DDD Partners LLC Invests $17.68 Million in CME Group Inc. $CME

DDD Partners LLC bought a new stake in CME Group Inc. (NASDAQ:CME) during the 3rd quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The firm bought 65,430 shares of the financial services provider’s stock, valued at approximately $17,679,000. CME Group accounts for about 1.1% of DDD Partners LLC’s portfolio, making the stock its 29th biggest holding.

Several other hedge funds have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the business. Norges Bank bought a new stake in shares of CME Group during the second quarter valued at about $1,571,447,000. Mawer Investment Management Ltd. increased its stake in CME Group by 107.2% during the 3rd quarter. Mawer Investment Management Ltd. now owns 1,502,752 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $406,029,000 after buying an additional 777,571 shares during the period. Viking Global Investors LP bought a new stake in shares of CME Group during the 2nd quarter worth about $164,648,000. Vanguard Group Inc. lifted its stake in shares of CME Group by 1.5% in the 2nd quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 35,176,376 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $9,695,313,000 after acquiring an additional 532,549 shares during the period. Finally, Magellan Asset Management Ltd boosted its holdings in shares of CME Group by 131,625.5% in the second quarter. Magellan Asset Management Ltd now owns 486,067 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $133,970,000 after acquiring an additional 485,698 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors own 87.75% of the company’s stock.

Insider Buying and Selling

In related news, Director William R. Shepard acquired 251 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, December 30th. The shares were purchased at an average cost of $278.37 per share, with a total value of $69,870.87. Following the completion of the transaction, the director owned 258,710 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $72,017,102.70. This trade represents a 0.10% increase in their position. The purchase was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through this link. Also, CEO Terrence A. Duffy sold 25,000 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, December 11th. The stock was sold at an average price of $269.55, for a total transaction of $6,738,750.00. Following the completion of the sale, the chief executive officer owned 65,804 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $17,737,468.20. The trade was a 27.53% decrease in their position. The SEC filing for this sale provides additional information. 0.30% of the stock is currently owned by corporate insiders.

Trending Headlines about CME Group

Here are the key news stories impacting CME Group this week:

• Positive Sentiment: CME raised shareholder payouts — the board declared a Q1 quarterly dividend of $1.30 (up from $1.25) and an annual variable dividend of $6.15 based on 2025 results (total ≈ $2.2B), both payable March 26; that boosts cash return to investors. CME Group Declares Annual Variable Dividend and Q1 2026 Quarterly Dividend
• Positive Sentiment: Analyst price-target lift — Rothschild & Co Redburn raised its CME price target to $333 from $300 (still a “neutral” rating), implying roughly 9.7% upside versus recent levels, which can support buying interest. Rothschild & Co Redburn Adjusts Price Target on CME Group to $333 From $300, Maintains Neutral Rating
• Positive Sentiment: New product rollout and execution — CME reported first trades in new Cardano, Chainlink and Stellar crypto futures and is actively exploring a rare-earths futures contract; these product additions expand fee pools and diversify revenue. CME Group Announces First Trades for New Cardano, Chainlink and Stellar Cryptocurrency Futures CME Weighs Launching First-Ever Rare Earth Futures Contract / Reuters
• Positive Sentiment: Asia expansion — reports say CME plans to list Taiwan and Hong Kong warehouses for aluminium futures in Asia, a move that could deepen regional market presence and increase volumes. Exclusive: CME to list Taiwan, Hong Kong warehouses in Asia aluminium push, sources say
• Neutral Sentiment: CFTC advisory involvement — the CFTC formed an Innovation Advisory Committee that includes a CME executive; this provides regulatory engagement but unclear near-term financial impact. CFTC Forms Innovation Advisory Committee With 35 Crypto and Finance Industry Leaders
• Neutral Sentiment: Board slate announced — CME named director nominees for the annual meeting; routine governance news that is unlikely to move the stock materially. CME Group Inc. Names Slate of Director Nominees
• Neutral Sentiment: Analyst/earnings commentary — recent analyst-question coverage from the Q4 call provides context for growth drivers but contains no new guidance. 5 Must-Read Analyst Questions From CME Group’s Q4 Earnings Call
• Negative Sentiment: Short-interest reporting is inconsistent — filings flagged a “significant increase” in February short interest but published data show zeros/NaN, creating ambiguity; if short interest is actually rising, that could add downward pressure.

CME Group Price Performance

CME opened at $303.07 on Friday. The firm has a market capitalization of $109.29 billion, a P/E ratio of 27.16, a PEG ratio of 3.28 and a beta of 0.27. The stock has a fifty day moving average of $279.82 and a 200-day moving average of $274.00. The company has a quick ratio of 1.02, a current ratio of 1.03 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.12. CME Group Inc. has a 12-month low of $244.43 and a 12-month high of $309.35.

CME Group (NASDAQ:CME) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, February 4th. The financial services provider reported $2.77 earnings per share for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $2.75 by $0.02. The firm had revenue of $1.65 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $1.64 billion. CME Group had a return on equity of 14.65% and a net margin of 62.45%.CME Group’s quarterly revenue was up 8.1% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period in the previous year, the firm earned $2.52 earnings per share. Equities analysts forecast that CME Group Inc. will post 10.49 EPS for the current fiscal year.

CME Group Increases Dividend

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, March 26th. Stockholders of record on Tuesday, March 10th will be given a $1.30 dividend. This represents a $5.20 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 1.7%. This is a positive change from CME Group’s previous quarterly dividend of $1.25. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Tuesday, March 10th. CME Group’s payout ratio is currently 44.80%.

Analyst Ratings Changes

CME has been the topic of several recent analyst reports. Bank of America boosted their target price on CME Group from $201.00 to $209.00 in a report on Wednesday, December 10th. Raymond James Financial cut their price objective on CME Group from $311.00 to $310.00 and set an “outperform” rating for the company in a report on Wednesday, February 4th. Jefferies Financial Group lowered their target price on CME Group from $304.00 to $302.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a report on Monday, January 12th. Piper Sandler upped their price target on shares of CME Group from $296.00 to $313.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a report on Thursday, November 13th. Finally, JPMorgan Chase & Co. raised their price objective on shares of CME Group from $262.00 to $266.00 and gave the company an “underweight” rating in a research report on Thursday, February 5th. Nine analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, six have assigned a Hold rating and three have given a Sell rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the stock currently has an average rating of “Hold” and an average target price of $299.53.

About CME Group

CME Group Inc is a global markets company that operates some of the world’s largest and most liquid derivatives exchanges, including the Chicago Mercantile Exchange (CME), the Chicago Board of Trade (CBOT), the New York Mercantile Exchange (NYMEX) and COMEX. The firm offers futures and options contracts across a broad range of asset classes — including interest rates, equity indexes, foreign exchange, energy, agricultural commodities and metals — and serves a diverse client base of institutional investors, commercial hedgers, brokers and retail participants.

The company’s core services include electronic trading on the CME Globex platform, central clearing through CME Clearing, and distribution of market data, indexes and analytics.