CME Group Inc. $CME Stock Holdings Boosted by Pacer Advisors Inc.

Pacer Advisors Inc. grew its position in shares of CME Group Inc. (NASDAQ:CME) by 11.2% during the 4th quarter, Holdings Channel reports. The firm owned 32,848 shares of the financial services provider’s stock after purchasing an additional 3,317 shares during the period. Pacer Advisors Inc.’s holdings in CME Group were worth $8,970,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Other hedge funds and other institutional investors also recently modified their holdings of the company. SG Americas Securities LLC boosted its position in shares of CME Group by 345.2% during the 4th quarter. SG Americas Securities LLC now owns 237,898 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $64,965,000 after purchasing an additional 184,459 shares in the last quarter. Dover Advisors LLC raised its holdings in shares of CME Group by 95.5% in the 3rd quarter. Dover Advisors LLC now owns 5,597 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $1,512,000 after purchasing an additional 2,734 shares in the last quarter. FLC Capital Advisors bought a new stake in shares of CME Group in the 4th quarter worth approximately $2,122,000. Lansforsakringar Fondforvaltning AB publ lifted its stake in CME Group by 1.6% during the third quarter. Lansforsakringar Fondforvaltning AB publ now owns 114,411 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $30,913,000 after purchasing an additional 1,777 shares during the last quarter. Finally, First Bank & Trust acquired a new stake in CME Group during the fourth quarter valued at approximately $1,325,000. Institutional investors own 87.75% of the company’s stock.

CME Group Stock Performance

Shares of NASDAQ:CME opened at $246.38 on Monday. The firm has a fifty day moving average of $279.61 and a two-hundred day moving average of $287.27. The firm has a market capitalization of $89.28 billion, a P/E ratio of 21.02, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.75 and a beta of 0.21. CME Group Inc. has a 12-month low of $244.56 and a 12-month high of $329.16. The company has a quick ratio of 1.02, a current ratio of 1.02 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.13.

CME Group (NASDAQ:CME) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, April 22nd. The financial services provider reported $3.36 earnings per share for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $3.11 by $0.25. CME Group had a net margin of 63.19% and a return on equity of 15.42%. The business had revenue of $1.88 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $1.77 billion. During the same period in the prior year, the business posted $2.80 earnings per share. CME Group’s revenue for the quarter was up 14.5% compared to the same quarter last year. On average, equities analysts expect that CME Group Inc. will post 12.28 EPS for the current fiscal year.

CME Group Announces Dividend

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, June 25th. Shareholders of record on Tuesday, June 9th will be paid a $1.30 dividend. The ex-dividend date is Tuesday, June 9th. This represents a $5.20 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 2.1%. CME Group’s payout ratio is 44.37%.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

CME has been the topic of several recent research reports. Raymond James Financial lifted their price target on shares of CME Group from $310.00 to $320.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a research report on Monday, April 6th. Morgan Stanley reduced their price objective on CME Group from $362.00 to $353.00 and set an “overweight” rating for the company in a research note on Thursday, April 23rd. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods raised CME Group from a “market perform” rating to an “outperform” rating and set a $305.00 price objective for the company in a research note on Thursday. Weiss Ratings cut CME Group from a “buy (a-)” rating to a “buy (b+)” rating in a report on Thursday, June 11th. Finally, Rothschild & Co Redburn raised CME Group from a “neutral” rating to a “buy” rating and boosted their target price for the stock from $316.00 to $323.00 in a research report on Thursday, June 11th. Twelve equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, four have issued a Hold rating and two have given a Sell rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the stock has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $305.18.

Key CME Group News

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

• Positive Sentiment: CME continues to be highlighted as a dividend and value stock, with analysts noting its strong capital returns, electronic trading growth, and global product expansion could support a long-term rebound. Article Title
• Positive Sentiment: One market note said CME may be undervalued after the CEO succession announcement, suggesting the stock could have upside if investors view the leadership transition as orderly. Article Title
• Neutral Sentiment: CME named longtime finance chief Julie Winkler as its next CEO, while Terry Duffy will step into an executive chairman role; the move appears planned and may reduce uncertainty, but it also marks a major leadership change. Article Title
• Neutral Sentiment: The company is also taking legal action against the CFTC over approval of perpetual crypto futures, arguing the products should be treated as swaps rather than futures. The case could affect CME’s role in crypto derivatives, but the financial impact is still uncertain. Article Title
• Negative Sentiment: Goldman Sachs kept a Sell rating on CME and trimmed its price target, citing leadership transition risk and regulatory uncertainty, which may be weighing on sentiment. Article Title

Insider Transactions at CME Group

In other CME Group news, insider Hilda Harris Piell sold 5,753 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Monday, May 18th. The stock was sold at an average price of $304.63, for a total value of $1,752,536.39. Following the transaction, the insider directly owned 27,702 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $8,438,860.26. This represents a 17.20% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available at this hyperlink. Also, CEO Terrence A. Duffy sold 35,000 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Friday, May 15th. The stock was sold at an average price of $298.51, for a total value of $10,447,850.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief executive officer directly owned 55,630 shares in the company, valued at approximately $16,606,111.30. The trade was a 38.62% decrease in their ownership of the stock. Additional details regarding this sale are available in the official SEC disclosure. Insiders own 0.30% of the company’s stock.

About CME Group

CME Group Inc is a global markets company that operates some of the world’s largest and most liquid derivatives exchanges, including the Chicago Mercantile Exchange (CME), the Chicago Board of Trade (CBOT), the New York Mercantile Exchange (NYMEX) and COMEX. The firm offers futures and options contracts across a broad range of asset classes — including interest rates, equity indexes, foreign exchange, energy, agricultural commodities and metals — and serves a diverse client base of institutional investors, commercial hedgers, brokers and retail participants.

The company’s core services include electronic trading on the CME Globex platform, central clearing through CME Clearing, and distribution of market data, indexes and analytics.