Windward Capital Management Co. CA Raises Holdings in CME Group Inc. (NASDAQ:CME)

Windward Capital Management Co. CA boosted its stake in CME Group Inc. (NASDAQ:CME) by 0.4% during the third quarter, according to its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The firm owned 88,192 shares of the financial services provider’s stock after purchasing an additional 381 shares during the period. CME Group comprises 1.5% of Windward Capital Management Co. CA’s investment portfolio, making the stock its 22nd largest position. Windward Capital Management Co. CA’s holdings in CME Group were worth $19,460,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC).

Several other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also recently bought and sold shares of CME. Capital International Investors increased its holdings in 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 valued at $3,403,557,000 after purchasing an additional 3,069,806 shares during the period. PineStone Asset Management Inc. raised its holdings in shares of CME Group by 137.6% during the second quarter. PineStone Asset Management Inc. now owns 2,260,644 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $444,443,000 after acquiring an additional 1,309,097 shares in the last quarter. M&G Plc purchased a new stake in CME Group in the first quarter worth $156,631,000. Assenagon Asset Management S.A. boosted its holdings in CME Group by 577.9% in the second quarter. Assenagon Asset Management S.A. now owns 645,330 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $126,872,000 after acquiring an additional 550,133 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Ameriprise Financial Inc. increased its position in CME Group by 11.3% during the 2nd 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. Institutional investors own 87.75% of the company’s stock.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other news, Director Bryan T. Durkin sold 7,593 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Friday, August 30th. The shares were sold at an average price of $214.59, for a total transaction of $1,629,381.87. Following the sale, the director now owns 55,607 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $11,932,706.13. This trade represents a 0.00 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available through this link. In related news, insider Timothy Francis Mccourt sold 1,374 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on Monday, October 28th. The stock was sold at an average price of $227.12, for a total transaction of $312,062.88. Following the completion of the sale, the insider now owns 7,275 shares in the company, valued at approximately $1,652,298. This represents a 0.00 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through the SEC website. Also, Director Bryan T. Durkin sold 7,593 shares of the firm’s 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 completion of the transaction, the director now directly owns 55,607 shares in the company, 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. In the last 90 days, insiders sold 15,621 shares of company stock valued at $3,441,063. 0.30% of the stock is owned by insiders.

CME Group Trading Up 1.6 %

Shares of NASDAQ CME opened at $225.66 on Friday. The firm’s 50 day moving average price is $221.72 and its 200-day moving average price is $209.91. CME Group Inc. has a 52-week low of $190.70 and a 52-week high of $230.36. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.09, a quick ratio of 1.02 and a current ratio of 1.02. The company has a market cap of $81.26 billion, a PE ratio of 23.73, a P/E/G ratio of 5.61 and a beta of 0.55.

CME Group (NASDAQ:CME) last released its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, October 23rd. The financial services provider reported $2.68 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $2.65 by $0.03. The business had revenue of $1.58 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $1.59 billion. CME Group had a return on equity of 13.39% and a net margin of 57.34%. The firm’s quarterly revenue was up 18.4% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period in the prior year, the firm posted $2.25 EPS. On average, equities research analysts expect that CME Group Inc. will post 10.23 EPS for the current fiscal year.

CME Group Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, December 27th. Investors of record on Monday, December 9th will be issued a $1.15 dividend. The ex-dividend date is Monday, December 9th. This represents a $4.60 annualized dividend and a yield of 2.04%. CME Group’s payout ratio is 48.37%.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several equities research analysts have recently commented on CME shares. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft raised their target price on shares of CME Group from $193.00 to $200.00 and gave the stock a “hold” rating in a research report on Thursday, August 15th. Oppenheimer lifted their price objective on CME Group from $245.00 to $258.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a research report on Thursday, October 24th. TD Cowen began coverage on CME Group in a research report on Thursday, September 26th. They issued a “hold” rating and a $221.00 target price for the company. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods lifted their price target on CME Group from $212.00 to $213.00 and gave the company a “market perform” rating in a research report on Thursday, July 25th. Finally, JPMorgan Chase & Co. upped their price target on CME Group from $187.00 to $191.00 and gave the stock an “underweight” rating in a research note on Thursday, July 25th. Four research analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, seven have assigned a hold rating and four have assigned a buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat, the company has an average rating of “Hold” and an average target price of $222.73.

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.