Fourpath Capital Management LLC Cuts Stock Position in CME Group Inc. (NASDAQ:CME)

Fourpath Capital Management LLC trimmed its position in CME Group Inc. (NASDAQ:CME) by 2.8% during the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The fund owned 15,943 shares of the financial services provider’s stock after selling 453 shares during the period. Fourpath Capital Management LLC’s holdings in CME Group were worth $3,702,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Several other large investors have also recently made changes to their positions in CME. Franklin Resources Inc. boosted its holdings in CME Group by 70.4% in the 3rd quarter. Franklin Resources Inc. now owns 2,427,107 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $544,157,000 after purchasing an additional 1,003,119 shares during the last quarter. International Assets Investment Management LLC grew its holdings in shares of CME Group by 21,465.5% in the third quarter. International Assets Investment Management LLC now owns 485,871 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $1,072,070,000 after purchasing an additional 483,618 shares in the last quarter. Canoe Financial LP increased its position in shares of CME Group by 698.0% during the fourth quarter. Canoe Financial LP now owns 544,219 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $126,384,000 after acquiring an additional 476,019 shares during the period. Janus Henderson Group PLC increased its holdings in CME Group by 17.8% during the 3rd quarter. Janus Henderson Group PLC now owns 2,514,040 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $554,707,000 after purchasing an additional 380,071 shares during the period. Finally, Baillie Gifford & Co. acquired a new stake in CME Group in the 3rd quarter valued at about $79,692,000. 87.75% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several brokerages recently weighed in on CME. Citigroup cut shares of CME Group from a “buy” rating to a “neutral” rating and reduced their target price for the company from $255.00 to $250.00 in a report on Monday, January 6th. Barclays boosted their target price on shares of CME Group from $231.00 to $257.00 and gave the stock an “equal weight” rating in a research note on Monday, December 9th. Morgan Stanley raised their price target on CME Group from $210.00 to $233.00 and gave the company an “equal weight” rating in a research note on Thursday, October 17th. Oppenheimer upped their price objective on CME Group from $245.00 to $258.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a research report on Thursday, October 24th. Finally, Redburn Atlantic lowered CME Group from a “buy” rating to a “neutral” rating and set a $244.00 target price on the stock. in a research report on Tuesday, October 8th. Four equities 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. According to data from MarketBeat, the company currently has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $229.27.

CME Group Price Performance

CME Group stock opened at $240.65 on Tuesday. The company has a quick ratio of 1.02, a current ratio of 1.02 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.09. The firm’s 50-day simple moving average is $234.73 and its 200 day simple moving average is $222.78. CME Group Inc. has a 52 week low of $190.70 and a 52 week high of $249.02. The firm has a market capitalization of $86.72 billion, a PE ratio of 25.30, a P/E/G ratio of 5.37 and a beta of 0.57.

CME Group Increases Dividend

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

CME Group declared that its Board of Directors has authorized a stock repurchase plan on Thursday, December 5th that permits the company to repurchase $3.00 billion in shares. This repurchase authorization permits the financial services provider to buy up to 3.4% of its shares through open market purchases. Shares repurchase plans are often a sign that the company’s management believes its stock is undervalued.

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.