Golden State Equity Partners Purchases 1,182 Shares of CME Group Inc. (NASDAQ:CME)

Golden State Equity Partners grew its position in shares of CME Group Inc. (NASDAQ:CME) by 51.7% during the 4th quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The fund owned 3,468 shares of the financial services provider’s stock after purchasing an additional 1,182 shares during the quarter. Golden State Equity Partners’ holdings in CME Group were worth $805,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

A number of other large investors also recently modified their holdings of CME. Czech National Bank boosted its position in CME Group by 6.9% during the third quarter. Czech National Bank now owns 73,355 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $16,186,000 after buying an additional 4,742 shares during the period. Quent Capital LLC lifted its stake in shares of CME Group by 10.2% in the 3rd quarter. Quent Capital LLC now owns 593 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $131,000 after acquiring an additional 55 shares during the last quarter. Handelsbanken Fonder AB grew its position in CME Group by 0.9% during the 3rd quarter. Handelsbanken Fonder AB now owns 126,636 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $27,942,000 after acquiring an additional 1,083 shares during the last quarter. GAMMA Investing LLC increased its stake in CME Group by 27.1% in the 3rd quarter. GAMMA Investing LLC now owns 4,131 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $912,000 after purchasing an additional 881 shares during the period. Finally, Miracle Mile Advisors LLC increased its stake in CME Group by 18.9% in the 3rd quarter. Miracle Mile Advisors LLC now owns 3,837 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $847,000 after purchasing an additional 609 shares during the period. 87.75% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

CME Group Trading Up 0.3 %

Shares of NASDAQ CME opened at $236.52 on Monday. The stock has a market cap of $85.23 billion, a P/E ratio of 24.87, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 5.28 and a beta of 0.56. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.09, a current ratio of 1.02 and a quick ratio of 1.02. CME Group Inc. has a 1 year low of $190.70 and a 1 year high of $249.02. The firm has a 50-day moving average of $234.73 and a 200 day moving average of $222.63.

CME Group declared that its Board of Directors has initiated a share buyback plan on Thursday, December 5th that authorizes the company to buyback $3.00 billion in shares. This buyback authorization authorizes the financial services provider to reacquire up to 3.4% of its stock through open market purchases. Stock buyback plans are usually a sign that the company’s management believes its shares are undervalued.

CME Group Increases Dividend

The business also recently declared a dividend, which was paid on Thursday, January 16th. Stockholders of record on Friday, December 27th were given a $5.80 dividend. This is a boost from CME Group’s previous dividend of $2.50. The ex-dividend date was Friday, December 27th. CME Group’s payout ratio is currently 48.37%.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several research analysts have recently issued reports on CME shares. Redburn Atlantic cut shares of CME Group from a “buy” rating to a “neutral” rating and set a $244.00 target price on the stock. in a report on Tuesday, October 8th. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft cut their price target on shares of CME Group from $227.00 to $226.00 and set a “hold” rating on the stock in a report on Monday, November 11th. Morgan Stanley upped their price objective on shares of CME Group from $210.00 to $233.00 and gave the company an “equal weight” rating in a research note on Thursday, October 17th. Barclays raised their target price on CME Group from $231.00 to $257.00 and gave the stock an “equal weight” rating in a research note on Monday, December 9th. Finally, Piper Sandler upped their price target on CME Group from $250.00 to $258.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research report on Tuesday, January 7th. Four research analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, eight have given a hold rating and three have given a buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat, CME Group has an average rating of “Hold” and an average price target of $229.27.

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.