CME Group Inc. (NASDAQ:CME) Short Interest Update

CME Group Inc. (NASDAQ:CME) was the target of a large growth in short interest during the month of October. As of October 31st, there was short interest totalling 3,830,000 shares, a growth of 5.5% from the October 15th total of 3,630,000 shares. Approximately 1.1% of the company’s shares are short sold. Based on an average daily volume of 1,780,000 shares, the short-interest ratio is currently 2.2 days.

CME Group Price Performance

NASDAQ:CME traded up $2.28 during trading hours on Monday, hitting $227.56. 1,347,225 shares of the stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 1,911,931. CME Group has a 52-week low of $190.70 and a 52-week high of $230.36. The firm’s fifty day moving average price is $222.62 and its 200 day moving average price is $210.39. The company has a current ratio of 1.02, a quick ratio of 1.02 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.09. The company has a market cap of $82.00 billion, a P/E ratio of 23.69, a P/E/G ratio of 5.20 and a beta of 0.55.

CME Group (NASDAQ:CME) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, October 23rd. The financial services provider reported $2.68 EPS for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $2.65 by $0.03. CME Group had a return on equity of 13.39% and a net margin of 57.34%. The company had revenue of $1.58 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $1.59 billion. During the same period in the previous year, the business earned $2.25 EPS. CME Group’s quarterly revenue was up 18.4% on a year-over-year basis. As a group, equities research analysts anticipate that CME Group will post 10.22 EPS for the current fiscal year.

CME Group Announces Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, December 27th. Shareholders of record on Monday, December 9th will be paid a dividend of $1.15 per share. The ex-dividend date is Monday, December 9th. This represents a $4.60 annualized dividend and a yield of 2.02%. CME Group’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 48.37%.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several research analysts have commented on the company. Oppenheimer raised their price objective on CME Group from $245.00 to $258.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a report on Thursday, October 24th. Barclays raised their price objective on CME Group from $219.00 to $231.00 and gave the stock an “equal weight” rating in a report on Thursday, October 24th. Citigroup raised their price objective on CME Group from $250.00 to $255.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a report on Thursday, October 24th. Bank of America raised their price objective on CME Group from $177.00 to $180.00 and gave the stock an “underperform” rating in a report on Thursday, October 3rd. Finally, Piper Sandler raised their price objective on CME Group from $240.00 to $250.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a report on Monday, October 28th. Four equities research analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, seven have assigned a hold rating and four have issued a buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the stock presently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and an average target price of $224.47.

Insider Activity

In related news, CFO Lynne Fitzpatrick sold 754 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Sunday, September 15th. The stock was sold at an average price of $216.99, for a total transaction of $163,610.46. Following the completion of the sale, the chief financial officer now directly owns 13,261 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $2,877,504.39. This trade represents a 5.38 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through the SEC website. Also, Director Bryan T. Durkin sold 7,593 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, August 30th. The stock was sold at an average price of $214.59, for a total value of $1,629,381.87. Following the sale, the director now directly owns 55,607 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $11,932,706.13. This represents a 12.01 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders sold 15,621 shares of company stock valued at $3,441,063 in the last ninety days. Insiders own 0.30% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On CME Group

A number of large investors have recently made changes to their positions in CME. Kingsview Wealth Management LLC grew its position in shares of CME Group by 21.9% in the first quarter. Kingsview Wealth Management LLC now owns 3,513 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $756,000 after purchasing an additional 632 shares in the last quarter. Intech Investment Management LLC lifted its holdings in CME Group by 16.2% in the first quarter. Intech Investment Management LLC now owns 17,304 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $3,725,000 after acquiring an additional 2,412 shares during the last quarter. Westfield Capital Management Co. LP lifted its holdings in CME Group by 6.6% in the first quarter. Westfield Capital Management Co. LP now owns 25,793 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $5,553,000 after acquiring an additional 1,593 shares during the last quarter. Ontario Teachers Pension Plan Board acquired a new position in CME Group in the first quarter valued at approximately $665,000. Finally, Beaumont Financial Advisors LLC lifted its holdings in CME Group by 13.7% in the first quarter. Beaumont Financial Advisors LLC now owns 1,956 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $421,000 after acquiring an additional 235 shares during the last quarter. 87.75% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

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.