Daiwa Securities Group Inc. Purchases 2,054 Shares of CME Group Inc. (NASDAQ:CME)

Daiwa Securities Group Inc. boosted its position in CME Group Inc. (NASDAQ:CME) by 6.6% in the 4th quarter, according to its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The firm owned 33,412 shares of the financial services provider’s stock after purchasing an additional 2,054 shares during the quarter. Daiwa Securities Group Inc.’s holdings in CME Group were worth $7,037,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Several other institutional investors have also added to or reduced their stakes in CME. OFI Invest Asset Management bought a new stake in shares of CME Group during the 3rd quarter valued at $25,000. MayTech Global Investments LLC bought a new stake in shares of CME Group during the 4th quarter valued at $25,000. Power Corp of Canada bought a new stake in shares of CME Group during the 1st quarter valued at $26,000. Providence Capital Advisors LLC bought a new stake in shares of CME Group during the 1st quarter valued at $30,000. Finally, Harbor Investment Advisory LLC lifted its position in shares of CME Group by 966.7% during the 4th quarter. Harbor Investment Advisory LLC now owns 160 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $34,000 after acquiring an additional 145 shares during the period. 87.75% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of research firms have recently commented on CME. Argus boosted their price target on CME Group from $225.00 to $245.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a report on Wednesday, March 6th. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods reissued a “market perform” rating and set a $229.00 price target on shares of CME Group in a report on Wednesday, April 3rd. Morgan Stanley boosted their price target on CME Group from $222.00 to $225.00 and gave the stock an “equal weight” rating in a report on Tuesday, April 9th. The Goldman Sachs Group cut CME Group from a “neutral” rating to a “sell” rating and set a $195.00 price target for the company. in a report on Wednesday, January 3rd. Finally, Rosenblatt Securities reissued a “sell” rating and set a $180.00 price target on shares of CME Group in a report on Thursday, January 4th. Two analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, seven have given a hold rating and two have given a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the company has a consensus rating of “Hold” and an average price target of $215.70.

CME Group Stock Up 0.6 %

Shares of CME Group stock opened at $209.65 on Friday. CME Group Inc. has a one year low of $175.73 and a one year high of $223.80. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.13, a current ratio of 1.02 and a quick ratio of 1.02. The stock’s 50-day moving average is $214.26 and its 200 day moving average is $211.61. The firm has a market cap of $75.47 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 23.64, a PEG ratio of 5.92 and a beta of 0.49.

CME Group (NASDAQ:CME) last announced its earnings results on Wednesday, February 14th. The financial services provider reported $2.37 EPS for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $2.27 by $0.10. The company had revenue of $1.44 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $1.43 billion. CME Group had a return on equity of 12.32% and a net margin of 57.83%. The firm’s revenue for the quarter was up 19.2% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter in the prior year, the company earned $1.92 EPS. Equities research analysts anticipate that CME Group Inc. will post 9.56 EPS for the current year.

CME Group Increases Dividend

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Tuesday, March 26th. Shareholders of record on Friday, March 8th were issued a $1.15 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Thursday, March 7th. This represents a $4.60 annualized dividend and a yield of 2.19%. This is a positive change from CME Group’s previous quarterly dividend of $1.10. CME Group’s dividend payout ratio is presently 51.86%.

About CME Group

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.