Illinois Municipal Retirement Fund Purchases 1,981 Shares of CME Group Inc. (NASDAQ:CME)

Illinois Municipal Retirement Fund increased its holdings in shares of CME Group Inc. (NASDAQ:CME) by 7.0% in the fourth quarter, HoldingsChannel reports. The firm owned 30,435 shares of the financial services provider’s stock after buying an additional 1,981 shares during the period. Illinois Municipal Retirement Fund’s holdings in CME Group were worth $6,410,000 as of its most recent filing with the SEC.

A number of other institutional investors have also recently bought and sold shares of the business. Naples Global Advisors LLC boosted its holdings in shares of CME Group by 5.6% during the 4th quarter. Naples Global Advisors LLC now owns 2,072 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $436,000 after buying an additional 110 shares during the period. Sapient Capital LLC acquired a new stake in CME Group during the fourth quarter worth approximately $1,823,000. FNY Investment Advisers LLC bought a new stake in shares of CME Group during the fourth quarter worth approximately $1,074,000. Deutsche Bank AG grew its position in shares of CME Group by 4.3% in the third quarter. Deutsche Bank AG now owns 1,118,104 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $223,867,000 after purchasing an additional 46,021 shares during the last quarter. Finally, International Assets Investment Management LLC bought a new position in shares of CME Group during the fourth quarter worth approximately $27,986,000. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 87.75% of the company’s stock.

CME Group Price Performance

Shares of NASDAQ:CME opened at $216.77 on Wednesday. The firm has a 50 day moving average of $214.78 and a 200-day moving average of $211.92. CME Group Inc. has a 12 month low of $175.73 and a 12 month high of $223.80. The company has a current ratio of 1.02, a quick ratio of 1.02 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.13. The stock has a market capitalization of $78.04 billion, a PE ratio of 24.44, a PEG ratio of 6.06 and a beta of 0.49.

CME Group (NASDAQ:CME) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, February 14th. The financial services provider reported $2.37 EPS for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $2.27 by $0.10. CME Group had a net margin of 57.83% and a return on equity of 12.32%. The business had revenue of $1.44 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $1.43 billion. During the same period in the previous year, the business earned $1.92 earnings per share. The company’s revenue was up 19.2% on a year-over-year basis. On average, equities research analysts predict that CME Group Inc. will post 9.58 EPS for the current fiscal year.

CME Group Increases Dividend

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Tuesday, March 26th. Investors of record on Friday, March 8th were given a dividend of $1.15 per share. This is an increase from CME Group’s previous quarterly dividend of $1.10. This represents a $4.60 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 2.12%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Thursday, March 7th. CME Group’s dividend payout ratio is currently 51.86%.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several analysts recently issued reports on the company. Rosenblatt Securities restated a “sell” rating and issued a $180.00 price target on shares of CME Group in a research note on Thursday, January 4th. The Goldman Sachs Group cut shares of CME Group from a “neutral” rating to a “sell” rating and set a $195.00 target price for the company. in a research report on Wednesday, January 3rd. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft reaffirmed a “hold” rating and set a $210.00 price target (down from $235.00) on shares of CME Group in a research report on Friday, April 5th. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods reissued a “market perform” rating and issued a $229.00 price objective on shares of CME Group in a report on Wednesday, April 3rd. Finally, Argus increased their target price on shares of CME Group from $225.00 to $245.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research report on Wednesday, March 6th. Two investment analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, seven have issued a hold rating and two have issued a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the stock presently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and a consensus target price of $215.70.

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.