AEGON ASSET MANAGEMENT UK Plc Has $77.78 Million Stock Position in CME Group Inc. $CME

AEGON ASSET MANAGEMENT UK Plc cut its holdings in CME Group Inc. (NASDAQ:CME) by 2.4% during the third quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The fund owned 287,662 shares of the financial services provider’s stock after selling 7,189 shares during the period. CME Group comprises approximately 0.9% of AEGON ASSET MANAGEMENT UK Plc’s investment portfolio, making the stock its 23rd biggest holding. AEGON ASSET MANAGEMENT UK Plc owned approximately 0.08% of CME Group worth $77,778,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

A number of other institutional investors have also made changes to their positions in the business. Sovran Advisors LLC bought a new stake in CME Group during the 3rd quarter worth about $284,000. WealthShield Partners LLC grew its holdings in shares of CME Group by 3.3% in the 3rd quarter. WealthShield Partners LLC now owns 11,322 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $3,059,000 after acquiring an additional 358 shares in the last quarter. LBP AM SA increased its position in shares of CME Group by 208.7% in the third quarter. LBP AM SA now owns 20,989 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $5,671,000 after acquiring an additional 14,189 shares during the last quarter. Commerzbank Aktiengesellschaft FI raised its holdings in CME Group by 18.4% during the third quarter. Commerzbank Aktiengesellschaft FI now owns 58,892 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $15,912,000 after acquiring an additional 9,163 shares in the last quarter. Finally, CIBC Asset Management Inc boosted its position in CME Group by 1.3% during the third quarter. CIBC Asset Management Inc now owns 154,374 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $41,685,000 after purchasing an additional 2,034 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors own 87.75% of the company’s stock.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several research firms have weighed in on CME. Bank of America boosted their price target on CME Group from $201.00 to $209.00 in a research report on Wednesday, December 10th. The Goldman Sachs Group cut their price objective on CME Group from $265.00 to $264.00 and set a “sell” rating for the company in a report on Wednesday, January 14th. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods boosted their target price on shares of CME Group from $283.00 to $287.00 and gave the stock a “market perform” rating in a report on Monday, October 13th. Argus dropped their price target on shares of CME Group from $308.00 to $295.00 in a research report on Friday, October 31st. Finally, Raymond James Financial lifted their price objective on shares of CME Group from $307.00 to $311.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a research report on Monday, January 5th. Nine equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, six have issued a Hold rating and three have issued a Sell rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, CME Group currently has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus target price of $292.18.

CME Group Price Performance

CME Group stock opened at $282.73 on Monday. The company has a market capitalization of $101.95 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 27.40, a PEG ratio of 3.20 and a beta of 0.27. The company has a current ratio of 1.02, a quick ratio of 1.02 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.12. CME Group Inc. has a 12 month low of $232.32 and a 12 month high of $290.79. The stock’s 50 day moving average is $274.17 and its 200-day moving average is $271.92.

CME Group Announces Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Tuesday, December 30th. Shareholders of record on Friday, December 12th were issued a $1.25 dividend. This represents a $5.00 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 1.8%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Friday, December 12th. CME Group’s dividend payout ratio is currently 48.45%.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other news, Director Harold Eugene Jr. Ford sold 1,000 shares of CME Group stock in a transaction on Monday, November 3rd. The stock was sold at an average price of $263.53, for a total transaction of $263,530.00. Following the completion of the sale, the director owned 1,091 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $287,511.23. This trade represents a 47.82% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. Also, Director William R. Shepard purchased 251 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, December 30th. The stock was acquired at an average price of $278.37 per share, for a total transaction of $69,870.87. Following the completion of the purchase, the director directly owned 258,710 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $72,017,102.70. This represents a 0.10% increase in their position. Additional details regarding this purchase are available in the official SEC disclosure. Company insiders own 0.30% of the company’s stock.

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.