CME Group Inc. $CME Stock Acquired by Schwartz Investment Counsel Inc.

Schwartz Investment Counsel Inc. grew its position in shares of CME Group Inc. (NASDAQ:CME) by 41.1% during the third quarter, according to its most recent filing with the SEC. The firm owned 10,300 shares of the financial services provider’s stock after acquiring an additional 3,000 shares during the period. Schwartz Investment Counsel Inc.’s holdings in CME Group were worth $2,698,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Several other institutional investors have also recently made changes to their positions in the company. Oppenheimer & Co. Inc. grew its position in shares of CME Group by 27.8% in the 3rd quarter. Oppenheimer & Co. Inc. now owns 44,594 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $11,683,000 after buying an additional 9,702 shares during the period. Center for Financial Planning Inc. increased its position in shares of CME Group by 25.2% during the third quarter. Center for Financial Planning Inc. now owns 2,585 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $677,000 after acquiring an additional 521 shares in the last quarter. Verdence Capital Advisors LLC raised its stake in shares of CME Group by 9.8% in the third quarter. Verdence Capital Advisors LLC now owns 8,550 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $2,240,000 after purchasing an additional 760 shares during the last quarter. Flagship Harbor Advisors LLC raised its stake in shares of CME Group by 33.3% in the third quarter. Flagship Harbor Advisors LLC now owns 3,644 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $955,000 after purchasing an additional 910 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Miller Howard Investments Inc. NY lifted its holdings in shares of CME Group by 20.8% during the third quarter. Miller Howard Investments Inc. NY now owns 192,542 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $50,442,000 after purchasing an additional 33,169 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors own 87.75% of the company’s stock.

Insider Activity

In related news, insider Sunil Cutinho sold 5,000 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, October 27th. The shares were sold at an average price of $298.70, for a total transaction of $1,493,500.00. Following the completion of the sale, the insider directly owned 20,037 shares in the company, valued at approximately $5,985,051.90. The trade was a 19.97% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through the SEC website. Also, Director Elizabeth Cook sold 500 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, September 14th. The shares were sold at an average price of $280.11, for a total transaction of $140,055.00. Following the sale, the director directly owned 17,916 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $5,018,450.76. This represents a 2.72% decrease in their ownership of the stock. Additional details regarding this sale are available in the official SEC disclosure. Over the last ninety days, insiders have sold 20,900 shares of company stock worth $5,871,155. Company insiders own 0.30% of the company’s stock.

Key CME Group News

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

• Positive Sentiment: CME Group reported record third-quarter revenue of approximately $1.74 billion and record average daily volume of 29.4 million contracts. October activity is also tracking at the highest October average daily volume on record, supporting the company’s growth outlook. CME Group Slides as Investors Digest Recent Earnings and Mixed Post-Report Signals
• Positive Sentiment: Zacks upgraded CME Group to Rank #2, or “Buy,” citing improving optimism about the company’s earnings prospects. CME Upgraded to Buy: Here’s Why
• Positive Sentiment: Brazilian real futures traded a record daily volume following Brazil’s election, highlighting demand for CME’s products during periods of political and currency-market volatility. CME Group Brazilian Real Futures Set New Daily Volume Record Following Election
• Neutral Sentiment: Analyst price targets remain mixed, with a reported median target of $305 and recent targets ranging from $260 to $323, indicating support for the business but limited consensus on near-term upside.
• Negative Sentiment: Investors may be digesting last week’s earnings announcement after a significant share-price run-up. Although results were strong, they may not have exceeded elevated expectations enough to sustain momentum, prompting profit-taking or a valuation reset. CME Group Slides as Investors Digest Recent Earnings and Mixed Post-Report Signals
• Negative Sentiment: Insider Sunil Cutinho sold 5,000 shares worth approximately $1.49 million, reducing his direct holdings by nearly 20%. The transaction is a modest sentiment negative, although one insider sale does not necessarily indicate a change in CME’s fundamentals. Sunil Cutinho Insider Trading Activity

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several equities research analysts recently commented on CME shares. Weiss Ratings raised CME Group from a “buy (b-)” rating to a “buy (b)” rating in a research report on Friday. The Goldman Sachs Group decreased their target price on CME Group from $267.00 to $245.00 and set a “sell” rating for the company in a research report on Tuesday, June 30th. TD Cowen upped their target price on shares of CME Group from $292.00 to $300.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research note on Monday, October 5th. CLSA set a $367.00 price target on shares of CME Group in a report on Thursday, October 22nd. Finally, Bank of America raised their price target on shares of CME Group from $226.00 to $230.00 and gave the company an “underperform” rating in a report on Thursday, July 23rd. Ten investment analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, six have assigned a Hold rating and two have assigned a Sell rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the company has a consensus rating of “Hold” and a consensus target price of $313.29.

CME Group Trading Down 4.7%

CME Group stock opened at $293.48 on Wednesday. CME Group Inc. has a one year low of $218.31 and a one year high of $329.16. The stock has a fifty day moving average of $278.65 and a 200 day moving average of $279.51.

CME Group (NASDAQ:CME) last posted its earnings results on Wednesday, October 21st. The financial services provider reported $3.02 earnings per share for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $2.99 by $0.03. The firm had revenue of $1.74 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $1.71 billion. The firm’s revenue was up 10.6% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period in the prior year, the company posted $2.68 EPS. As a group, sell-side analysts forecast that CME Group Inc. will post 12.34 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

CME Group Announces Dividend

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, September 25th. Stockholders of record on Wednesday, September 9th were given a dividend of $1.30 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Wednesday, September 9th. This represents a $5.20 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 1.8%.

CME Group Profile

CME Group Inc operates global derivatives marketplaces that provide trading, clearing and settlement services for futures and options contracts. Its products cover major asset classes, including interest rates, equity indexes, foreign currencies, agricultural commodities, energy and metals. The company also provides market data, benchmark information and related services used by financial institutions, corporations, producers, investors and other market participants.

CME Group’s exchange portfolio includes CME, the Chicago Board of Trade, the New York Mercantile Exchange and COMEX.