CME Group Inc. (NASDAQ:CME) Shares Sold by Monte Financial Group LLC

Monte Financial Group LLC lessened its stake in CME Group Inc. (NASDAQ:CME) by 0.7% during the 1st quarter, HoldingsChannel.com reports. The fund owned 21,436 shares of the financial services provider’s stock after selling 161 shares during the period. CME Group makes up 2.3% of Monte Financial Group LLC’s portfolio, making the stock its 19th largest position. Monte Financial Group LLC’s holdings in CME Group were worth $5,628,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission.

Several other institutional investors have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the stock. Lake Street Advisors Group LLC lifted its position in CME Group by 108.7% during the 4th quarter. Lake Street Advisors Group LLC now owns 12,390 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $2,949,000 after acquiring an additional 6,453 shares during the period. Unified Investment Management purchased a new stake in shares of CME Group during the fourth quarter worth approximately $503,000. Aspire Growth Partners LLC acquired a new stake in shares of CME Group during the fourth quarter worth $548,000. First Citizens Bank & Trust Co. grew its position in CME Group by 3.4% in the 1st quarter. First Citizens Bank & Trust Co. now owns 43,135 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $11,443,000 after buying an additional 1,408 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Massachusetts Financial Services Co. MA increased its stake in CME Group by 18.8% in the 4th quarter. Massachusetts Financial Services Co. MA now owns 2,169,999 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $503,939,000 after buying an additional 343,498 shares during the period. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 87.75% of the company’s stock.

CME Group Stock Performance

CME opened at $273.99 on Friday. CME Group Inc. has a 1-year low of $192.11 and a 1-year high of $290.79. The stock has a market cap of $98.74 billion, a P/E ratio of 27.56, a P/E/G ratio of 3.69 and a beta of 0.45. The stock’s 50 day simple moving average is $274.17 and its 200 day simple moving average is $255.42. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.13, a current ratio of 1.02 and a quick ratio of 1.02.

CME Group (NASDAQ:CME) last posted its earnings results on Wednesday, April 23rd. The financial services provider reported $2.80 EPS for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $2.61 by $0.19. The company had revenue of $1.64 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $1.56 billion. CME Group had a return on equity of 14.03% and a net margin of 57.71%. CME Group’s quarterly revenue was up 10.4% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period in the previous year, the business earned $2.50 earnings per share. As a group, equities analysts anticipate that CME Group Inc. will post 10.49 EPS for the current fiscal year.

CME Group Announces Dividend

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, June 25th. Investors of record on Monday, June 9th will be given a $1.25 dividend. The ex-dividend date is Monday, June 9th. This represents a $5.00 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 1.82%. CME Group’s dividend payout ratio is presently 50.30%.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of equities analysts have commented on the stock. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods upped their price objective on shares of CME Group from $265.00 to $273.00 and gave the stock a “market perform” rating in a research report on Thursday, April 24th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. cut their price target on shares of CME Group from $223.00 to $211.00 and set an “underweight” rating for the company in a report on Thursday, April 24th. Royal Bank Of Canada reaffirmed a “sector perform” rating and issued a $269.00 price objective on shares of CME Group in a report on Thursday, April 3rd. Barclays increased their target price on CME Group from $279.00 to $283.00 and gave the stock an “equal weight” rating in a research note on Wednesday, April 23rd. Finally, Piper Sandler raised their price target on CME Group from $275.00 to $283.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a report on Tuesday, April 8th. Three research analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, eight have issued a hold rating and five have issued a buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the stock has a consensus rating of “Hold” and an average target price of $258.20.

Insider Activity at CME Group

In related news, Director Martin J. Gepsman sold 300 shares of CME Group stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, May 15th. The stock was sold at an average price of $273.17, for a total transaction of $81,951.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the director now directly owns 24,767 shares in the company, valued at $6,765,601.39. The trade was a 1.20% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available at this hyperlink. Also, Director Daniel G. Kaye sold 500 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, May 22nd. The shares were sold at an average price of $282.42, for a total value of $141,210.00. Following the completion of the sale, the director now directly owns 3,668 shares in the company, valued at approximately $1,035,916.56. The trade was a 12.00% decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last three months, insiders have sold 13,400 shares of company stock valued at $3,680,610. Insiders own 0.30% of the company’s stock.

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.