Sentry Investment Management LLC Has $349,000 Holdings in CME Group Inc. (NASDAQ:CME)

Sentry Investment Management LLC trimmed its holdings in shares of CME Group Inc. (NASDAQ:CME) by 14.0% in the fourth quarter, according to its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The institutional investor owned 1,505 shares of the financial services provider’s stock after selling 245 shares during the period. Sentry Investment Management LLC’s holdings in CME Group were worth $349,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also recently bought and sold shares of the company. Private Advisor Group LLC raised its stake in shares of CME Group by 24.9% in the third quarter. Private Advisor Group LLC now owns 6,488 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $1,432,000 after acquiring an additional 1,295 shares during the last quarter. Wealth Enhancement Advisory Services LLC increased its holdings in shares of CME Group by 28.1% in the third quarter. Wealth Enhancement Advisory Services LLC now owns 61,766 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $13,629,000 after purchasing an additional 13,561 shares in the last quarter. Modera Wealth Management LLC raised its position in CME Group by 3.1% in the 3rd quarter. Modera Wealth Management LLC now owns 4,707 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $1,039,000 after purchasing an additional 141 shares during the last quarter. Nisa Investment Advisors LLC lifted its holdings in CME Group by 10.1% during the 3rd quarter. Nisa Investment Advisors LLC now owns 112,259 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $24,770,000 after buying an additional 10,302 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Hunter Associates Investment Management LLC boosted its position in CME Group by 6.3% in the 3rd quarter. Hunter Associates Investment Management LLC now owns 1,094 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $242,000 after buying an additional 65 shares during the last quarter. 87.75% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

CME Group Trading Up 1.2 %

Shares of NASDAQ CME opened at $250.82 on Wednesday. CME Group Inc. has a twelve month low of $190.70 and a twelve month high of $253.53. The stock has a market cap of $90.39 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 25.94, a P/E/G ratio of 6.76 and a beta of 0.57. The company has a quick ratio of 1.02, a current ratio of 1.01 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.10. The company’s fifty day moving average is $237.64 and its 200-day moving average is $228.30.

CME Group (NASDAQ:CME) last posted its earnings results on Wednesday, February 12th. The financial services provider reported $2.52 earnings per share for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $2.46 by $0.06. CME Group had a return on equity of 13.62% and a net margin of 57.52%. Equities research analysts predict that CME Group Inc. will post 10.49 EPS for the current year.

CME Group Increases Dividend

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, March 26th. Investors of record on Friday, March 7th will be given a $1.25 dividend. The ex-dividend date is Friday, March 7th. This is a positive change from CME Group’s previous quarterly dividend of $1.15. This represents a $5.00 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 1.99%. CME Group’s payout ratio is currently 51.71%.

CME Group announced that its Board of Directors has approved a share repurchase plan on Thursday, December 5th that permits the company to repurchase $3.00 billion in outstanding shares. This repurchase authorization permits the financial services provider to repurchase up to 3.4% of its stock through open market purchases. Stock repurchase plans are typically an indication that the company’s board of directors believes its stock is undervalued.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of research firms have recently weighed in on CME. Piper Sandler boosted their target price on CME Group from $250.00 to $258.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research report on Tuesday, January 7th. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft lowered their price objective on CME Group from $227.00 to $226.00 and set a “hold” rating for the company in a research report on Monday, November 11th. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods upped their target price on shares of CME Group from $256.00 to $257.00 and gave the company a “market perform” rating in a research report on Friday, February 14th. Citigroup cut shares of CME Group from a “buy” rating to a “neutral” rating and lowered their price target for the stock from $255.00 to $250.00 in a research report on Monday, January 6th. Finally, Morgan Stanley boosted their price target on shares of CME Group from $256.00 to $263.00 and gave the stock an “equal weight” rating in a research note on Wednesday, February 19th. Four research analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, eight have assigned a hold rating and three have given a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the stock presently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $236.13.

Insider Buying and Selling

In related news, insider Julie Winkler sold 11,592 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction on Thursday, February 13th. The shares were sold at an average price of $249.17, for a total value of $2,888,378.64. Following the sale, the insider now directly owns 21,885 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $5,453,085.45. The trade was a 34.63 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. 0.30% of the stock is owned by company insiders.

CME Group Company Profile

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.