CME Group Inc. (NASDAQ:CME) Shares Acquired by Motley Fool Asset Management LLC

Motley Fool Asset Management LLC lifted its stake in CME Group Inc. (NASDAQ:CME) by 7.1% in the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the SEC. The fund owned 9,913 shares of the financial services provider’s stock after purchasing an additional 656 shares during the quarter. Motley Fool Asset Management LLC’s holdings in CME Group were worth $2,088,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Several other hedge funds also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the business. Naples Global Advisors LLC increased its position in shares of CME Group by 5.6% during the fourth quarter. Naples Global Advisors LLC now owns 2,072 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $436,000 after purchasing an additional 110 shares in the last quarter. Sapient Capital LLC purchased a new stake in CME Group in the 4th quarter valued at approximately $1,823,000. FNY Investment Advisers LLC purchased a new stake in CME Group in the 4th quarter valued at approximately $1,074,000. Deutsche Bank AG lifted its stake in shares of CME Group by 4.3% during the 3rd quarter. Deutsche Bank AG now owns 1,118,104 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $223,867,000 after purchasing an additional 46,021 shares during the period. Finally, International Assets Investment Management LLC purchased a new position in shares of CME Group during the 4th quarter worth $27,986,000. 87.75% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

CME Group Price Performance

Shares of CME stock traded down $1.60 during trading hours on Friday, reaching $210.94. 1,353,075 shares of the company were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 1,788,555. CME Group Inc. has a fifty-two week low of $175.73 and a fifty-two week high of $223.80. The stock’s fifty day moving average is $214.73 and its two-hundred day moving average is $211.90. The company has a market cap of $75.94 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 24.00, a P/E/G ratio of 5.97 and a beta of 0.49. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.10, a current ratio of 1.01 and a quick ratio of 1.02.

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 the consensus estimate of $2.44 by $0.06. CME Group had a net margin of 56.84% and a return on equity of 12.45%. 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 business posted $2.42 earnings per share. CME Group’s revenue was up 3.2% compared to the same quarter last year. Sell-side analysts forecast that CME Group Inc. will post 9.58 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

CME Group Increases Dividend

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Tuesday, March 26th. Shareholders of record on Friday, March 8th were paid a $1.15 dividend. The ex-dividend date was Thursday, March 7th. This represents a $4.60 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 2.18%. This is a boost from CME Group’s previous quarterly dividend of $1.10. CME Group’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 52.33%.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several research analysts recently weighed in on the company. JPMorgan Chase & Co. increased their target price on CME Group from $198.00 to $206.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a research report on Thursday. Barclays lifted their price target on CME Group from $226.00 to $228.00 and gave the stock an “equal weight” rating in a research note on Thursday. Morgan Stanley raised their target price on shares of CME Group from $222.00 to $225.00 and gave the stock an “equal weight” rating in a report on Tuesday, April 9th. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods raised their target price on shares of CME Group from $222.00 to $226.00 and gave the stock a “market perform” rating in a report on Thursday. Finally, Argus lifted their price target on CME Group from $225.00 to $245.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a report on Wednesday, March 6th. Two investment 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. Based on data from MarketBeat, the stock presently has an average rating of “Hold” and an average target price of $217.80.

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.