Quantbot Technologies LP Lowers Stock Position in CME Group Inc. (NASDAQ:CME)

Quantbot Technologies LP lowered its position in CME Group Inc. (NASDAQ:CME) by 10.2% in the 3rd quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The fund owned 18,883 shares of the financial services provider’s stock after selling 2,144 shares during the period. Quantbot Technologies LP’s holdings in CME Group were worth $4,167,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Other institutional investors and hedge funds also recently made changes to their positions in the company. Truvestments Capital LLC purchased a new stake in CME Group during the third quarter worth about $26,000. Y.D. More Investments Ltd purchased a new stake in CME Group during the second quarter worth about $36,000. Thurston Springer Miller Herd & Titak Inc. increased its holdings in CME Group by 62.2% during the third 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 last quarter. McClarren Financial Advisors Inc. increased its holdings in CME Group by 66.1% during the second 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 during the last quarter. Finally, Asset Dedication LLC increased its holdings in CME Group by 515.2% during the second 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. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 87.75% of the company’s stock.

CME Group Trading Up 2.2 %

Shares of CME Group stock opened at $234.39 on Wednesday. CME Group Inc. has a 1 year low of $190.70 and a 1 year high of $235.18. The firm has a market cap of $84.47 billion, a PE ratio of 24.65, a PEG ratio of 5.28 and a beta of 0.55. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.09, a current ratio of 1.02 and a quick ratio of 1.02. The company has a 50 day simple moving average of $224.18 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $211.37.

CME Group (NASDAQ:CME) last announced its earnings results 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. CME Group had a net margin of 57.34% and a return on equity of 13.39%. The business had revenue of $1.58 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $1.59 billion. During the same period in the previous year, the business posted $2.25 earnings per share. CME Group’s revenue for the quarter was up 18.4% on a year-over-year basis. Analysts expect that CME Group Inc. will post 10.22 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

CME Group Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, December 27th. Shareholders of record on Monday, December 9th will be paid a dividend of $1.15 per share. This represents a $4.60 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 1.96%. The ex-dividend date is Monday, December 9th. CME Group’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 48.37%.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In related news, Director Bryan T. Durkin sold 7,593 shares of CME Group 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 directly owns 55,607 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $11,932,706.13. The trade was a 12.01 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this link. Also, Director Martin J. Gepsman sold 400 shares of CME Group stock in a transaction on Monday, November 4th. The stock was sold at an average price of $222.92, for a total transaction of $89,168.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the director now directly owns 25,067 shares in the company, valued at approximately $5,587,935.64. The trade was a 1.57 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Over the last ninety days, insiders have sold 15,621 shares of company stock valued at $3,441,063. 0.30% of the stock is currently owned by corporate insiders.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several equities analysts have recently weighed in on CME shares. TD Cowen started coverage on shares of CME Group in a research note on Thursday, September 26th. They issued a “hold” rating and a $221.00 target price for the company. Citigroup lifted their target price on shares of CME Group from $250.00 to $255.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research note on Thursday, October 24th. Morgan Stanley lifted their target price on shares of CME Group from $210.00 to $233.00 and gave the stock an “equal weight” rating in a research note on Thursday, October 17th. Bank of America lifted their target price on shares of CME Group from $177.00 to $180.00 and gave the stock an “underperform” rating in a research note on Thursday, October 3rd. Finally, Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft reduced their target price on shares of CME Group from $227.00 to $226.00 and set a “hold” rating for the company in a research note on Monday, November 11th. Four analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, seven have assigned a hold rating and four have given a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat, CME Group has a consensus rating of “Hold” and an average price target of $224.47.

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.