CME Group Inc. (NASDAQ:CME) Holdings Trimmed by Pekin Hardy Strauss Inc.

Pekin Hardy Strauss Inc. cut its holdings in CME Group Inc. (NASDAQ:CME) by 11.0% during the 3rd quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 10,966 shares of the financial services provider’s stock after selling 1,355 shares during the quarter. Pekin Hardy Strauss Inc.’s holdings in CME Group were worth $2,420,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

A number of other institutional investors and hedge funds also recently bought and sold shares of the business. Y.D. More Investments Ltd bought a new stake in shares of CME Group during the 2nd quarter worth $36,000. McClarren Financial Advisors Inc. boosted its position in shares of CME Group by 66.1% in the 2nd quarter. McClarren Financial Advisors Inc. now owns 196 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $39,000 after purchasing an additional 78 shares during the period. Asset Dedication LLC increased its stake 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 purchasing an additional 170 shares in the last quarter. Thurston Springer Miller Herd & Titak Inc. raised its holdings in CME Group by 62.2% during the 3rd quarter. Thurston Springer Miller Herd & Titak Inc. now owns 193 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $43,000 after buying an additional 74 shares during the period. Finally, Bank & Trust Co purchased a new stake in CME Group during the second quarter valued at about $76,000. 87.75% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Analyst Ratings Changes

CME has been the topic of a number of recent analyst reports. Royal Bank of Canada restated a “sector perform” rating and set a $235.00 price target on shares of CME Group in a report on Thursday, October 24th. TD Cowen began coverage on shares of CME Group in a research note on Thursday, September 26th. They set a “hold” rating and a $221.00 target price on the stock. Oppenheimer raised their target price on CME Group from $245.00 to $258.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a research report on Thursday, October 24th. The Goldman Sachs Group upped their price target on CME Group from $195.00 to $198.00 and gave the company a “sell” rating in a research report on Thursday, October 3rd. Finally, Piper Sandler lifted their target price on CME Group from $240.00 to $250.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research note on Monday, October 28th. Four research analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, seven have given a hold rating and four have given a buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the stock presently has an average rating of “Hold” and an average price target of $224.47.

Insider Activity

In related news, CFO Lynne Fitzpatrick sold 754 shares of the firm’s 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 transaction, the chief financial officer now directly owns 13,261 shares in the company, valued at approximately $2,877,504.39. This trade represents a 5.38 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available through this link. Also, Director Martin J. Gepsman sold 400 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Monday, November 4th. The shares were sold at an average price of $222.92, for a total value of $89,168.00. Following the completion of the sale, the director now directly owns 25,067 shares in the company, valued at approximately $5,587,935.64. This represents a 1.57 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last quarter, insiders have sold 15,621 shares of company stock valued at $3,441,063. Insiders own 0.30% of the company’s stock.

CME Group Price Performance

Shares of CME opened at $229.04 on Friday. 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 firm has a market cap of $82.54 billion, a PE ratio of 24.08, a PEG ratio of 5.23 and a beta of 0.55. CME Group Inc. has a twelve month low of $190.70 and a twelve month high of $230.74. The firm’s 50 day moving average price is $223.64 and its 200 day moving average price is $211.09.

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 during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $1.59 billion. CME Group had a net margin of 57.34% and a return on equity of 13.39%. CME Group’s quarterly revenue was up 18.4% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter in the previous year, the business earned $2.25 EPS. As a group, research analysts expect that CME Group Inc. will post 10.22 EPS for the current fiscal year.

CME Group Announces Dividend

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, December 27th. Stockholders of record on Monday, December 9th will be paid a dividend of $1.15 per share. The ex-dividend date is Monday, December 9th. This represents a $4.60 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 2.01%. CME Group’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 48.37%.

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.