CME Group Inc. $CME Shares Sold by Thrivent Financial for Lutherans

Thrivent Financial for Lutherans decreased its position in CME Group Inc. (NASDAQ:CME) by 58.8% in the third quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the SEC. The institutional investor owned 15,679 shares of the financial services provider’s stock after selling 22,340 shares during the period. Thrivent Financial for Lutherans’ holdings in CME Group were worth $4,237,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Several other institutional investors and hedge funds have also recently modified their holdings of the business. Caldwell Trust Co grew its holdings in CME Group by 116.3% in the third quarter. Caldwell Trust Co now owns 93 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $25,000 after purchasing an additional 50 shares during the period. Loring Wolcott & Coolidge Fiduciary Advisors LLP MA purchased a new position in shares of CME Group during the 3rd quarter valued at approximately $27,000. Financial Consulate Inc. purchased a new position in shares of CME Group during the 3rd quarter valued at approximately $28,000. Sagard Holdings Management Inc. acquired a new stake in CME Group in the 2nd quarter valued at $30,000. Finally, Corundum Trust Company INC purchased a new stake in CME Group in the 3rd quarter worth $30,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 87.75% of the company’s stock.

Insider Activity

In other news, CEO Terrence A. Duffy sold 25,000 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, December 11th. The shares were sold at an average price of $269.55, for a total transaction of $6,738,750.00. Following the completion of the sale, the chief executive officer owned 65,804 shares in the company, valued at $17,737,468.20. This trade represents a 27.53% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this hyperlink. Also, Director William R. Shepard purchased 251 shares of CME Group stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, December 30th. The shares were purchased at an average cost of $278.37 per share, for a total transaction of $69,870.87. Following the transaction, the director owned 258,710 shares in the company, valued at approximately $72,017,102.70. This trade represents a 0.10% increase in their position. Additional details regarding this purchase are available in the official SEC disclosure. 0.30% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

CME Group Stock Performance

Shares of CME Group stock opened at $302.27 on Friday. The business’s 50 day moving average price is $276.90 and its 200 day moving average price is $273.02. The company has a market cap of $109.00 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 27.09, a PEG ratio of 3.41 and a beta of 0.27. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.12, a quick ratio of 1.02 and a current ratio of 1.03. CME Group Inc. has a one year low of $239.70 and a one year high of $302.79.

CME Group (NASDAQ:CME) last issued its earnings results on Wednesday, February 4th. The financial services provider reported $2.77 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $2.75 by $0.02. CME Group had a return on equity of 14.65% and a net margin of 62.45%.The company had revenue of $1.65 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $1.64 billion. During the same period in the prior year, the business earned $2.52 EPS. The firm’s quarterly revenue was up 8.1% on a year-over-year basis. On average, research analysts predict that CME Group Inc. will post 10.49 EPS for the current year.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several equities analysts have issued reports on the stock. TD Cowen increased their price objective on shares of CME Group from $305.00 to $328.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a report on Thursday. Piper Sandler upped their price target on shares of CME Group from $296.00 to $313.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research report on Thursday, November 13th. UBS Group reiterated a “neutral” rating and issued a $310.00 price objective on shares of CME Group in a report on Friday. Morgan Stanley increased their target price on CME Group from $319.00 to $340.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a report on Thursday. Finally, JPMorgan Chase & Co. raised their target price on CME Group from $262.00 to $266.00 and gave the company an “underweight” rating in a research report on Thursday. Nine equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, six have given a Hold rating and three have issued a Sell rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the company has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $297.47.

More CME Group News

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

• Positive Sentiment: Q4 earnings beat and commentary reinforced the firm’s resilient fee-based franchise — investors reacted to better-than-expected quarterly results and the company hitting a new one-year high after the report. Earnings Call Transcript
• Positive Sentiment: Deutsche Bank raised its price target to $316 and maintained a buy rating, giving fresh analyst support that can help momentum. Deutsche Bank PT Raise
• Positive Sentiment: Morgan Stanley reiterated a Buy rating, highlighting CME’s defensive, fee-based franchise and structural growth drivers. Morgan Stanley Note
• Neutral Sentiment: RBC nudged its target to $302 (sector perform) — a small technical change that largely preserves prior sentiment. RBC PT Adjustment
• Positive Sentiment: Management confirmed the firm is exploring a CME-issued digital token and tokenized cash pilots (including work with Google), a strategic move that could expand 24/7 crypto/product offerings and new non-trading revenue streams. CME Token Exploration
• Negative Sentiment: CME raised initial and maintenance margins for gold and silver futures (e.g., gold margins to 9% from 8%, silver to 18% from 15%) to manage sharp volatility — measures that can damp trading volume and futures activity in the near term. Margin Hikes
• Negative Sentiment: Pelican Bay Capital reported selling CME in Q4, signaling at least some institutional trimming that could weigh on sentiment if others follow. Institutional Selling
• Negative Sentiment: JPMorgan still carries an underweight rating despite updating its target — a reminder there are pockets of skepticism about valuation and upside. JPMorgan Note

CME Group Profile

CME Group Inc is a global markets company that operates some of the world’s largest and most liquid derivatives exchanges, including the Chicago Mercantile Exchange (CME), the Chicago Board of Trade (CBOT), the New York Mercantile Exchange (NYMEX) and COMEX. The firm offers futures and options contracts across a broad range of asset classes — including interest rates, equity indexes, foreign exchange, energy, agricultural commodities and metals — and serves a diverse client base of institutional investors, commercial hedgers, brokers and retail participants.

The company’s core services include electronic trading on the CME Globex platform, central clearing through CME Clearing, and distribution of market data, indexes and analytics.