMENT Ltd now owns 4,009,068 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $863,112,000 after buying an additional 43,293 shares during the period. Raymond James & Associates boosted its holdings in CME Group by 3.2% in the second quarter. Raymond James & Associates now owns 3,029,145 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $595,530,000 after acquiring an additional 94,302 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Legal & General Group Plc grew its stake in CME Group by 6.6% in the second quarter. Legal & General Group Plc now owns 2,835,075 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $557,371,000 after acquiring an additional 176,004 shares during the period. 87.75% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of equities analysts recently issued reports on CME shares. Bank of America increased their target price on CME Group from $177.00 to $180.00 and gave the stock an “underperform” rating in a report on Thursday, October 3rd. The Goldman Sachs Group boosted their target price on shares of CME Group from $195.00 to $198.00 and gave the stock a “sell” rating in a research report on Thursday, October 3rd. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft raised their price target on shares of CME Group from $193.00 to $200.00 and gave the company a “hold” rating in a research report on Thursday, August 15th. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods boosted their price objective on CME Group from $212.00 to $213.00 and gave the stock a “market perform” rating in a report on Thursday, July 25th. Finally, JPMorgan Chase & Co. lifted their target price on CME Group from $187.00 to $191.00 and gave the company an “underweight” rating in a research report on Thursday, July 25th. Four equities research analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, seven have given a hold rating and three have issued a buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the company presently has an average rating of “Hold” and an average price target of $217.71.

Insider Activity

In related news, Director Bryan T. Durkin sold 7,593 shares of CME Group stock in a transaction on Friday, August 30th. The stock was sold at an average price of $214.59, for a total transaction of $1,629,381.87. Following the completion of the sale, the director now owns 55,607 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $11,932,706.13. This trade represents a 0.00 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through the SEC website. In other news, Director Bryan T. Durkin sold 7,593 shares of the stock in a transaction 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 transaction, the director now owns 55,607 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $11,932,706.13. This represents a 0.00 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this link. Also, CFO Lynne Fitzpatrick sold 754 shares of the stock in a transaction on Sunday, September 15th. The shares were sold at an average price of $216.99, for a total value of $163,610.46. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief financial officer now directly owns 13,261 shares in the company, valued at approximately $2,877,504.39. This represents a 0.00 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Company insiders own 0.30% of the company’s stock.

CME Group Stock Performance

NASDAQ CME traded up $1.89 during trading on Monday, hitting $223.61. 262,835 shares of the company’s stock traded hands, compared to its average volume of 1,945,239. 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 market capitalization of $80.51 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 25.22, a PEG ratio of 7.76 and a beta of 0.55. CME Group Inc. has a 12-month low of $190.70 and a 12-month high of $226.78. The business has a 50 day moving average of $214.61 and a 200-day moving average of $207.88.

CME Group (NASDAQ:CME) last issued its earnings results on Wednesday, July 24th. The financial services provider reported $2.56 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $2.53 by $0.03. CME Group had a net margin of 56.98% and a return on equity of 12.82%. The business had revenue of $1.53 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $1.53 billion. During the same quarter in the previous year, the firm posted $2.30 EPS. The business’s revenue for the quarter was up 12.7% compared to the same quarter last year. As a group, equities research analysts anticipate that CME Group Inc. will post 10.04 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

CME Group Announces Dividend

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Wednesday, September 25th. Shareholders of record on Monday, September 9th were paid a $1.15 dividend. The ex-dividend date was Monday, September 9th. This represents a $4.60 annualized dividend and a yield of 2.06%. CME Group’s dividend payout ratio is currently 52.33%.

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.