CME Group (NASDAQ:CME) Director Elizabeth Cook Sells 500 Shares of Stock

CME Group Inc. (NASDAQ:CME) Director Elizabeth Cook sold 500 shares of the stock in a transaction on Monday, September 14th. The shares were sold at an average price of $280.11, for a total value of $140,055.00. Following the completion of the sale, the director owned 17,916 shares in the company, valued at approximately $5,018,450.76. This trade represents a 2.72% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which can be accessed through the SEC website.

CME Group Trading Up 1.8%

Shares of CME Group stock opened at $280.46 on Tuesday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.13, a current ratio of 1.02 and a quick ratio of 1.02. The business has a fifty day simple moving average of $264.48 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $276.89. CME Group Inc. has a 1 year low of $218.31 and a 1 year high of $329.16. The company has a market capitalization of $100.85 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 23.79, a P/E/G ratio of 3.26 and a beta of 0.24.

CME Group (NASDAQ:CME) last released its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, July 22nd. The financial services provider reported $2.99 EPS for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $2.91 by $0.08. The firm had revenue of $1.71 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $1.68 billion. CME Group had a net margin of 63.30% and a return on equity of 15.60%. The company’s quarterly revenue was up .8% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period in the previous year, the company earned $2.96 earnings per share. Research analysts forecast that CME Group Inc. will post 12.27 EPS for the current year.

CME Group Dividend Announcement

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, September 25th. Shareholders of record on Wednesday, September 9th will be issued a $1.30 dividend. This represents a $5.20 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 1.9%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Wednesday, September 9th. CME Group’s dividend payout ratio is currently 44.11%.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several analysts have weighed in on CME shares. Morgan Stanley lifted their price objective on shares of CME Group from $324.00 to $330.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research note on Thursday, July 23rd. Piper Sandler cut their price target on CME Group from $329.00 to $295.00 and set an “overweight” rating for the company in a research note on Wednesday, July 15th. Erste Group Bank lowered CME Group from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Friday, June 5th. Barclays cut their target price on CME Group from $316.00 to $270.00 and set an “equal weight” rating for the company in a research report on Thursday, July 9th. Finally, Bank of America raised their price target on CME Group from $226.00 to $230.00 and gave the stock an “underperform” rating in a research report on Thursday, July 23rd. Nine equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, six have issued a Hold rating and three have assigned a Sell rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the stock currently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and an average target price of $289.75.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Institutional investors have recently modified their holdings of the stock. California State Teachers Retirement System boosted its position in CME Group by 21,954.4% in the second quarter. California State Teachers Retirement System now owns 131,243,023 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $28,982,397,000 after purchasing an additional 130,647,934 shares during the last quarter. BlackRock Inc. purchased a new stake in shares of CME Group during the 2nd quarter valued at $6,749,965,000. State Street Corp increased its position in shares of CME Group by 0.4% during the 4th quarter. State Street Corp now owns 16,144,525 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $4,408,747,000 after purchasing an additional 56,725 shares during the last quarter. Norges Bank bought a new stake in shares of CME Group during the 4th quarter worth $1,523,241,000. Finally, Bank of New York Mellon Corp raised its stake in shares of CME Group by 2.8% during the 4th quarter. Bank of New York Mellon Corp now owns 4,924,475 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $1,344,776,000 after purchasing an additional 134,242 shares during the period. 87.75% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Key CME Group News

Here are the key news stories impacting CME Group this week:

• Positive Sentiment: Higher rate-hike odds may boost trading activity. CME Group’s FedWatch tool reportedly indicated an 83%–90% probability of a Federal Reserve rate increase, while other market-based estimates placed the odds near 87%. A more active interest-rate environment can increase hedging and speculative demand across CME’s derivatives markets. Fed rate hike odds article
• Positive Sentiment: Analyst targets imply potential upside. Seven analysts cited by Quiver Quantitative have a median price target of $320, above the approximately $280 level at which Director Elizabeth Cook sold shares. Targets ranged from $260 to $353, suggesting some analysts expect continued earnings and trading-volume support. Quiver Quantitative CME data
• Neutral Sentiment: Institutional positioning was mixed. JPMorgan and other investors added CME shares, while several large asset managers reduced holdings during the latest quarter. This signals differing views on valuation and future growth rather than a clear institutional trend.
• Negative Sentiment: Insider selling provides a modest cautionary signal. Director Elizabeth Cook sold 500 shares for approximately $140,055, reducing her holdings by about 2.7%. Recent insider activity has included more sales than purchases, although the transaction was small relative to her remaining stake and does not by itself indicate a fundamental change.

About CME Group

CME Group Inc operates global derivatives marketplaces that provide trading, clearing and settlement services for a broad range of financial and commodity products. Its exchange platforms enable participants to manage risk, discover prices and gain exposure to asset classes including interest rates, equity indexes, foreign exchange, energy, metals, agricultural commodities and digital assets.

The company’s principal marketplaces include CME, CBOT, NYMEX and COMEX. Products are offered through futures and options contracts, with electronic trading available through CME Globex as well as exchange-based and privately negotiated transactions.