Mediolanum International Funds Ltd Raises Position in CME Group Inc. $CME

Mediolanum International Funds Ltd raised its position in CME Group Inc. (NASDAQ:CME) by 167.0% during the 2nd quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The fund owned 14,166 shares of the financial services provider’s stock after buying an additional 8,860 shares during the period. Mediolanum International Funds Ltd’s holdings in CME Group were worth $3,892,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

A number of other hedge funds have also made changes to their positions in the company. Legal & General Group Plc boosted its stake in shares of CME Group by 10.8% in the second quarter. Legal & General Group Plc now owns 2,312,251 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $637,300,000 after acquiring an additional 225,449 shares during the last quarter. Personal CFO Solutions LLC raised its stake in CME Group by 6.2% in the 2nd quarter. Personal CFO Solutions LLC now owns 1,442 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $397,000 after purchasing an additional 84 shares during the last quarter. Bank Julius Baer & Co. Ltd Zurich lifted its holdings in CME Group by 1.7% in the 2nd quarter. Bank Julius Baer & Co. Ltd Zurich now owns 654,545 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $180,000 after purchasing an additional 11,154 shares in the last quarter. Prudential PLC boosted its stake in CME Group by 142.3% during the 2nd quarter. Prudential PLC now owns 46,561 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $12,833,000 after purchasing an additional 27,343 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Catalyst Funds Management Pty Ltd acquired a new stake in CME Group during the 2nd quarter worth $2,177,000. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 87.75% of the company’s stock.

CME Group Stock Performance

NASDAQ:CME opened at $273.09 on Friday. The company’s 50-day moving average is $268.74 and its two-hundred day moving average is $272.70. CME Group Inc. has a 1-year low of $224.62 and a 1-year high of $290.79. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.12, a current ratio of 1.02 and a quick ratio of 1.02. The firm has a market capitalization of $98.48 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 26.46, a PEG ratio of 4.41 and a beta of 0.38.

CME Group (NASDAQ:CME) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, October 22nd. The financial services provider reported $2.68 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $2.63 by $0.05. CME Group had a net margin of 58.84% and a return on equity of 14.61%. The business had revenue of $1.54 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $1.56 billion. During the same quarter last year, the firm earned $2.68 EPS. The business’s revenue was down 3.0% compared to the same quarter last year. Analysts forecast that CME Group Inc. will post 10.49 EPS for the current year.

CME Group Announces Dividend

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, December 30th. Stockholders of record on Friday, December 12th will be paid a $1.25 dividend. This represents a $5.00 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 1.8%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, December 12th. CME Group’s dividend payout ratio is 48.45%.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of equities research analysts have recently commented on the stock. Morgan Stanley increased their target price on shares of CME Group from $312.00 to $314.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research report on Thursday, October 23rd. Rothschild & Co Redburn upped their price objective on shares of CME Group from $297.00 to $300.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a research note on Thursday, November 6th. Jefferies Financial Group cut their price objective on shares of CME Group from $313.00 to $304.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a report on Friday, October 10th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. boosted their target price on CME Group from $252.00 to $256.00 and gave the stock an “underweight” rating in a report on Tuesday, October 14th. Finally, Raymond James Financial dropped their price target on CME Group from $309.00 to $307.00 and set an “outperform” rating for the company in a research report on Monday, October 13th. Eight investment analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, seven have issued a Hold rating and three have issued a Sell rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, CME Group has an average rating of “Hold” and an average price target of $287.65.

Insider Buying and Selling at CME Group

In other CME Group news, Director William R. Shepard acquired 262 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, September 25th. The stock was purchased at an average cost of $265.19 per share, with a total value of $69,479.78. Following the transaction, the director owned 258,459 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $68,540,742.21. This trade represents a 0.10% increase in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available at this hyperlink. Also, Director Harold Eugene Jr. Ford sold 1,000 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Monday, November 3rd. The shares were sold at an average price of $263.53, for a total transaction of $263,530.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the director directly owned 1,091 shares in the company, valued at $287,511.23. The trade was a 47.82% decrease in their position. The SEC filing for this sale provides additional information. In the last quarter, insiders sold 14,043 shares of company stock worth $3,791,486. Insiders own 0.30% of the company’s stock.

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.