Choreo LLC Cuts Stake in CME Group Inc. (NASDAQ:CME)

Choreo LLC decreased its holdings in CME Group Inc. (NASDAQ:CME) by 34.3% in the fourth quarter, Holdings Channel.com reports. The firm owned 6,637 shares of the financial services provider’s stock after selling 3,458 shares during the period. Choreo LLC’s holdings in CME Group were worth $1,574,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

A number of other institutional investors also recently made changes to their positions in CME. Truvestments Capital LLC bought a new stake in CME Group during the 3rd quarter valued at $26,000. SJS Investment Consulting Inc. raised its holdings in CME Group by 570.6% during the 4th quarter. SJS Investment Consulting Inc. now owns 114 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $26,000 after buying an additional 97 shares during the last quarter. Dunhill Financial LLC raised its holdings in CME Group by 188.4% during the 3rd quarter. Dunhill Financial LLC now owns 124 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $27,000 after buying an additional 81 shares during the last quarter. Financial Life Planners bought a new stake in CME Group during the 4th quarter valued at $32,000. Finally, Fortitude Family Office LLC raised its holdings in CME Group by 120.3% during the 4th quarter. Fortitude Family Office LLC now owns 152 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $35,000 after buying an additional 83 shares during the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 87.75% of the company’s stock.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several brokerages have commented on CME. Royal Bank of Canada restated a “sector perform” rating and issued a $235.00 price objective on shares of CME Group in a report on Monday, January 6th. Morgan Stanley increased their price target on shares of CME Group from $210.00 to $233.00 and gave the stock an “equal weight” rating in a research note on Thursday, October 17th. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods cut their price objective on shares of CME Group from $260.00 to $256.00 and set a “market perform” rating on the stock in a research report on Monday, January 13th. Citigroup downgraded shares of CME Group from a “buy” rating to a “neutral” rating and cut their price objective for the company from $255.00 to $250.00 in a research report on Monday, January 6th. Finally, Piper Sandler increased their price objective 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. Four research analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, eight have issued a hold rating and three have assigned a buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat, CME Group presently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $229.27.

CME Group Stock Performance

CME opened at $244.83 on Friday. CME Group Inc. has a 12-month low of $190.70 and a 12-month high of $249.02. The company has a market cap of $88.23 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 25.74, a PEG ratio of 5.37 and a beta of 0.57. The company’s 50 day moving average is $235.34 and its 200 day moving average is $223.63. The company has a current ratio of 1.02, a quick ratio of 1.02 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.09.

CME Group Increases Dividend

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, March 26th. Shareholders of record on Friday, March 7th will be paid a dividend of $1.25 per share. This is a boost from CME Group’s previous quarterly dividend of $1.15. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, March 7th. This represents a $5.00 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 2.04%. CME Group’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 48.37%.

CME Group announced that its board has initiated a stock repurchase plan on Thursday, December 5th that authorizes the company to buyback $3.00 billion in outstanding shares. This buyback authorization authorizes the financial services provider to buy up to 3.4% of its stock through open market purchases. Stock buyback plans are usually an indication that the company’s board of directors believes its stock is undervalued.

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.