Sapient Capital LLC Has $1.64 Million Stake in CME Group Inc. (NASDAQ:CME)

Sapient Capital LLC decreased its position in shares of CME Group Inc. (NASDAQ:CME) by 21.6% in the 4th quarter, HoldingsChannel.com reports. The institutional investor owned 6,897 shares of the financial services provider’s stock after selling 1,895 shares during the period. Sapient Capital LLC’s holdings in CME Group were worth $1,642,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Several other hedge funds also recently modified their holdings of the company. SJS Investment Consulting Inc. grew its stake in shares of CME Group by 570.6% during the fourth quarter. SJS Investment Consulting Inc. now owns 114 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $26,000 after purchasing an additional 97 shares during the last quarter. Truvestments Capital LLC bought a new stake in shares of CME Group during the third quarter valued at approximately $26,000. Dunhill Financial LLC grew its stake in shares of CME Group by 188.4% during the third quarter. Dunhill Financial LLC now owns 124 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $27,000 after purchasing an additional 81 shares during the last quarter. Financial Life Planners bought a new stake in shares of CME Group during the fourth quarter valued at approximately $32,000. Finally, Fortitude Family Office LLC grew its stake in shares of CME Group by 120.3% during the fourth quarter. Fortitude Family Office LLC now owns 152 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $35,000 after purchasing an additional 83 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 87.75% of the company’s stock.

CME Group Trading Down 0.0 %

Shares of NASDAQ CME opened at $241.74 on Wednesday. The company’s fifty day moving average is $235.60 and its 200-day moving average is $224.62. The stock has a market cap of $87.11 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 25.42, a P/E/G ratio of 5.54 and a beta of 0.57. CME Group Inc. has a twelve month low of $190.70 and a twelve month high of $249.02. The company has a quick ratio of 1.02, a current ratio of 1.02 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.09.

CME Group announced that its Board of Directors has approved a share repurchase program on Thursday, December 5th that authorizes the company to buyback $3.00 billion in outstanding shares. This buyback authorization authorizes the financial services provider to purchase up to 3.4% of its stock through open market purchases. Stock buyback programs are typically an indication that the company’s leadership believes its stock is undervalued.

CME Group Increases Dividend

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, March 26th. Investors of record on Friday, March 7th will be issued a dividend of $1.25 per share. This represents a $5.00 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 2.07%. This is a positive change from CME Group’s previous quarterly dividend of $1.15. The ex-dividend date is Friday, March 7th. CME Group’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 48.37%.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several analysts have recently commented on the stock. Barclays increased their price target on shares of CME Group from $231.00 to $257.00 and gave the company an “equal weight” rating in a research note on Monday, December 9th. Morgan Stanley increased their price target on shares of CME Group from $210.00 to $233.00 and gave the company an “equal weight” rating in a research note on Thursday, October 17th. Oppenheimer raised their price objective on shares of CME Group from $245.00 to $258.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a research note on Thursday, October 24th. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods reduced their price objective on shares of CME Group from $260.00 to $256.00 and set a “market perform” rating on the stock in a research note on Monday, January 13th. Finally, Royal Bank of Canada reaffirmed a “sector perform” rating and issued a $235.00 price objective on shares of CME Group in a research note on Monday, January 6th. Four research analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, eight have assigned a hold rating and three have given a buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the company currently has an average rating of “Hold” and an average price target of $229.27.

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.