First Trust Direct Indexing L.P. Boosts Stock Position in CME Group Inc. (NASDAQ:CME)

First Trust Direct Indexing L.P. raised its stake in shares of CME Group Inc. (NASDAQ:CME) by 23.2% in the third quarter, Holdings Channel reports. The institutional investor owned 11,887 shares of the financial services provider’s stock after buying an additional 2,238 shares during the quarter. First Trust Direct Indexing L.P.’s holdings in CME Group were worth $2,623,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Several other hedge funds have also added to or reduced their stakes in CME. Salomon & Ludwin LLC purchased a new position in shares of CME Group in the 1st quarter worth about $28,000. Y.D. More Investments Ltd bought a new stake in CME Group during the 2nd quarter valued at about $36,000. McClarren Financial Advisors Inc. raised its holdings in CME Group by 66.1% in the second quarter. McClarren Financial Advisors Inc. now owns 196 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $39,000 after buying an additional 78 shares during the last quarter. Asset Dedication LLC lifted its stake in shares of CME Group by 515.2% in the second quarter. Asset Dedication LLC now owns 203 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $40,000 after buying an additional 170 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Thurston Springer Miller Herd & Titak Inc. grew its holdings in shares of 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 valued at $43,000 after buying an additional 74 shares during the last quarter. 87.75% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

CME has been the subject of a number of recent analyst reports. Bank of America boosted their price objective on shares of CME Group from $177.00 to $180.00 and gave the stock an “underperform” rating in a report on Thursday, October 3rd. Royal Bank of Canada reiterated a “sector perform” rating and issued a $235.00 price objective on shares of CME Group in a report on Thursday, October 24th. Piper Sandler upped their target price on shares of CME Group from $240.00 to $250.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research note on Monday. Morgan Stanley lifted 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. Finally, Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft increased their price objective on shares of CME Group from $193.00 to $200.00 and gave the company a “hold” rating in a research report on Thursday, August 15th. Four equities research analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, seven have given a hold rating and four have given a buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, CME Group has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $222.73.

Insider Transactions at CME Group

In related news, CFO Lynne Fitzpatrick sold 754 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on Sunday, September 15th. The shares were sold at an average price of $216.99, for a total value of $163,610.46. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief financial officer now owns 13,261 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $2,877,504.39. This represents a 0.00 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is accessible through this link. In related news, Director Timothy S. Bitsberger sold 1,000 shares of CME Group stock in a transaction that occurred 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 sale, the director now owns 10,589 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $2,403,279.44. This trade represents a 0.00 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this link. Also, CFO Lynne Fitzpatrick sold 754 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Sunday, September 15th. The stock was sold at an average price of $216.99, for a total value of $163,610.46. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief financial officer now owns 13,261 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $2,877,504.39. The trade was a 0.00 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders sold a total of 15,221 shares of company stock valued at $3,351,895 over the last three months. Corporate insiders own 0.30% of the company’s stock.

CME Group Price Performance

Shares of CME Group stock opened at $227.26 on Thursday. The stock has a market cap of $81.83 billion, a P/E ratio of 25.85, a P/E/G ratio of 7.76 and a beta of 0.55. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.10, a quick ratio of 1.02 and a current ratio of 1.02. The stock’s fifty day moving average is $220.05 and its 200 day moving average is $209.23. CME Group Inc. has a one year low of $190.70 and a one year high of $230.36.

CME Group (NASDAQ:CME) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, October 23rd. The financial services provider reported $2.68 EPS for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $2.65 by $0.03. The firm had revenue of $1.58 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $1.59 billion. CME Group had a return on equity of 12.82% and a net margin of 56.98%. The business’s revenue for the quarter was up 18.4% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter last year, the company earned $2.25 earnings per share. Sell-side analysts anticipate that CME Group Inc. will post 10.04 earnings per share for the current year.

CME Group Announces Dividend

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Wednesday, September 25th. Shareholders of record on Monday, September 9th were given a $1.15 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Monday, September 9th. This represents a $4.60 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 2.02%. CME Group’s payout ratio is currently 52.33%.

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.