Forsta AP Fonden Boosts Stock Position in CME Group Inc. (NASDAQ:CME)

Forsta AP Fonden raised its position in CME Group Inc. (NASDAQ:CME) by 0.4% during the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 90,100 shares of the financial services provider’s stock after purchasing an additional 400 shares during the period. Forsta AP Fonden’s holdings in CME Group were worth $20,924,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Several other hedge funds also recently modified their holdings of the company. Franklin Resources Inc. lifted its position in CME Group by 70.4% during the third quarter. Franklin Resources Inc. now owns 2,427,107 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $544,157,000 after buying an additional 1,003,119 shares during the period. International Assets Investment Management LLC increased its stake in shares of CME Group by 21,465.5% during the 3rd quarter. International Assets Investment Management LLC now owns 485,871 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $1,072,070,000 after acquiring an additional 483,618 shares during the last quarter. Canoe Financial LP lifted its holdings in shares of CME Group by 698.0% during the 4th quarter. Canoe Financial LP now owns 544,219 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $126,384,000 after acquiring an additional 476,019 shares during the period. Janus Henderson Group PLC boosted its position in shares of CME Group by 17.8% in the third quarter. Janus Henderson Group PLC now owns 2,514,040 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $554,707,000 after acquiring an additional 380,071 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Baillie Gifford & Co. purchased a new stake in CME Group in the third quarter valued at approximately $79,692,000. 87.75% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of equities analysts have weighed in on CME shares. Piper Sandler increased their price target on shares of CME Group from $250.00 to $258.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research note on Tuesday, January 7th. Citigroup lowered CME Group from a “buy” rating to a “neutral” rating and cut their target price for the stock from $255.00 to $250.00 in a research report on Monday, January 6th. Barclays boosted their price target on CME Group from $231.00 to $257.00 and gave the company an “equal weight” rating in a research report on Monday, December 9th. The Goldman Sachs Group upped their price target on CME Group from $195.00 to $198.00 and gave the stock a “sell” rating in a research note on Thursday, October 3rd. Finally, Bank of America lifted their price objective on CME Group from $177.00 to $180.00 and gave the company an “underperform” rating in a research note on Thursday, October 3rd. Four equities research analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, eight have given a hold rating and three have assigned a buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, CME Group currently has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus target price of $229.27.

CME Group Price Performance

Shares of CME stock opened at $234.39 on Wednesday. The firm has a fifty day simple moving average of $234.31 and a 200-day simple moving average of $222.01. The company has a market capitalization of $84.46 billion, a PE ratio of 24.65, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 5.28 and a beta of 0.56. CME Group Inc. has a twelve month low of $190.70 and a twelve month high of $249.02. The company has a current ratio of 1.02, a quick ratio of 1.02 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.09.

CME Group Increases Dividend

The firm also recently announced a dividend, which was paid on Thursday, January 16th. Stockholders of record on Friday, December 27th were paid a dividend of $5.80 per share. The ex-dividend date was Friday, December 27th. This is an increase from CME Group’s previous dividend of $2.50. CME Group’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 48.37%.

CME Group declared that its board has approved a share buyback plan on Thursday, December 5th that authorizes the company to buyback $3.00 billion in outstanding shares. This buyback authorization authorizes the financial services provider to purchase up to 3.4% of its stock through open market purchases. Stock buyback plans are often a sign that the company’s board of directors believes its stock is undervalued.

Insider Transactions at CME Group

In other news, Director Martin J. Gepsman sold 400 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred 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. This represents a 1.57 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. Corporate 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.