Northcape Capital Pty Ltd Buys Shares of 12,713 CME Group Inc. (NASDAQ:CME)

Northcape Capital Pty Ltd acquired a new position in CME Group Inc. (NASDAQ:CME) in the fourth quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The institutional investor acquired 12,713 shares of the financial services provider’s stock, valued at approximately $2,677,000. CME Group accounts for about 0.3% of Northcape Capital Pty Ltd’s portfolio, making the stock its 19th biggest holding.

Several other hedge funds have also recently modified their holdings of the stock. OFI Invest Asset Management acquired a new position in shares of CME Group in the third quarter valued at approximately $25,000. MayTech Global Investments LLC purchased a new stake in CME Group during the 4th quarter worth about $25,000. Power Corp of Canada acquired a new stake in CME Group in the 1st quarter valued at about $26,000. Providence Capital Advisors LLC purchased a new position in shares of CME Group in the 1st quarter valued at about $30,000. Finally, Compagnie Lombard Odier SCmA purchased a new stake in shares of CME Group during the third quarter worth approximately $37,000. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 87.75% of the company’s stock.

CME Group Stock Up 0.2 %

Shares of CME traded up $0.39 during midday trading on Thursday, reaching $215.99. 746,187 shares of the company were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 1,770,407. The company has a current ratio of 1.02, a quick ratio of 1.02 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.13. CME Group Inc. has a 1-year low of $175.73 and a 1-year high of $223.80. The company has a market cap of $77.75 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 24.31, a P/E/G ratio of 3.36 and a beta of 0.49. The stock has a 50-day moving average price of $211.90 and a 200-day moving average price of $210.82.

CME Group (NASDAQ:CME) last announced its earnings results on Wednesday, February 14th. The financial services provider reported $2.37 earnings per share for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $2.27 by $0.10. The business had revenue of $1.44 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $1.43 billion. CME Group had a net margin of 57.83% and a return on equity of 12.32%. The business’s quarterly revenue was up 19.2% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period in the prior year, the firm earned $1.92 earnings per share. Research analysts expect that CME Group Inc. will post 9.63 earnings per share for the current year.

CME Group Increases Dividend

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Tuesday, March 26th. Investors of record on Friday, March 8th were given a dividend of $1.15 per share. This represents a $4.60 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 2.13%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Thursday, March 7th. This is an increase from CME Group’s previous quarterly dividend of $1.10. CME Group’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 51.86%.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several research analysts have commented on the stock. The Goldman Sachs Group cut shares of CME Group from a “neutral” rating to a “sell” rating and set a $195.00 price target for the company. in a report on Wednesday, January 3rd. Barclays increased their target price on shares of CME Group from $222.00 to $225.00 and gave the company an “equal weight” rating in a research report on Thursday, February 15th. Rosenblatt Securities reissued a “sell” rating and set a $180.00 price objective on shares of CME Group in a research report on Thursday, January 4th. Finally, Argus upped their target price on shares of CME Group from $225.00 to $245.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a report on Wednesday, March 6th. Two investment analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, five have issued a hold rating and four have assigned a buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat, the company has a consensus rating of “Hold” and a consensus target price of $217.30.

About CME Group

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.