CME Group Inc. (NASDAQ:CME) Given Consensus Recommendation of “Hold” by Brokerages

Shares of CME Group Inc. (NASDAQ:CME) have been assigned a consensus rating of “Hold” from the eighteen research firms that are covering the firm, Marketbeat Ratings reports. Three equities research analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, seven have issued a hold rating and eight have issued a buy rating on the company. The average 12-month price target among brokerages that have issued a report on the stock in the last year is $290.8235.

Several research analysts have recently issued reports on the company. Barclays raised their price target on CME Group from $280.00 to $304.00 and gave the stock an “equal weight” rating in a research report on Friday, December 12th. Argus reduced their target price on CME Group from $308.00 to $295.00 in a report on Friday, October 31st. The Goldman Sachs Group lowered their price target on CME Group from $264.00 to $263.00 and set a “sell” rating for the company in a research note on Thursday, December 4th. Morgan Stanley lifted their price objective on shares of CME Group from $314.00 to $320.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research note on Monday, December 22nd. Finally, TD Cowen boosted their price objective on shares of CME Group from $288.00 to $290.00 and gave the company a “hold” rating in a report on Thursday, October 23rd.

Insider Activity

In other news, Director Harold Eugene Jr. Ford sold 1,000 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, November 3rd. The shares were sold at an average price of $263.53, for a total value of $263,530.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the director owned 1,091 shares in the company, valued at $287,511.23. This represents a 47.82% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through the SEC website. Also, CEO Terrence A. Duffy sold 25,000 shares of the stock in a transaction on Thursday, December 11th. The stock was sold at an average price of $269.55, for a total transaction of $6,738,750.00. Following the sale, the chief executive officer directly owned 65,804 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $17,737,468.20. This represents a 27.53% decrease in their position. Additional details regarding this sale are available in the official SEC disclosure. Insiders own 0.30% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Trading of CME Group

Institutional investors have recently made changes to their positions in the business. Keel Point LLC grew its stake in shares of CME Group by 10.3% in the third quarter. Keel Point LLC now owns 1,569 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $424,000 after buying an additional 146 shares in the last quarter. Mirabella Financial Services LLP raised its position in CME Group by 211.7% during the third quarter. Mirabella Financial Services LLP now owns 16,823 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $4,536,000 after acquiring an additional 11,425 shares in the last quarter. Hudson Bay Capital Management LP lifted its stake in CME Group by 551.6% in the third quarter. Hudson Bay Capital Management LP now owns 33,554 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $9,066,000 after acquiring an additional 40,984 shares during the last quarter. Allworth Financial LP grew its position in shares of CME Group by 1.1% in the 3rd quarter. Allworth Financial LP now owns 56,447 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $15,252,000 after acquiring an additional 603 shares during the period. Finally, IFP Advisors Inc increased its stake in shares of CME Group by 12.7% during the 3rd quarter. IFP Advisors Inc now owns 1,805 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $488,000 after purchasing an additional 204 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors own 87.75% of the company’s stock.

CME Group Stock Up 0.6%

Shares of NASDAQ CME opened at $278.42 on Tuesday. CME Group has a 1 year low of $224.62 and a 1 year high of $290.79. The firm’s 50-day moving average is $273.36 and its 200-day moving average is $271.95. The company has a current ratio of 1.02, a quick ratio of 1.02 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.12. The firm has a market capitalization of $100.40 billion, a PE ratio of 26.98, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 3.73 and a beta of 0.28.

CME Group (NASDAQ:CME) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, October 22nd. The financial services provider reported $2.68 earnings per share for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $2.63 by $0.05. The business had revenue of $1.54 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $1.56 billion. CME Group had a net margin of 58.84% and a return on equity of 14.61%. CME Group’s revenue was down 3.0% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period in the prior year, the business posted $2.68 earnings per share. Equities analysts expect that CME Group will post 10.49 EPS for the current year.

CME Group Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, December 30th. Shareholders of record on Friday, December 12th will be issued a $1.25 dividend. This represents a $5.00 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 1.8%. The ex-dividend date is Friday, December 12th. CME Group’s dividend payout ratio is 48.45%.

Key CME Group News

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

• Positive Sentiment: CME’s margin hikes for silver, gold and other metals are being viewed as proactive risk management that can protect the clearinghouse and may increase short-term margin balances and fee-related revenue as volatility spikes. Surging silver and gold slide after CME raises margin requirements
• Positive Sentiment: The margin change triggered extreme intraday activity across COMEX and other markets — heavier trade and liquidations often lift exchange volumes and transaction fees, a near-term revenue tailwind for CME. COMEX silver sinks 11%, MCX falls 8 intraday as CME margin hike knocks white metal prices
• Neutral Sentiment: Some analysts flag CME as a potential beneficiary of broader market themes (e.g., renewed crypto ETF flows and higher derivatives activity), which could support longer-term fee growth but is less directly tied to the metals episode. Crypto Comeback in 2026? 4 Stocks to Ride the Bitcoin Rally
• Neutral Sentiment: Market commentary and technical updates note CME’s re-evaluation of margin models; this is routine operationally but keeps traders on edge about future, ad‑hoc risk moves. CME’s Latest Move Has Traders on Edge: Why Monday Is Critical for Silver Price
• Negative Sentiment: There is growing backlash from some silver market participants who accuse exchanges of suppressing prices; reputational or political pressure could lead to scrutiny of CME’s actions and markets oversight. Silver Bulls Cry Foul as CME Margin Hike Risks Putting the Brakes on a Record Run
• Negative Sentiment: The margin increase precipitated large forced liquidations and a rapid silver price collapse, which could reduce sustained metals trading interest and compress related volumes after the initial spike — a potential short-term revenue headwind. Silver plunges over 10% to $72 after CME raises margin requirements

About CME Group

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.