CME Group Inc. (NASDAQ:CME) Receives $299.53 Consensus Price Target from Analysts

CME Group Inc. (NASDAQ:CME) has earned an average recommendation of “Hold” from the eighteen analysts that are currently covering the company, Marketbeat Ratings reports. Three investment analysts have rated the stock with a sell recommendation, six have given a hold recommendation and nine have issued a buy recommendation on the company. The average twelve-month price objective among brokers that have covered the stock in the last year is $299.5294.

A number of equities research analysts recently commented on the company. Bank of America increased their price target on CME Group from $201.00 to $209.00 in a research report on Wednesday, December 10th. Argus decreased their target price on CME Group from $308.00 to $295.00 in a report on Friday, October 31st. JPMorgan Chase & Co. lifted their price target on CME Group from $262.00 to $266.00 and gave the company an “underweight” rating in a report on Thursday, February 5th. UBS Group reiterated a “neutral” rating and set a $310.00 price target on shares of CME Group in a research report on Friday, February 6th. Finally, TD Cowen raised their price objective on shares of CME Group from $305.00 to $328.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research report on Thursday, February 5th.

Key Headlines Impacting CME Group

Here are the key news stories impacting CME Group this week:

• Positive Sentiment: CME’s formal announcement to offer 24/7 trading for crypto futures and options — a move that addresses the timing gap with always‑on spot crypto markets and could lift ADV and fee revenue; the company cited record crypto notional volume in 2025. CME Group to Launch 24/7 Cryptocurrency Futures and Options Trading on May 29
• Positive Sentiment: Widespread coverage emphasizes the practical impacts — continuous trading can reduce “CME gaps,” boost institutional flow and expand crypto derivatives ADV, supporting the bullish thesis for trading‑fee growth. CME targets May launch for 24/7 crypto derivatives trading
• Positive Sentiment: Analyst/fin‑media bullishness — some outlets include CME among top picks, arguing the firm converts market volatility into trading revenue, which supports the stock’s rally. 2 Best Stocks to Buy Right Now for February
• Neutral Sentiment: Macro/market context — broader market moves (small‑cap rotation and sector flows) could be influencing intraday moves in financials/exchanges but are not specific to CME’s fundamentals. Small Caps Stage Quiet Comeback As AI Trade Shows Cracks
• Neutral Sentiment: Reported short‑interest data appears immaterial or inconsistent (no meaningful change reported); it isn’t currently signaling a large positioning risk.
• Negative Sentiment: Insider selling — director Martin J. Gepsman sold 300 shares; small in size but noteworthy as a disclosed insider sale. Insider Sale: Martin J. Gepsman
• Negative Sentiment: Critical takeaways — at least one outlet warns of risks to the CME thesis (valuation and competitive/operational risks), which could temper enthusiasm if amplified by further negative coverage. 2 Reasons CME is Risky and 1 Stock to Buy Instead

Insider Activity at CME Group

In other news, Director Dennis Suskind sold 748 shares of CME Group stock in a transaction on Friday, February 6th. The stock was sold at an average price of $300.00, for a total value of $224,400.00. Following the completion of the sale, the director directly owned 2,699 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $809,700. This trade represents a 21.70% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this hyperlink. Also, Director William R. Shepard purchased 251 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, December 30th. The shares were purchased at an average cost of $278.37 per share, for a total transaction of $69,870.87. Following the purchase, the director directly owned 258,710 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $72,017,102.70. This trade represents a 0.10% increase in their ownership of the stock. The SEC filing for this purchase provides additional information. Over the last 90 days, insiders have sold 26,048 shares of company stock worth $7,054,920. Company insiders own 0.30% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Trading of CME Group

A number of hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Vanguard Group Inc. boosted its stake in shares of CME Group by 1.7% in the 4th quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 35,895,583 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $9,802,366,000 after purchasing an additional 588,509 shares during the last quarter. State Street Corp boosted its stake in CME Group by 0.4% in the fourth quarter. State Street Corp now owns 16,144,525 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $4,408,747,000 after acquiring an additional 56,725 shares during the last quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC grew its holdings in CME Group by 3.6% during the 2nd quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC now owns 9,178,681 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $2,524,271,000 after acquiring an additional 319,899 shares during the period. Norges Bank acquired a new stake in CME Group during the 2nd quarter worth $1,571,447,000. Finally, Bank of New York Mellon Corp raised its position in shares of CME Group by 2.8% during the 4th quarter. Bank of New York Mellon Corp now owns 4,924,475 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $1,344,776,000 after acquiring an additional 134,242 shares during the last quarter. 87.75% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

CME Group Trading Up 1.4%

Shares of CME Group stock opened at $308.09 on Wednesday. The stock has a market capitalization of $111.10 billion, a P/E ratio of 27.61, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 3.56 and a beta of 0.27. CME Group has a 12-month low of $246.91 and a 12-month high of $309.35. The company has a quick ratio of 1.02, a current ratio of 1.03 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.12. The company has a 50-day simple moving average of $283.19 and a 200 day simple moving average of $274.85.

CME Group (NASDAQ:CME) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, February 4th. The financial services provider reported $2.77 earnings per share for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $2.75 by $0.02. CME Group had a net margin of 62.45% and a return on equity of 14.65%. The firm had revenue of $1.65 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $1.64 billion. During the same period in the prior year, the firm earned $2.52 earnings per share. The company’s quarterly revenue was up 8.1% compared to the same quarter last year. Research analysts expect that CME Group will post 10.49 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

CME Group Increases Dividend

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, March 26th. Investors of record on Tuesday, March 10th will be issued a $1.30 dividend. This is an increase from CME Group’s previous quarterly dividend of $1.25. This represents a $5.20 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 1.7%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Tuesday, March 10th. CME Group’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 44.80%.

About CME Group

CME Group Inc is a global markets company that operates some of the world’s largest and most liquid derivatives exchanges, including the Chicago Mercantile Exchange (CME), the Chicago Board of Trade (CBOT), the New York Mercantile Exchange (NYMEX) and COMEX. The firm offers futures and options contracts across a broad range of asset classes — including interest rates, equity indexes, foreign exchange, energy, agricultural commodities and metals — and serves a diverse client base of institutional investors, commercial hedgers, brokers and retail participants.

The company’s core services include electronic trading on the CME Globex platform, central clearing through CME Clearing, and distribution of market data, indexes and analytics.