Flagship Harbor Advisors LLC Sells 453 Shares of CME Group Inc. (NASDAQ:CME)

Flagship Harbor Advisors LLC trimmed its holdings in CME Group Inc. (NASDAQ:CME) by 9.2% in the 4th quarter, according to its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The firm owned 4,495 shares of the financial services provider’s stock after selling 453 shares during the quarter. Flagship Harbor Advisors LLC’s holdings in CME Group were worth $1,044,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Several other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also added to or reduced their stakes in the business. Coronation Fund Managers Ltd. bought a new stake in CME Group in the 2nd quarter valued at $313,000. NewEdge Advisors LLC increased its holdings in shares of CME Group by 3.8% in the second quarter. NewEdge Advisors LLC now owns 46,937 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $9,228,000 after purchasing an additional 1,733 shares during the last quarter. Quarry LP lifted its position in shares of CME Group by 62.6% in the second quarter. Quarry LP now owns 522 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $103,000 after buying an additional 201 shares in the last quarter. Regal Investment Advisors LLC boosted its stake in CME Group by 1.4% during the second quarter. Regal Investment Advisors LLC now owns 19,193 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $3,773,000 after buying an additional 273 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Advisory Alpha LLC grew its holdings in CME Group by 10.8% during the 2nd quarter. Advisory Alpha LLC now owns 4,430 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $871,000 after buying an additional 430 shares in the last quarter. 87.75% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

CME Group Trading Up 1.0 %

Shares of CME opened at $236.95 on Tuesday. The firm has a market capitalization of $85.39 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 24.92, a PEG ratio of 5.28 and a beta of 0.56. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.09, a current ratio of 1.02 and a quick ratio of 1.02. CME Group Inc. has a 1-year low of $190.70 and a 1-year high of $249.02. The company has a 50-day moving average of $234.02 and a 200 day moving average of $221.43.

CME Group Increases Dividend

The business also recently declared a dividend, which was paid on Thursday, January 16th. Stockholders of record on Friday, December 27th were paid a dividend of $5.80 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Friday, December 27th. This is an increase from CME Group’s previous dividend of $2.50. CME Group’s payout ratio is currently 48.37%.

CME Group declared that its board has approved a stock buyback program on Thursday, December 5th that authorizes the company to repurchase $3.00 billion in shares. This repurchase authorization authorizes the financial services provider to repurchase up to 3.4% of its shares through open market purchases. Shares repurchase programs are often an indication that the company’s management believes its stock is undervalued.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of equities research analysts recently issued reports on the stock. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft decreased their price target on shares of CME Group from $227.00 to $226.00 and set a “hold” rating on the stock in a research note on Monday, November 11th. Royal Bank of Canada reissued a “sector perform” rating and set a $235.00 price objective on shares of CME Group in a research note on Monday, January 6th. Citigroup lowered CME Group from a “buy” rating to a “neutral” rating and lowered their price objective for the company from $255.00 to $250.00 in a research note on Monday, January 6th. Barclays boosted their target price on CME Group from $231.00 to $257.00 and gave the company an “equal weight” rating in a research report on Monday, December 9th. Finally, Redburn Atlantic downgraded CME Group from a “buy” rating to a “neutral” rating and set a $244.00 price target for the company. in a research report on Tuesday, October 8th. Four research analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, eight have given a hold rating and three have issued a buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the stock currently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and an average price target of $229.27.

Insider Activity at CME Group

In other news, Director Timothy S. Bitsberger sold 1,000 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, October 30th. The shares were sold at an average price of $226.96, for a total transaction of $226,960.00. Following the transaction, the director now directly owns 10,589 shares in the company, valued at approximately $2,403,279.44. This trade represents a 8.63 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this link. Also, Director Martin J. Gepsman sold 400 shares of CME Group stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, November 4th. The shares were sold at an average price of $222.92, for a total transaction of $89,168.00. Following the transaction, the director now directly owns 25,067 shares in the company, valued at approximately $5,587,935.64. The trade was a 1.57 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Over the last quarter, insiders sold 5,900 shares of company stock worth $1,336,008. Company insiders own 0.30% of the company’s stock.

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.