CME Group Inc. (NASDAQ:CME) Shares Sold by Janney Capital Management LLC

Janney Capital Management LLC lowered its position in shares of CME Group Inc. (NASDAQ:CME) by 2.3% in the fourth quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The fund owned 11,736 shares of the financial services provider’s stock after selling 281 shares during the quarter. Janney Capital Management LLC’s holdings in CME Group were worth $2,725,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Other institutional investors have also recently made changes to their positions in the company. Harbor Capital Advisors Inc. lifted its stake in shares of CME Group by 0.6% in the 3rd quarter. Harbor Capital Advisors Inc. now owns 7,810 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $1,723,000 after purchasing an additional 45 shares during the last quarter. CVA Family Office LLC boosted its position in shares of CME Group by 11.8% during the 3rd quarter. CVA Family Office LLC now owns 436 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $96,000 after purchasing an additional 46 shares during the period. Zions Bancorporation N.A. raised its position in CME Group by 3.7% in the third quarter. Zions Bancorporation N.A. now owns 1,530 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $338,000 after purchasing an additional 54 shares during the period. Quent Capital LLC boosted its position in shares of CME Group by 10.2% during the third quarter. Quent Capital LLC now owns 593 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $131,000 after buying an additional 55 shares during the period. Finally, Grove Bank & Trust raised its holdings in shares of CME Group by 1.3% in the 3rd quarter. Grove Bank & Trust now owns 4,276 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $943,000 after buying an additional 55 shares during the period. 87.75% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Insider Buying and Selling at CME Group

In related news, Director Timothy S. Bitsberger sold 1,000 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, October 30th. The shares were sold at an average price of $226.96, for a total value of $226,960.00. Following the sale, the director now directly owns 10,589 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $2,403,279.44. This trade represents a 8.63 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at the SEC website. Also, insider Timothy Francis Mccourt sold 1,374 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, October 28th. The stock was sold at an average price of $227.12, for a total transaction of $312,062.88. Following the transaction, the insider now directly owns 7,275 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $1,652,298. This trade represents a 15.89 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last three months, insiders sold 7,274 shares of company stock worth $1,648,071. 0.30% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several equities analysts have commented on the stock. Royal Bank of Canada restated a “sector perform” rating and issued a $235.00 price target on shares of CME Group in a research note on Monday, January 6th. The Goldman Sachs Group boosted their price target on shares of CME Group from $195.00 to $198.00 and gave the stock a “sell” rating in a report on Thursday, October 3rd. Barclays raised their price objective on shares of CME Group from $231.00 to $257.00 and gave the company an “equal weight” rating in a report on Monday, December 9th. Piper Sandler increased their target price on CME Group from $250.00 to $258.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a report on Tuesday, January 7th. Finally, Morgan Stanley increased their price target on shares of CME Group from $210.00 to $233.00 and gave the company an “equal weight” rating in a research note on Thursday, October 17th. Four equities research analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, eight have assigned a hold rating and three have assigned a buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat.com, CME Group currently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and an average price target of $229.27.

CME Group Price Performance

Shares of CME opened at $231.51 on Wednesday. The company has a market capitalization of $83.43 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 24.31, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 5.28 and a beta of 0.56. CME Group Inc. has a fifty-two week low of $190.70 and a fifty-two week high of $249.02. The firm has a 50-day simple moving average of $233.55 and a 200-day simple moving average of $220.60. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.09, a quick ratio of 1.02 and a current ratio of 1.02.

CME Group (NASDAQ:CME) last released its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, October 23rd. The financial services provider reported $2.68 EPS for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $2.65 by $0.03. The business had revenue of $1.58 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $1.59 billion. CME Group had a return on equity of 13.39% and a net margin of 57.34%. The company’s quarterly revenue was up 18.4% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter in the prior year, the business earned $2.25 earnings per share. On average, equities research analysts anticipate that CME Group Inc. will post 10.18 earnings per share for the current year.

CME Group declared that its Board of Directors has authorized a stock repurchase program on Thursday, December 5th that permits the company to repurchase $3.00 billion in outstanding shares. This repurchase authorization permits the financial services provider to purchase up to 3.4% of its shares through open market purchases. Shares repurchase programs are often a sign that the company’s management believes its stock is undervalued.

CME Group Increases Dividend

The firm also recently disclosed a dividend, which was paid on Thursday, January 16th. Investors of record on Friday, December 27th were given a $5.80 dividend. The ex-dividend date was Friday, December 27th. This is a positive change from CME Group’s previous dividend of $2.50. CME Group’s payout ratio is currently 48.37%.

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.