HighPoint Advisor Group LLC Makes New Investment in CME Group Inc. (NASDAQ:CME)

HighPoint Advisor Group LLC bought a new position in shares of CME Group Inc. (NASDAQ:CME) in the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The firm bought 76,111 shares of the financial services provider’s stock, valued at approximately $16,378,000. CME Group makes up 1.2% of HighPoint Advisor Group LLC’s investment portfolio, making the stock its 14th biggest position.

Several other institutional investors have also recently made changes to their positions in the business. Vanguard Group Inc. grew its position in shares of CME Group by 0.6% during the fourth quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 33,451,194 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $7,044,821,000 after purchasing an additional 215,044 shares in the last quarter. Capital World Investors grew its holdings in CME Group by 8.7% during the 4th quarter. Capital World Investors now owns 14,589,867 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $3,072,654,000 after buying an additional 1,172,575 shares in the last quarter. Capital International Investors grew its holdings in CME Group by 0.4% during the 4th quarter. Capital International Investors now owns 12,739,369 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $2,683,012,000 after buying an additional 50,626 shares in the last quarter. Parnassus Investments LLC grew its holdings in CME Group by 0.4% during the 4th quarter. Parnassus Investments LLC now owns 5,667,384 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $1,193,551,000 after buying an additional 23,583 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Morgan Stanley grew its holdings in CME Group by 31.5% during the 3rd quarter. Morgan Stanley now owns 4,858,967 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $972,863,000 after buying an additional 1,163,103 shares in the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 87.75% of the company’s stock.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several equities analysts have weighed in on the company. Bank of America raised their price target on CME Group from $209.00 to $216.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a report on Thursday, April 25th. Rosenblatt Securities reaffirmed a “sell” rating and issued a $187.00 price objective (up from $185.00) on shares of CME Group in a research note on Thursday, April 25th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. raised their price objective on CME Group from $198.00 to $206.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a research note on Thursday, April 25th. Argus raised their price objective on CME Group from $225.00 to $245.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research note on Wednesday, March 6th. Finally, Keefe, Bruyette & Woods raised their price target on CME Group from $222.00 to $226.00 and gave the stock a “market perform” rating in a research note on Thursday, April 25th. Two equities research analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, seven have given a hold rating and two have issued a buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat, the stock presently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and an average target price of $217.80.

Insider Activity at CME Group

In related news, Director Elizabeth A. Cook sold 1,000 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Monday, May 20th. The stock was sold at an average price of $211.52, for a total transaction of $211,520.00. Following the sale, the director now directly owns 18,241 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $3,858,336.32. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. In related news, Director Elizabeth A. Cook sold 1,000 shares of the stock in a transaction on Monday, May 20th. The shares were sold at an average price of $211.52, for a total transaction of $211,520.00. Following the sale, the director now directly owns 18,241 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $3,858,336.32. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this link. Also, Director Charles P. Carey sold 3,000 shares of CME Group stock in a transaction on Thursday, June 13th. The shares were sold at an average price of $195.44, for a total transaction of $586,320.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the director now directly owns 7,163 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $1,399,936.72. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders sold 54,290 shares of company stock worth $11,393,700 over the last three months. Company insiders own 0.30% of the company’s stock.

CME Group Stock Performance

Shares of NASDAQ:CME traded down $0.77 on Tuesday, hitting $195.82. 75,892 shares of the company were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 1,793,438. The company has a current ratio of 1.01, a quick ratio of 1.01 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.10. The stock’s 50 day moving average price is $207.80 and its 200 day moving average price is $209.81. CME Group Inc. has a 1-year low of $177.97 and a 1-year high of $223.80. The firm has a market capitalization of $70.51 billion, a P/E ratio of 22.37, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 5.21 and a beta of 0.52.

CME Group (NASDAQ:CME) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, April 24th. The financial services provider reported $2.50 earnings per share for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $2.44 by $0.06. CME Group had a return on equity of 12.45% and a net margin of 56.84%. The business had revenue of $1.49 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $1.48 billion. During the same period in the prior year, the company earned $2.42 earnings per share. The company’s revenue was up 3.2% on a year-over-year basis. Sell-side analysts predict that CME Group Inc. will post 9.72 EPS for the current year.

CME Group Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, June 25th. Investors of record on Friday, June 7th will be issued a dividend of $1.15 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, June 7th. This represents a $4.60 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 2.35%. CME Group’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 52.33%.

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.