CME Group Inc. $CME is Hamlin Capital Management LLC’s 6th Largest Position

Hamlin Capital Management LLC reduced its holdings in CME Group Inc. (NASDAQ:CME) by 7.5% during the fourth quarter, Holdings Channel.com reports. The fund owned 730,113 shares of the financial services provider’s stock after selling 59,344 shares during the quarter. CME Group accounts for 4.8% of Hamlin Capital Management LLC’s investment portfolio, making the stock its 6th largest holding. Hamlin Capital Management LLC’s holdings in CME Group were worth $199,379,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

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

CME Group Stock Down 1.1%

CME opened at $307.32 on Friday. The company has a market cap of $110.82 billion, a P/E ratio of 27.54, a P/E/G ratio of 3.32 and a beta of 0.24. The business’s 50-day moving average price is $300.08 and its 200-day moving average price is $280.52. The company has a current ratio of 1.03, a quick ratio of 1.03 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.12. CME Group Inc. has a 12 month low of $248.53 and a 12 month high of $329.16.

CME Group (NASDAQ:CME) last issued its earnings results on Wednesday, February 4th. The financial services provider reported $2.77 earnings per share 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 posted $2.52 EPS. CME Group’s quarterly revenue was up 8.1% compared to the same quarter last year. On average, equities analysts expect that CME Group Inc. will post 10.49 EPS for the current year.

CME Group Increases Dividend

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, March 26th. Stockholders of record on Tuesday, March 10th will be paid a dividend of $1.30 per share. This represents a $5.20 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 1.7%. This is a boost from CME Group’s previous quarterly dividend of $1.25. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Tuesday, March 10th. CME Group’s payout ratio is currently 46.59%.

CME Group News Roundup

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

• Positive Sentiment: CME raised its quarterly dividend to $1.30 (annualized $5.20), a payout increase that supports yield-focused holders and signals confidence in cash generation. See company summary. MarketBeat: CME summary
• Neutral Sentiment: Analyst actions are mixed — several firms have raised price targets and ratings (Jefferies, Weiss, Erste), while others remain cautious or underweight (JPMorgan, Goldman). The consensus view is close to a “Hold” with a median target near the current price, producing offsetting pressure on the stock. See analyst roundup. MarketBeat: analyst notes
• Neutral Sentiment: Short-interest notices published this week show zero shares/days-to-cover, which appears to be a data error (NaN/inconsistent reporting) and should not be treated as a meaningful change in market sentiment. No reliable short-squeeze signal. (No credible link — data feed report)
• Neutral Sentiment: Institutional ownership remains high and activity is mixed: large buy and sell moves by different funds have been reported in recent filings, so institutional flow is not clearly one-directional. MarketBeat: institutional activity
• Negative Sentiment: Senior management insider selling: General Counsel Jonathan L. Marcus sold 3,291 shares (around $1.1M) on March 17, reducing his holding by ~31%. Multiple recent insider sales by executives have been highlighted by data aggregators, which can weigh on sentiment even if sales are routine or for diversification. InsiderTrades: Marcus sale

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

CME has been the topic of a number of research analyst reports. Bank of America increased their price target on shares of CME Group from $201.00 to $209.00 in a report on Wednesday, December 10th. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft upped their target price on shares of CME Group from $312.00 to $316.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research report on Thursday, February 5th. Barclays increased their target price on CME Group from $304.00 to $312.00 and gave the company an “equal weight” rating in a research note on Thursday, February 5th. Raymond James Financial dropped their price target on CME Group from $311.00 to $310.00 and set an “outperform” rating for the company in a research note on Wednesday, February 4th. Finally, Erste Group Bank upgraded CME Group from a “hold” rating to a “strong-buy” rating in a report on Thursday, March 5th. Two equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, eight have issued a Buy rating, six have assigned a Hold rating and three have issued a Sell rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat, the company currently has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $304.06.

Insider Activity

In related news, Director Dennis Suskind sold 748 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on Friday, February 6th. The shares were sold at an average price of $300.00, for a total transaction of $224,400.00. Following the completion of the sale, the director directly owned 2,699 shares in the company, valued at $809,700. This represents a 21.70% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available through this link. Also, Director William R. Shepard purchased 251 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on Tuesday, December 30th. The shares were purchased at an average cost of $278.37 per share, with a total value of $69,870.87. Following the transaction, the director directly owned 258,710 shares in the company, valued at $72,017,102.70. This trade represents a 0.10% increase in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this purchase is available in the SEC filing. In the last 90 days, insiders have sold 8,539 shares of company stock valued at $2,713,821. Corporate insiders own 0.30% of the company’s stock.

CME Group Company 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.