Jefferies Financial Group Inc. significantly increased its stake in CME Group by 1,847.5%, acquiring 38,502 shares and bringing its total ownership to 40,586 shares valued at approximately $10.77 million. Insider transactions included Director Phyllis M. Lockett selling 1,060 shares at an average price of $277.88, resulting in a 25.43% decrease in her holdings. CME Group recently declared a quarterly dividend of $1.25 per share, providing an annualized dividend yield of 1.8%, while the company reported earnings of $2.96 per share, beating analysts' expectations. Several other large investors have also recently bought and sold shares of the stock. Alberta Investment Management Corp bought a new stake in CME Group in the 1st quarter valued at $11,367,000. Nicolet Advisory Services LLC increased its holdings in CME Group by 16.4% in the 1st quarter. Nicolet Advisory Services LLC now owns 1,239 shares of the financial services provider's stock valued at $320,000 after buying an additional 175 shares during the period. Empirical Financial Services LLC d.b.a. Empirical Wealth Management increased its holdings in CME Group by 20.1% in the 1st quarter. Empirical Financial Services LLC d.b.a. Empirical Wealth Management now owns 8,894 shares of the financial services provider's stock valued at $2,359,000 after buying an additional 1,491 shares during the period. Brentview Investment Management LLC increased its holdings in CME Group by 2.1% in the 1st quarter. Brentview Investment Management LLC now owns 41,694 shares of the financial services provider's stock valued at $11,061,000 after buying an additional 851 shares during the period. Finally, Sound View Wealth Advisors Group LLC increased its holdings in CME Group by 58.5% in the 1st quarter. Sound View Wealth Advisors Group LLC now owns 3,855 shares of the financial services provider's stock valued at $1,023,000 after buying an additional 1,423 shares during the period. 87.75% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds. CME has been the topic of several analyst reports. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods upped their target price on shares of CME Group from $265.00 to $273.00 and gave the stock a 'market perform' rating in a report on Thursday, April 24th. Piper Sandler upped their target price on shares of CME Group from $283.00 to $296.00 and gave the stock an 'overweight' rating in a report on Tuesday, July 15th. Citigroup upped their target price on shares of CME Group from $265.00 to $275.00 and gave the stock a 'neutral' rating in a report on Thursday, July 3rd. Barclays set a $298.00 target price on shares of CME Group and gave the stock an 'equal weight' rating in a report on Thursday, July 24th. Finally, UBS Group reaffirmed a 'neutral' rating and issued a $305.00 target price on shares of CME Group in a report on Thursday, July 24th. Four research analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, nine have issued a hold rating and four have given a buy rating to the company's stock. According to MarketBeat, the stock currently has a consensus rating of 'Hold' and an average price target of $261.93. CME Group traded up $2.48 during mid-day trading on Friday, reaching $280.76. 3,011,041 shares of the company were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 2,073,115. CME Group Inc. has a 12 month low of $196.62 and a 12 month high of $290.79. The company has a fifty day moving average of $276.07 and a 200 day moving average of $264.14. The company has a quick ratio of 1.02, a current ratio of 1.02 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.12. The stock has a market cap of $101.17 billion, a PE ratio of 27.18, a PEG ratio of 4.99 and a beta of 0.44. CME Group last issued its earnings results on Wednesday, July 23rd. The financial services provider reported $2.96 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $2.91 by $0.05. The company had revenue of $1.69 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $1.68 billion. CME Group had a net margin of 58.48% and a return on equity of 14.60%. The company's revenue for the quarter was up 10.4% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter last year, the firm earned $2.56 EPS. On average, research analysts anticipate that CME Group Inc. will post 10.49 EPS for the current fiscal year. CME Group Announces Dividend The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Wednesday, June 25th. Stockholders of record on Monday, June 9th were paid a $1.25 dividend. This represents a $5.00 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 1.8%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Monday, June 9th. CME Group's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 48.40%. In other news, Director sold 500 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction dated Thursday, May 22nd. The shares were sold at an average price of $282.42, for a total value of $141,210.00. Following the transaction, the director owned 3,668 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $1,035,916.56. This trade represents a 12.00% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through . Also, Director sold 3,000 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction dated Thursday, May 15th. The shares were sold at an average price of $272.56, for a total transaction of $817,680.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the director directly owned 5,400 shares in the company, valued at $1,471,824. This trade represents a 35.71% decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found . In the last ninety days, insiders have sold 10,400 shares of company stock worth $2,881,130. 0.30% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders. 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.

Jefferies Financial Group Inc. Buys 38,502 Shares of CME Group Inc. (NASDAQ:CME)

Jefferies Financial Group Inc. increased its stake in CME Group by 1,847.5%, acquiring 38,502 shares valued at $10.77 million. Insider transactions included Director Phyllis M. Lockett selling 1,060 shares, reducing her holdings by 25.43%. CME Group announced a $1.25 quarterly dividend with an 1.8% yield, reported $2.96 EPS earnings, and faced analyst reports updating target prices. Multiple institutional investors also adjusted their holdings in CME Group during the first quarter of 2025.