WealthShield Partners LLC Sells 5,045 Shares of CME Group Inc. $CME

WealthShield Partners LLC lowered its stake in shares of CME Group Inc. (NASDAQ:CME) by 31.5% during the second quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The fund owned 10,964 shares of the financial services provider’s stock after selling 5,045 shares during the period. WealthShield Partners LLC’s holdings in CME Group were worth $3,022,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission.

A number of other hedge funds have also modified their holdings of CME. Webster Bank N. A. increased its stake in CME Group by 206.9% in the second quarter. Webster Bank N. A. now owns 89 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $25,000 after purchasing an additional 60 shares in the last quarter. Highline Wealth Partners LLC grew its holdings in shares of CME Group by 84.3% in the 2nd quarter. Highline Wealth Partners LLC now owns 94 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $26,000 after buying an additional 43 shares during the period. Ransom Advisory Ltd bought a new stake in shares of CME Group in the 1st quarter valued at $31,000. Trifecta Capital Advisors LLC raised its stake in CME Group by 59.2% during the 2nd quarter. Trifecta Capital Advisors LLC now owns 113 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $31,000 after buying an additional 42 shares during the period. Finally, Westside Investment Management Inc. lifted its holdings in CME Group by 105.0% during the second quarter. Westside Investment Management Inc. now owns 123 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $34,000 after acquiring an additional 63 shares in the last quarter. 87.75% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Insider Transactions at CME Group

In related news, General Counsel Jonathan L. Marcus sold 392 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Thursday, September 18th. The shares were sold at an average price of $262.00, for a total transaction of $102,704.00. Following the completion of the sale, the general counsel owned 7,851 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $2,056,962. This represents a 4.76% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available through the SEC website. Also, Director Harold Eugene Jr. Ford sold 1,000 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Monday, November 3rd. The stock was sold at an average price of $263.53, for a total transaction of $263,530.00. Following the sale, the director owned 1,091 shares in the company, valued at $287,511.23. The trade was a 47.82% decrease in their ownership of the stock. Additional details regarding this sale are available in the official SEC disclosure. Over the last three months, insiders sold 14,043 shares of company stock worth $3,791,486. Corporate insiders own 0.30% of the company’s stock.

CME Group Price Performance

Shares of NASDAQ CME opened at $285.04 on Friday. The company has a quick ratio of 1.02, a current ratio of 1.02 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.12. The business’s 50 day moving average price is $267.33 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $272.85. The company has a market cap of $102.79 billion, a PE ratio of 27.62, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 4.41 and a beta of 0.38. CME Group Inc. has a twelve month low of $222.56 and a twelve month high of $290.79.

CME Group (NASDAQ:CME) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, October 22nd. The financial services provider reported $2.68 earnings per share for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $2.63 by $0.05. CME Group had a net margin of 58.84% and a return on equity of 14.61%. The company had revenue of $1.54 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $1.56 billion. During the same period in the prior year, the firm earned $2.68 earnings per share. The company’s revenue was down 3.0% on a year-over-year basis. On average, analysts predict that CME Group Inc. will post 10.49 EPS for the current year.

CME Group Dividend Announcement

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, December 30th. Shareholders of record on Friday, December 12th will be paid a dividend of $1.25 per share. This represents a $5.00 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 1.8%. The ex-dividend date is Friday, December 12th. CME Group’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 48.45%.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several equities analysts have recently weighed in on the company. Citigroup upgraded CME Group from a “neutral” rating to a “buy” rating and lifted their price objective for the company from $275.00 to $300.00 in a report on Thursday, September 25th. Piper Sandler upped their price target on shares of CME Group from $296.00 to $313.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a report on Thursday. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods boosted their price objective on shares of CME Group from $283.00 to $287.00 and gave the company a “market perform” rating in a research report on Monday, October 13th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. lifted their price target on CME Group from $252.00 to $256.00 and gave the company an “underweight” rating in a research note on Tuesday, October 14th. Finally, Jefferies Financial Group decreased their price objective on CME Group from $313.00 to $304.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a report on Friday, October 10th. Eight research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, seven have assigned a Hold rating and three have assigned a Sell rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the company presently has an average rating of “Hold” and an average price target of $287.65.

About CME Group

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.