Principal Financial Group Inc. Acquires 17,508 Shares of CME Group Inc. (NASDAQ:CME)

Principal Financial Group Inc. boosted its holdings in shares of CME Group Inc. (NASDAQ:CME) by 4.4% during the third quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The fund owned 419,532 shares of the financial services provider’s stock after acquiring an additional 17,508 shares during the quarter. Principal Financial Group Inc.’s holdings in CME Group were worth $92,570,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Several other institutional investors and hedge funds have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the business. Truvestments Capital LLC acquired a new position in shares of CME Group during the third quarter worth $26,000. Dunhill Financial LLC lifted its holdings in CME Group by 188.4% during the 3rd 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. Y.D. More Investments Ltd acquired a new stake in shares of CME Group in the second quarter valued at about $36,000. McClarren Financial Advisors Inc. raised its position in shares of CME Group by 66.1% during the second quarter. McClarren Financial Advisors Inc. now owns 196 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $39,000 after acquiring an additional 78 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Asset Dedication LLC boosted its holdings in CME Group by 515.2% in the second quarter. Asset Dedication LLC now owns 203 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $40,000 after acquiring an additional 170 shares during the last quarter. 87.75% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

CME Group Stock Up 0.7 %

CME stock opened at $238.53 on Friday. The company has a quick ratio of 1.02, a current ratio of 1.02 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.09. The stock’s 50 day moving average is $230.71 and its 200-day moving average is $214.91. CME Group Inc. has a twelve month low of $190.70 and a twelve month high of $249.02. The firm has a market capitalization of $85.96 billion, a PE ratio of 25.08, a P/E/G ratio of 5.41 and a beta of 0.56.

CME Group (NASDAQ:CME) last posted its 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 firm had revenue of $1.58 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $1.59 billion. CME Group had a net margin of 57.34% and a return on equity of 13.39%. The company’s quarterly revenue was up 18.4% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter last year, the firm earned $2.25 EPS. Sell-side analysts expect that CME Group Inc. will post 10.22 EPS for the current fiscal year.

CME Group Increases Dividend

The business also recently announced a dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, January 16th. Shareholders of record on Friday, December 27th will be paid a $5.80 dividend. This is a boost from CME Group’s previous dividend of $2.50. The ex-dividend date is Friday, December 27th. CME Group’s payout ratio is presently 48.37%.

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

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of research firms have recently commented on CME. Redburn Atlantic lowered shares of CME Group from a “buy” rating to a “neutral” rating and set a $244.00 price objective on the stock. in a research note on Tuesday, October 8th. Oppenheimer lifted their price objective on CME Group from $245.00 to $258.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a research report on Thursday, October 24th. Citigroup upped their target price on CME Group from $250.00 to $255.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research report on Thursday, October 24th. 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 note on Monday, December 9th. Finally, Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft reduced their price target on shares of CME Group from $227.00 to $226.00 and set a “hold” rating for the company in a report on Monday, November 11th. Four equities research analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, seven have given a hold rating and four have issued a buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the stock has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus target price of $229.33.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other CME Group news, Director Timothy S. Bitsberger sold 1,000 shares of the stock in a transaction on Wednesday, October 30th. The stock was sold at an average price of $226.96, for a total transaction of $226,960.00. Following the sale, the director now owns 10,589 shares in the company, valued at $2,403,279.44. This represents a 8.63 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available at this link. Also, Director Martin J. Gepsman sold 400 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Monday, November 4th. The stock was sold at an average price of $222.92, for a total value of $89,168.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the director now owns 25,067 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $5,587,935.64. This represents a 1.57 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last quarter, insiders have sold 7,274 shares of company stock valued at $1,648,071. 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.