Smith Salley Wealth Management Purchases 240 Shares of CME Group Inc. (NASDAQ:CME)

Smith Salley Wealth Management grew its position in CME Group Inc. (NASDAQ:CME) by 3.1% in the third quarter, HoldingsChannel.com reports. The firm owned 8,025 shares of the financial services provider’s stock after acquiring an additional 240 shares during the period. Smith Salley Wealth Management’s holdings in CME Group were worth $1,771,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

A number of other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also recently modified their holdings of the company. Salomon & Ludwin LLC bought a new position in CME Group in the 1st quarter worth $28,000. Y.D. More Investments Ltd purchased a new position in shares of CME Group in the second quarter valued at about $36,000. McClarren Financial Advisors Inc. boosted its stake in shares of CME Group by 66.1% in the second quarter. McClarren Financial Advisors Inc. now owns 196 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $39,000 after acquiring an additional 78 shares during the period. Asset Dedication LLC grew its position in shares of CME Group by 515.2% during the second quarter. Asset Dedication LLC now owns 203 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $40,000 after purchasing an additional 170 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Thurston Springer Miller Herd & Titak Inc. raised its stake in CME Group by 62.2% during the 3rd quarter. Thurston Springer Miller Herd & Titak Inc. now owns 193 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $43,000 after purchasing an additional 74 shares during the period. 87.75% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several research firms have weighed in on CME. Oppenheimer upped their price target on CME Group from $245.00 to $258.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a research note on Thursday. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods upped their target price on shares of CME Group from $212.00 to $213.00 and gave the stock a “market perform” rating in a research report on Thursday, July 25th. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft lifted their price target on shares of CME Group from $193.00 to $200.00 and gave the company a “hold” rating in a report on Thursday, August 15th. TD Cowen assumed coverage on shares of CME Group in a report on Thursday, September 26th. They set a “hold” rating and a $221.00 price objective for the company. Finally, JPMorgan Chase & Co. raised their price objective on CME Group from $187.00 to $191.00 and gave the company an “underweight” rating in a research report on Thursday, July 25th. 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 company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat, CME Group has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $222.07.

CME Group Stock Performance

Shares of NASDAQ:CME opened at $226.14 on Friday. The firm has a 50 day moving average of $218.94 and a 200 day moving average of $208.89. The company has a quick ratio of 1.02, a current ratio of 1.02 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.10. The company has a market capitalization of $81.43 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 25.73, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 7.76 and a beta of 0.55. CME Group Inc. has a 52 week low of $190.70 and a 52 week high of $230.36.

CME Group (NASDAQ:CME) last released its quarterly earnings results 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. The firm had revenue of $1.58 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $1.59 billion. CME Group had a return on equity of 12.82% and a net margin of 56.98%. The business’s revenue for the quarter was up 18.4% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period in the previous year, the company posted $2.25 EPS. On average, sell-side analysts predict that CME Group Inc. will post 10.04 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

CME Group Announces Dividend

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Wednesday, September 25th. Shareholders of record on Monday, September 9th were issued a $1.15 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Monday, September 9th. This represents a $4.60 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 2.03%. CME Group’s dividend payout ratio is presently 52.33%.

Insider Buying and Selling at CME Group

In related news, CFO Lynne Fitzpatrick sold 754 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Sunday, September 15th. The shares were sold at an average price of $216.99, for a total transaction of $163,610.46. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief financial officer now owns 13,261 shares in the company, valued at $2,877,504.39. The trade was a 0.00 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available through this link. In other CME Group news, Director Bryan T. Durkin sold 7,593 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated 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 completion of the sale, the director now owns 55,607 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $11,932,706.13. This trade represents a 0.00 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through the SEC website. Also, CFO Lynne Fitzpatrick sold 754 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated Sunday, September 15th. The stock was sold at an average price of $216.99, for a total value of $163,610.46. Following the sale, the chief financial officer now owns 13,261 shares in the company, valued at $2,877,504.39. The trade was a 0.00 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. 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.