Journey Strategic Wealth LLC Increases Holdings in CME Group Inc. (NASDAQ:CME)

Journey Strategic Wealth LLC boosted its position in CME Group Inc. (NASDAQ:CME) by 34.6% during the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The fund owned 1,902 shares of the financial services provider’s stock after buying an additional 489 shares during the period. Journey Strategic Wealth LLC’s holdings in CME Group were worth $442,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission.

Other large investors have also recently bought and sold shares of the company. Franklin Resources Inc. boosted its stake in shares of CME Group by 70.4% in the third quarter. Franklin Resources Inc. now owns 2,427,107 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $544,157,000 after buying an additional 1,003,119 shares during the last quarter. International Assets Investment Management LLC boosted its holdings in CME Group by 21,465.5% in the 3rd quarter. International Assets Investment Management LLC now owns 485,871 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $1,072,070,000 after buying an additional 483,618 shares during the last quarter. Canoe Financial LP lifted its position in shares of CME Group by 698.0% in the fourth quarter. Canoe Financial LP now owns 544,219 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $126,384,000 after acquiring an additional 476,019 shares in the last quarter. Janus Henderson Group PLC increased its position in shares of CME Group by 17.8% during the third 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 in the last quarter. Finally, Baillie Gifford & Co. acquired a new stake in CME Group during the 3rd quarter worth $79,692,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 87.75% of the company’s stock.

CME Group Trading Up 0.3 %

NASDAQ CME opened at $236.52 on Monday. CME Group Inc. has a 52 week low of $190.70 and a 52 week high of $249.02. The firm has a 50 day moving average of $234.73 and a two-hundred day moving average of $222.63. 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 stock has a market capitalization of $85.23 billion, a PE ratio of 24.87, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 5.28 and a beta of 0.56.

CME Group declared that its board has approved a share buyback plan on Thursday, December 5th that authorizes the company to repurchase $3.00 billion in outstanding shares. This repurchase authorization authorizes the financial services provider to purchase up to 3.4% of its shares through open market purchases. Shares repurchase plans are generally a sign that the company’s board of directors believes its stock is undervalued.

CME Group Increases Dividend

The firm also recently declared a dividend, which was paid on Thursday, January 16th. Shareholders of record on Friday, December 27th were issued 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 payout ratio is 48.37%.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

CME has been the subject of several recent research reports. Redburn Atlantic cut CME Group from a “buy” rating to a “neutral” rating and set a $244.00 price target for the company. in a report on Tuesday, October 8th. Oppenheimer increased their price target on shares of CME Group from $245.00 to $258.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a research note on Thursday, October 24th. Barclays upped their price target on CME Group from $231.00 to $257.00 and gave the company an “equal weight” rating in a research note on Monday, December 9th. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods reduced their price target on shares of CME Group from $260.00 to $256.00 and set a “market perform” rating on the stock in a research note on Monday, January 13th. Finally, Morgan Stanley lifted their price objective 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. Four investment analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, eight have assigned a hold rating and three have assigned a buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat.com, the stock has a consensus rating of “Hold” and a consensus target price of $229.27.

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.