CME Group Inc. (NASDAQ:CME) Shares Bought by Oppenheimer Asset Management Inc.

Oppenheimer Asset Management Inc. grew its holdings in CME Group Inc. (NASDAQ:CME) by 2.4% during the 4th quarter, HoldingsChannel.com reports. The firm owned 14,971 shares of the financial services provider’s stock after buying an additional 353 shares during the period. Oppenheimer Asset Management Inc.’s holdings in CME Group were worth $3,477,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Other hedge funds have also modified their holdings of the company. Mn Services Vermogensbeheer B.V. boosted its position in shares of CME Group by 3.0% during the 4th quarter. Mn Services Vermogensbeheer B.V. now owns 142,879 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $33,181,000 after purchasing an additional 4,100 shares during the period. New York Life Investment Management LLC boosted its position in shares of CME Group by 0.4% during the fourth quarter. New York Life Investment Management LLC now owns 53,508 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $12,426,000 after buying an additional 188 shares during the period. Allegiance Financial Group Advisory Services LLC acquired a new stake in shares of CME Group in the fourth quarter valued at $360,000. Stegent Equity Advisors Inc. raised its holdings in shares of CME Group by 20.0% in the 4th quarter. Stegent Equity Advisors Inc. now owns 1,765 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $410,000 after buying an additional 294 shares during the period. Finally, Whipplewood Advisors LLC acquired a new position in CME Group during the 4th quarter worth about $37,000. 87.75% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

CME Group Stock Up 1.6 %

Shares of NASDAQ:CME opened at $253.77 on Friday. The firm has a 50 day simple moving average of $238.42 and a 200-day simple moving average of $229.07. CME Group Inc. has a twelve month low of $190.70 and a twelve month high of $254.40. The company has a current ratio of 1.01, a quick ratio of 1.02 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.10. The company has a market capitalization of $91.45 billion, a PE ratio of 26.24, a P/E/G ratio of 6.76 and a beta of 0.57.

CME Group (NASDAQ:CME) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, February 12th. The financial services provider reported $2.52 earnings per share for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $2.46 by $0.06. CME Group had a net margin of 57.52% and a return on equity of 13.62%. On average, equities analysts predict that CME Group Inc. will post 10.49 EPS for the current fiscal year.

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

CME Group Increases Dividend

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, March 26th. Investors of record on Friday, March 7th will be paid a dividend of $1.25 per share. This represents a $5.00 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 1.97%. The ex-dividend date is Friday, March 7th. This is an increase from CME Group’s previous quarterly dividend of $1.15. CME Group’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 51.71%.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other CME Group news, insider Hilda Harris Piell sold 3,984 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction on Thursday, February 27th. The shares were sold at an average price of $250.47, for a total transaction of $997,872.48. Following the transaction, the insider now directly owns 27,046 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $6,774,211.62. This trade represents a 12.84 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available at the SEC website. Also, insider Julie Winkler sold 11,592 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Thursday, February 13th. The shares were sold at an average price of $249.17, for a total transaction of $2,888,378.64. Following the completion of the sale, the insider now directly owns 21,885 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $5,453,085.45. The trade was a 34.63 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. 0.30% of the stock is currently owned by corporate insiders.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

CME has been the topic of a number of recent research reports. 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, February 14th. Barclays upped their target price on shares of CME Group from $257.00 to $263.00 and gave the stock an “equal weight” rating in a research note on Thursday, February 13th. Piper Sandler raised their price target on shares of CME Group from $250.00 to $258.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research report on Tuesday, January 7th. Oppenheimer boosted their price target on shares of CME Group from $258.00 to $269.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a research note on Thursday, February 13th. Finally, Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft decreased their target price on CME Group from $227.00 to $226.00 and set a “hold” rating for the company in a report on Monday, November 11th. Four investment analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, eight have issued a hold rating and three have given a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the company has a consensus rating of “Hold” and a consensus target price of $236.13.

CME Group Company 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.