Insider Selling: CME Group (NASDAQ:CME) Director Sells 400 Shares of Stock

CME Group Inc. (NASDAQ:CME) Director Martin Gepsman sold 400 shares of the stock in a transaction on Thursday, October 22nd. The shares were sold at an average price of $302.50, for a total value of $121,000.00. Following the completion of the sale, the director owned 25,244 shares in the company, valued at approximately $7,636,310. This trade represents a 1.56% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which can be accessed through the SEC website.

CME Group Stock Performance

Shares of CME stock traded up $10.19 during midday trading on Thursday, hitting $305.98. 2,294,356 shares of the company were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 2,520,842. CME Group Inc. has a 52 week low of $218.31 and a 52 week high of $329.16. The firm’s 50 day moving average price is $276.11 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $270.49. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.13, a quick ratio of 1.02 and a current ratio of 1.02. The firm has a market capitalization of $110.02 billion, a P/E ratio of 25.95, a PEG ratio of 3.80 and a beta of 0.24.

CME Group (NASDAQ:CME) last announced its earnings results on Wednesday, October 21st. The financial services provider reported $3.02 earnings per share for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $2.99 by $0.03. CME Group had a return on equity of 15.60% and a net margin of 63.30%. The company had revenue of $1.74 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $1.71 billion. During the same quarter last year, the company earned $2.68 earnings per share. The firm’s quarterly revenue was up 10.6% compared to the same quarter last year. As a group, equities research analysts anticipate that CME Group Inc. will post 12.31 earnings per share for the current year.

CME Group Announces Dividend

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, September 25th. Stockholders of record on Wednesday, September 9th were given a $1.30 dividend. This represents a $5.20 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 1.7%. The ex-dividend date was Wednesday, September 9th. CME Group’s payout ratio is presently 44.11%.

Trending Headlines about CME Group

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

• Positive Sentiment: JPMorgan upgraded CME to Overweight and set a $367 price target, implying substantial upside from the current level. The upgrade provides a strong boost to investor sentiment. JPMorgan analyst rating
• Positive Sentiment: Third-quarter results exceeded expectations: CME reported $1.74 billion in revenue, up 10.6% year over year and above the approximately $1.71 billion consensus estimate. Adjusted earnings of $3.02 per share also topped forecasts near $2.99 and increased from $2.68 a year earlier. CME Group third-quarter earnings release
• Positive Sentiment: Record volumes and market-data revenue point to durable operating momentum. Average daily volume reached 29.4 million contracts, including 9 million from outside the United States, while market-data revenue rose 20% to a record $243 million. CME also returned nearly $1 billion to shareholders through dividends and repurchases. CME Group long-term investor takeaways
• Positive Sentiment: Growth initiatives could broaden CME’s revenue base. The company outlined a December 7 launch for CME Securities Clearing and continued expansion in cryptocurrency products, including a first UNI futures block trade and planned tradable token-index products. CME Securities Clearing and volume update
• Neutral Sentiment: UBS raised its price target to $310 from $270 but maintained a Neutral rating. The revised target suggests limited near-term upside, indicating that UBS views the strong results as largely reflected in CME’s valuation. UBS CME analyst rating
• Negative Sentiment: Some investors remained concerned about expenses. Initial coverage noted that operating costs disappointed despite the earnings beat, limiting the immediate upside reaction and leaving questions about margin sustainability. CME earnings and expense coverage

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

A number of institutional investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Whipplewood Advisors LLC lifted its stake in shares of CME Group by 2,075.0% in the first quarter. Whipplewood Advisors LLC now owns 87 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $26,000 after buying an additional 83 shares in the last quarter. First Community Trust NA bought a new stake in shares of CME Group during the third quarter worth about $26,000. North Point Portfolio Managers Corp OH acquired a new stake in shares of CME Group in the 3rd quarter worth about $26,000. Mowery & Schoenfeld Wealth Management LLC purchased a new stake in shares of CME Group in the second quarter worth approximately $28,000. Finally, Main Street Group LTD purchased a new stake in shares of CME Group in the first quarter valued at about $32,000. 87.75% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several analysts recently issued reports on the stock. Weiss Ratings upgraded shares of CME Group from a “hold (c+)” rating to a “buy (b-)” rating in a research report on Thursday, October 8th. Wells Fargo & Company lifted their price target on CME Group from $315.00 to $333.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research note on Thursday. UBS Group boosted their price target on CME Group from $270.00 to $310.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a report on Thursday. Piper Sandler reaffirmed an “overweight” rating and issued a $330.00 price objective (up from $295.00) on shares of CME Group in a research note on Thursday. Finally, Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft lowered CME Group from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating and lowered their target price for the stock from $286.00 to $270.00 in a research report on Wednesday, August 19th. Ten investment analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, six have assigned a Hold rating and two have given a Sell rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat, the stock currently has an average rating of “Hold” and an average price target of $313.29.

About CME Group

CME Group Inc operates global derivatives marketplaces that provide trading, clearing and settlement services for futures and options contracts. Its products cover major asset classes, including interest rates, equity indexes, foreign currencies, agricultural commodities, energy and metals. The company also provides market data, benchmark information and related services used by financial institutions, corporations, producers, investors and other market participants.

CME Group’s exchange portfolio includes CME, the Chicago Board of Trade, the New York Mercantile Exchange and COMEX.