CME Group Inc. (NASDAQ:CME) Shares Acquired by Avantax Advisory Services Inc.

Avantax Advisory Services Inc. raised its holdings in CME Group Inc. (NASDAQ:CME) by 1.7% during the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The institutional investor owned 18,486 shares of the financial services provider’s stock after buying an additional 308 shares during the period. Avantax Advisory Services Inc.’s holdings in CME Group were worth $4,293,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

A number of other hedge funds and other institutional investors also recently bought and sold shares of CME. GSA Capital Partners LLP raised its stake in CME Group by 106.1% in the third quarter. GSA Capital Partners LLP now owns 3,384 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $747,000 after buying an additional 1,742 shares in the last quarter. Aptus Capital Advisors LLC raised its stake in CME Group by 4.2% in the third quarter. Aptus Capital Advisors LLC now owns 3,007 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $663,000 after buying an additional 121 shares in the last quarter. Huntington National Bank raised its stake in CME Group by 5.0% in the third quarter. Huntington National Bank now owns 3,399 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $750,000 after buying an additional 161 shares in the last quarter. KBC Group NV raised its stake in CME Group by 35.3% in the third quarter. KBC Group NV now owns 111,495 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $24,601,000 after buying an additional 29,114 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Zions Bancorporation N.A. raised its stake 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 buying an additional 54 shares in the last quarter. 87.75% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

CME Group Stock Performance

NASDAQ CME opened at $258.68 on Friday. The company has a quick ratio of 1.02, a current ratio of 1.01 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.10. CME Group Inc. has a 52-week low of $190.70 and a 52-week high of $263.65. The business’s 50-day moving average price is $242.80 and its 200 day moving average price is $232.32. The firm has a market cap of $93.22 billion, a P/E ratio of 26.75, a P/E/G ratio of 6.76 and a beta of 0.53.

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

CME Group declared that its Board of Directors has initiated 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 purchase up to 3.4% of its stock through open market purchases. Stock buyback programs are generally a sign that the company’s board of directors 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. Shareholders of record on Friday, March 7th will be issued a $1.25 dividend. This represents a $5.00 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 1.93%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, March 7th. This is a positive change from CME Group’s previous quarterly dividend of $1.15. CME Group’s payout ratio is currently 51.71%.

Insider Buying and Selling at CME Group

In other news, insider Hilda Harris Piell sold 3,984 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, February 27th. The stock was sold at an average price of $250.47, for a total transaction of $997,872.48. Following the sale, the insider now owns 27,046 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $6,774,211.62. The trade was a 12.84 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this hyperlink. Also, COO Suzanne Sprague sold 1,500 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, March 3rd. The stock was sold at an average price of $256.83, for a total value of $385,245.00. Following the sale, the chief operating officer now directly owns 8,036 shares in the company, valued at $2,063,885.88. This trade represents a 15.73 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last 90 days, insiders have sold 17,076 shares of company stock valued at $4,271,496. 0.30% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of analysts have weighed in on CME shares. Morgan Stanley raised their price target on CME Group from $256.00 to $263.00 and gave the company an “equal weight” rating in a research note on Wednesday, February 19th. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods lifted their target price on CME Group from $256.00 to $257.00 and gave the stock a “market perform” rating in a research report on Friday, February 14th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. lifted 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, February 13th. Piper Sandler lifted their target price on CME Group from $250.00 to $258.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research report on Tuesday, January 7th. Finally, Royal Bank of Canada lifted their target price on CME Group from $235.00 to $269.00 and gave the stock a “sector perform” rating in a research report on Thursday, February 13th. Four analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, eight have assigned a hold rating and three have issued a buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat, the stock currently has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus target price of $238.93.

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.