Sheaff Brock Investment Advisors LLC Purchases 122 Shares of CME Group Inc. (NASDAQ:CME)

Sheaff Brock Investment Advisors LLC lifted its position in CME Group Inc. (NASDAQ:CME) by 0.4% in the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The institutional investor owned 29,738 shares of the financial services provider’s stock after purchasing an additional 122 shares during the period. Sheaff Brock Investment Advisors LLC’s holdings in CME Group were worth $6,906,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC).

Several other institutional investors and hedge funds have also recently modified their holdings of the company. Truvestments Capital LLC purchased a new position in CME Group in the 3rd quarter worth approximately $26,000. SJS Investment Consulting Inc. lifted its holdings 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 in the last quarter. Dunhill Financial LLC lifted its holdings 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 in the last quarter. Financial Life Planners bought a new position in shares of CME Group during the fourth quarter worth $32,000. Finally, Fortitude Family Office LLC grew its stake in CME Group by 120.3% during the fourth quarter. Fortitude Family Office LLC now owns 152 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $35,000 after acquiring an additional 83 shares in the last quarter. 87.75% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Insider Activity at CME Group

In related news, insider Julie Winkler sold 11,592 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated 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 owns 21,885 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $5,453,085.45. This trade represents a 34.63 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this link. 0.30% of the stock is currently owned by corporate insiders.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several analysts have commented on the stock. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods boosted their price target on shares of CME Group from $256.00 to $257.00 and gave the stock a “market perform” rating in a research note on Friday. JPMorgan Chase & Co. boosted their target price on CME Group from $209.00 to $212.00 and gave the stock an “underweight” rating in a research report on Thursday. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft cut their price target on CME Group from $227.00 to $226.00 and set a “hold” rating for the company in a report on Monday, November 11th. Piper Sandler upped their price objective on CME Group from $250.00 to $258.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a report on Tuesday, January 7th. Finally, Oppenheimer raised their target price on shares of CME Group from $258.00 to $269.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a report on Thursday. Four 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. According to data from MarketBeat.com, CME Group presently has an average rating of “Hold” and an average price target of $234.13.

CME Group Price Performance

Shares of CME stock opened at $245.48 on Friday. CME Group Inc. has a twelve month low of $190.70 and a twelve month high of $253.53. The company has a current ratio of 1.02, a quick ratio of 1.02 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.09. The stock has a fifty day simple moving average of $235.95 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $225.57. The stock has a market capitalization of $88.46 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 25.81, a P/E/G ratio of 5.54 and a beta of 0.57.

CME Group (NASDAQ:CME) last released its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, February 12th. The financial services provider reported $2.52 earnings per share for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $2.46 by $0.06. CME Group had a return on equity of 13.39% and a net margin of 57.34%. On average, analysts predict that CME Group Inc. will post 10.18 EPS for the current fiscal year.

CME Group announced that its board has approved a stock buyback plan on Thursday, December 5th that permits the company to buyback $3.00 billion in shares. This buyback authorization permits the financial services provider to purchase up to 3.4% of its shares through open market purchases. Shares buyback plans are typically an indication that the company’s board believes its stock is undervalued.

CME Group Increases Dividend

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, March 26th. Investors of record on Friday, March 7th will be issued a dividend of $1.25 per share. This represents a $5.00 annualized dividend and a yield of 2.04%. This is a positive change from CME Group’s previous quarterly dividend of $1.15. The ex-dividend date is Friday, March 7th. CME Group’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 48.37%.

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.