CME Group (NASDAQ:CME) Hits New 12-Month High Following Earnings Beat

CME Group Inc. (NASDAQ:CME) hit a new 52-week high during mid-day trading on Wednesday following a stronger than expected earnings report. The company traded as high as $253.53 and last traded at $248.18, with a volume of 420017 shares. The stock had previously closed at $241.74.

The financial services provider reported $2.52 EPS for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $2.46 by $0.06. CME Group had a net margin of 57.34% and a return on equity of 13.39%.

CME Group Increases Dividend

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, March 26th. Shareholders of record on Friday, March 7th will be paid a $1.25 dividend. The ex-dividend date is Friday, March 7th. This represents a $5.00 annualized dividend and a yield of 2.02%. This is a positive change from CME Group’s previous quarterly dividend of $1.15. CME Group’s dividend payout ratio is currently 48.37%.

CME Group announced that its board has initiated a stock repurchase plan on Thursday, December 5th that allows the company to buyback $3.00 billion in shares. This buyback authorization allows the financial services provider to repurchase up to 3.4% of its stock through open market purchases. Stock buyback plans are typically an indication that the company’s leadership believes its stock is undervalued.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of research analysts have recently commented on the company. Barclays raised their target price 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. Oppenheimer raised their price target on shares of CME Group from $245.00 to $258.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a research report on Thursday, October 24th. Morgan Stanley boosted their target price on CME Group from $210.00 to $233.00 and gave the stock an “equal weight” rating in a research report on Thursday, October 17th. Royal Bank of Canada reaffirmed a “sector perform” rating and set a $235.00 price target on shares of CME Group in a report on Monday, January 6th. Finally, Piper Sandler raised their price target on CME Group from $250.00 to $258.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research note on Tuesday, January 7th. Four analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, eight have assigned a hold rating and three have issued a buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, CME Group currently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and an average price target of $229.27.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On CME Group

A number of hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in CME. Norges Bank acquired a new stake in shares of CME Group during the 4th quarter worth about $1,107,389,000. Raymond James Financial Inc. purchased a new position in CME Group in the fourth quarter valued at about $871,063,000. Franklin Resources Inc. lifted its stake in shares of CME Group by 70.4% during the third quarter. Franklin Resources Inc. now owns 2,427,107 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $544,157,000 after purchasing an additional 1,003,119 shares in the last quarter. Capital Wealth Planning LLC boosted its position in shares of CME Group by 69.2% in the fourth quarter. Capital Wealth Planning LLC now owns 2,435,823 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $565,671,000 after buying an additional 996,498 shares during the period. Finally, Egerton Capital UK LLP acquired a new stake in shares of CME Group in the fourth quarter valued at about $223,967,000. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 87.75% of the company’s stock.

CME Group Trading Up 2.3 %

The firm has a market capitalization of $89.16 billion, a PE ratio of 26.02, a P/E/G ratio of 5.54 and a beta of 0.57. The firm has a fifty day moving average of $235.62 and a 200 day moving average of $224.91. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.09, a quick ratio of 1.02 and a current ratio of 1.02.

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.