CME Group Inc. (NASDAQ:CME) Stock Position Raised by Pinnacle Financial Partners Inc

Pinnacle Financial Partners Inc lifted its stake in shares of CME Group Inc. (NASDAQ:CME) by 0.9% in the 4th quarter, HoldingsChannel.com reports. The fund owned 101,081 shares of the financial services provider’s stock after acquiring an additional 922 shares during the quarter. Pinnacle Financial Partners Inc’s holdings in CME Group were worth $23,474,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Several other large investors have also modified their holdings of the stock. Truvestments Capital LLC acquired a new stake in shares of CME Group in the third quarter worth $26,000. SJS Investment Consulting Inc. boosted its position in shares of CME Group by 570.6% in the fourth quarter. SJS Investment Consulting Inc. now owns 114 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $26,000 after buying an additional 97 shares during the period. Dunhill Financial LLC boosted its position in shares of CME Group by 188.4% in the third quarter. Dunhill Financial LLC now owns 124 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $27,000 after buying an additional 81 shares during the period. Financial Life Planners acquired a new stake in shares of CME Group in the fourth quarter worth $32,000. Finally, Fortitude Family Office LLC boosted its position in shares of CME Group by 120.3% in the fourth quarter. Fortitude Family Office LLC now owns 152 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $35,000 after buying an additional 83 shares during the period. 87.75% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

CME Group Trading Up 0.2 %

CME Group stock opened at $248.88 on Friday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.10, a quick ratio of 1.02 and a current ratio of 1.01. The business’s 50-day simple moving average is $237.10 and its 200-day simple moving average is $227.36. The firm has a market capitalization of $89.69 billion, a PE ratio of 25.74, a PEG ratio of 6.83 and a beta of 0.57. CME Group Inc. has a 52 week low of $190.70 and a 52 week high of $253.53.

CME Group (NASDAQ:CME) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, February 12th. The financial services provider reported $2.52 EPS for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $2.46 by $0.06. CME Group had a return on equity of 13.62% and a net margin of 57.52%. Equities research analysts forecast that CME Group Inc. will post 10.49 earnings per share for the current year.

CME Group Increases Dividend

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, March 26th. Investors of record on Friday, March 7th will be given a dividend of $1.25 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, March 7th. This is an increase from CME Group’s previous quarterly dividend of $1.15. This represents a $5.00 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 2.01%. CME Group’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 47.57%.

CME Group announced that its board has authorized a share repurchase 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 shares through open market purchases. Shares buyback plans are typically a sign that the company’s management believes its shares are undervalued.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several analysts have recently commented on CME shares. Morgan Stanley raised their target price on CME Group from $256.00 to $263.00 and gave the stock an “equal weight” rating in a research report on Wednesday. Barclays lifted their price objective on CME Group from $257.00 to $263.00 and gave the company an “equal weight” rating in a research report on Thursday, February 13th. Citigroup cut CME Group from a “buy” rating to a “neutral” rating and reduced their price objective for the company from $255.00 to $250.00 in a research report on Monday, January 6th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. lifted their price objective on CME Group from $209.00 to $212.00 and gave the company an “underweight” rating in a research report on Thursday, February 13th. Finally, Royal Bank of Canada lifted their price objective on CME Group from $235.00 to $269.00 and gave the company a “sector perform” rating in a research report on Thursday, February 13th. Four equities 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’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the stock presently has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus target price of $236.13.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other CME Group news, insider Julie Winkler sold 11,592 shares of CME Group stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, February 13th. The stock was sold at an average price of $249.17, for a total transaction of $2,888,378.64. Following the sale, the insider now directly owns 21,885 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $5,453,085.45. The trade was a 34.63 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this link. 0.30% of the stock is owned by company insiders.

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.