Hamlin Capital Management LLC Has $181.27 Million Stock Holdings in CME Group Inc. (NASDAQ:CME)

Hamlin Capital Management LLC grew its holdings in CME Group Inc. (NASDAQ:CME) by 4.8% in the fourth quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 780,547 shares of the financial services provider’s stock after purchasing an additional 35,857 shares during the period. CME Group makes up 4.5% of Hamlin Capital Management LLC’s portfolio, making the stock its 8th biggest position. Hamlin Capital Management LLC’s holdings in CME Group were worth $181,266,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

A number of other hedge funds also recently modified their holdings of CME. Truvestments Capital LLC acquired a new position in shares of CME Group in the third quarter worth $26,000. Dunhill Financial LLC increased its position in CME Group by 188.4% during 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 last quarter. Fortitude Family Office LLC increased its position 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 worth $35,000 after buying an additional 83 shares during the last quarter. Thurston Springer Miller Herd & Titak Inc. increased its position in CME Group by 62.2% during the third quarter. Thurston Springer Miller Herd & Titak Inc. now owns 193 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $43,000 after buying an additional 74 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Anchor Investment Management LLC increased its position in CME Group by 52.4% during the third quarter. Anchor Investment Management LLC now owns 378 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $83,000 after buying an additional 130 shares during the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 87.75% of the company’s stock.

CME Group Stock Performance

Shares of NASDAQ:CME opened at $232.71 on Tuesday. The company’s 50 day moving average price is $233.29 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $220.09. CME Group Inc. has a 12-month low of $190.70 and a 12-month high of $249.02. The firm has a market cap of $83.86 billion, a PE ratio of 24.47, a PEG ratio of 5.29 and a beta of 0.56. The company has a quick ratio of 1.02, a current ratio of 1.02 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.09.

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

CME Group declared that its board has authorized a share repurchase plan on Thursday, December 5th that permits the company to buyback $3.00 billion in outstanding 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 a sign that the company’s board of directors believes its shares are undervalued.

CME Group Increases Dividend

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

Insider Buying and Selling at CME Group

In other CME Group news, insider Timothy Francis Mccourt sold 1,374 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction on Monday, October 28th. The shares were sold at an average price of $227.12, for a total value of $312,062.88. Following the completion of the sale, the insider now directly owns 7,275 shares in the company, valued at approximately $1,652,298. This trade represents a 15.89 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. Also, Director Timothy S. Bitsberger sold 1,000 shares of the firm’s 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 completion of the sale, the director now owns 10,589 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $2,403,279.44. The trade was a 8.63 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last ninety days, insiders sold 7,274 shares of company stock worth $1,648,071. 0.30% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several equities analysts have commented on CME shares. Piper Sandler increased their target price on shares of CME Group from $250.00 to $258.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research report on Tuesday, January 7th. Citigroup downgraded shares of CME Group from a “buy” rating to a “neutral” rating and lowered their target price for the stock from $255.00 to $250.00 in a research report on Monday, January 6th. Morgan Stanley increased their target price on shares of CME Group from $210.00 to $233.00 and gave the stock an “equal weight” rating in a research report on Thursday, October 17th. Oppenheimer raised their price target on CME Group from $245.00 to $258.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a research report on Thursday, October 24th. Finally, Redburn Atlantic downgraded CME Group from a “buy” rating to a “neutral” rating and set a $244.00 price target on the stock. in a research report on Tuesday, October 8th. Four analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, eight have issued a hold rating and three have issued a buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat, CME Group currently has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $229.27.

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.