Magnetar Financial LLC Buys 14,234 Shares of CME Group Inc. (NASDAQ:CME)

Magnetar Financial LLC lifted its stake in CME Group Inc. (NASDAQ:CME) by 149.4% in the second quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The firm owned 23,759 shares of the financial services provider’s stock after acquiring an additional 14,234 shares during the period. Magnetar Financial LLC’s holdings in CME Group were worth $4,671,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

A number of other large investors have also recently made changes to their positions in the stock. Public Sector Pension Investment Board boosted its holdings in shares of CME Group by 242.6% in the second quarter. Public Sector Pension Investment Board now owns 194,078 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $38,156,000 after acquiring an additional 137,435 shares during the period. Harmony Asset Management LLC raised its position in shares of CME Group by 7.2% in the second quarter. Harmony Asset Management LLC now owns 18,036 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $3,546,000 after buying an additional 1,215 shares in the last quarter. DRW Securities LLC purchased a new stake in shares of CME Group in the second quarter worth $590,000. Epoch Investment Partners Inc. raised its position in shares of CME Group by 2.2% in the second quarter. Epoch Investment Partners Inc. now owns 102,106 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $20,074,000 after buying an additional 2,159 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Frank Rimerman Advisors LLC raised its position in shares of CME Group by 143,821.4% in the second quarter. Frank Rimerman Advisors LLC now owns 20,149 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $3,961,000 after buying an additional 20,135 shares in the last quarter. 87.75% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

CME Group Trading Down 0.7 %

NASDAQ CME opened at $213.16 on Monday. The stock’s 50-day simple moving average is $207.86 and its two-hundred day simple moving average is $207.36. CME Group Inc. has a twelve month low of $190.70 and a twelve month high of $223.80. 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 $76.75 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 24.25, a PEG ratio of 8.85 and a beta of 0.55.

CME Group (NASDAQ:CME) last released its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, July 24th. The financial services provider reported $2.56 EPS for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $2.53 by $0.03. The firm had revenue of $1.53 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $1.53 billion. CME Group had a return on equity of 12.82% and a net margin of 56.98%. The company’s quarterly revenue was up 12.7% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter in the previous year, the business earned $2.30 earnings per share. Research analysts forecast that CME Group Inc. will post 9.94 EPS for the current fiscal year.

CME Group Announces Dividend

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, September 25th. Stockholders of record on Monday, September 9th will be issued a $1.15 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Monday, September 9th. This represents a $4.60 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 2.16%. CME Group’s dividend payout ratio is currently 52.33%.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of equities research analysts recently issued reports on CME shares. Piper Sandler reiterated an “overweight” rating and issued a $225.00 price objective on shares of CME Group in a research report on Tuesday, August 20th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. increased their price objective on CME Group from $187.00 to $191.00 and gave the stock an “underweight” rating in a research report on Thursday, July 25th. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft increased their price objective on CME Group from $193.00 to $200.00 and gave the stock a “hold” rating in a research report on Thursday, August 15th. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods increased their price objective on CME Group from $212.00 to $213.00 and gave the stock a “market perform” rating in a research report on Thursday, July 25th. Finally, Barclays raised their price target on CME Group from $208.00 to $209.00 and gave the company an “equal weight” rating in a research report on Thursday, July 25th. Four investment analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, five have given a hold rating and three have given a buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, CME Group has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $209.73.

Insider Transactions at CME Group

In other news, Director Bryan T. Durkin sold 7,593 shares of CME Group 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 transaction, the director now owns 55,607 shares in the company, valued at $11,932,706.13. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which can be accessed through this link. In related 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 sale, the director now directly owns 55,607 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $11,932,706.13. The transaction 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 firm’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 completion of the sale, the chief financial officer now directly owns 13,261 shares in the company, valued at $2,877,504.39. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Company insiders own 0.30% of the company’s stock.

CME Group 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.