Archives for March 26, 2020

CME Group Inc (NASDAQ:CME)’s share price was down 11.9% during mid-day trading on Monday after Bank of America lowered their price target on the stock from $216.00 to $168.00. Bank of America currently has a neutral rating on the stock. CME Group traded as low as $136.72 and last traded at $139.54, approximately 3,845,221 shares changed hands during mid-day trading. An increase of 68% from the average daily volume of 2,289,641 shares. The stock had previously closed at $158.41.

A number of other equities research analysts have also recently commented on the company. JPMorgan Chase & Co. decreased their price target on CME Group from $183.00 to $173.00 and set an “underweight” rating on the stock in a report on Friday, December 6th. Deutsche Bank dropped their price objective on CME Group from $260.00 to $243.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a research note on Wednesday, March 18th. Oppenheimer assumed coverage on CME Group in a research report on Wednesday, February 12th. They set a “buy” rating and a $234.00 target price for the company. BidaskClub cut CME Group from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report on Tuesday, March 17th. Finally, Sanford C. Bernstein downgraded CME Group from an “outperform” rating to a “market perform” rating in a research note on Friday, January 10th. Three investment analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, eight have issued a hold rating and five have issued a buy rating to the stock. The company currently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $208.27.

In related news, COO Julie Holzrichter sold 3,061 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction on Friday, February 28th. The shares were sold at an average price of $203.37, for a total value of $622,515.57. Following the sale, the chief operating officer now owns 37,284 shares in the company, valued at $7,582,447.08. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at the SEC website. Also, insider Julie Winkler sold 5,620 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction on Monday, February 24th. The stock was sold at an average price of $210.97, for a total transaction of $1,185,651.40. Following the completion of the sale, the insider now owns 25,114 shares in the company, valued at approximately $5,298,300.58. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last 90 days, insiders have sold 9,681 shares of company stock valued at $2,009,327. Company insiders own 1.20% of the company’s stock.

Large investors have recently modified their holdings of the business. Solstein Capital LLC purchased a new stake in CME Group during the 4th quarter valued at $26,000. Evoke Wealth LLC bought a new position in CME Group during the third quarter valued at $27,000. CFM Wealth Partners LLC purchased a new stake in shares of CME Group in the fourth quarter valued at $30,000. Virtus ETF Advisers LLC purchased a new stake in shares of CME Group in the fourth quarter valued at $32,000. Finally, Thor Advisors LLC purchased a new stake in shares of CME Group in the third quarter valued at $34,000. 85.27% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

The company’s fifty day moving average price is $199.26 and its 200-day moving average price is $205.23. The stock has a market cap of $56.77 billion, a P/E ratio of 25.76, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.59 and a beta of 0.19. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.14, a quick ratio of 1.03 and a current ratio of 1.03.

CME Group (NASDAQ:CME) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, February 12th. The financial services provider reported $1.52 earnings per share for the quarter, missing the Zacks’ consensus estimate of $1.54 by ($0.02). The firm had revenue of $1.14 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $1.16 billion. CME Group had a return on equity of 9.22% and a net margin of 43.48%. The business’s revenue for the quarter was down 7.9% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period last year, the company earned $1.77 earnings per share. Analysts anticipate that CME Group Inc will post 7.58 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, March 25th. Stockholders of record on Tuesday, March 10th will be paid a dividend of $0.85 per share. This is a boost from CME Group’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.75. The ex-dividend date is Monday, March 9th. This represents a $3.40 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 2.23%. CME Group’s dividend payout ratio is currently 50.00%.

About CME Group (NASDAQ:CME)

CME Group Inc, through its subsidiaries, operates contract markets for the trading of futures and options on futures contracts worldwide. It offers a range of products across various asset classes, including futures and options based on interest rates, equity indexes, foreign exchange, energy, agricultural commodities, and metals, as well as fixed income products.

Middleby Corp (NASDAQ:MIDD)’s stock price hit a new 52-week low during mid-day trading on Monday after Citigroup lowered their price target on the stock from $115.00 to $54.00. Citigroup currently has a neutral rating on the stock. Middleby traded as low as $43.40 and last traded at $44.59, with a volume of 13220 shares trading hands. The stock had previously closed at $47.07.

A number of other equities analysts also recently weighed in on the stock. ValuEngine raised shares of Middleby from a “sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Tuesday, December 3rd. BidaskClub lowered shares of Middleby from a “sell” rating to a “strong sell” rating in a research report on Tuesday, March 17th. Finally, Zacks Investment Research upgraded shares of Middleby from a “sell” rating to a “hold” rating and set a $119.00 target price on the stock in a research note on Friday, February 28th. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, five have issued a hold rating, one has assigned a buy rating and one has issued a strong buy rating to the company. The stock currently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and an average target price of $124.20.

In other Middleby news, Director Robert A. Nerbonne bought 465 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction on Monday, March 2nd. The stock was purchased at an average price of $108.94 per share, for a total transaction of $50,657.10. Following the completion of the transaction, the director now directly owns 1,282 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $139,661.08. The acquisition was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is accessible through this link. Also, Director Nassem Ziyad bought 1,000 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction on Friday, March 13th. The shares were acquired at an average price of $73.30 per share, with a total value of $73,300.00. Following the transaction, the director now directly owns 7,161 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $524,901.30. The disclosure for this purchase can be found here. Over the last 90 days, insiders acquired 9,365 shares of company stock worth $735,029. Corporate insiders own 1.98% of the company’s stock.

Several hedge funds have recently made changes to their positions in MIDD. Huntington National Bank raised its holdings in Middleby by 91.5% during the 4th quarter. Huntington National Bank now owns 224 shares of the industrial products company’s stock valued at $25,000 after acquiring an additional 107 shares during the period. Verus Capital Partners LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Middleby during the fourth quarter worth $31,000. Point72 Hong Kong Ltd purchased a new stake in shares of Middleby during the fourth quarter worth $64,000. Penserra Capital Management LLC lifted its position in shares of Middleby by 111.9% during the fourth quarter. Penserra Capital Management LLC now owns 784 shares of the industrial products company’s stock worth $86,000 after acquiring an additional 414 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Rockefeller Capital Management L.P. lifted its position in shares of Middleby by 416.6% during the fourth quarter. Rockefeller Capital Management L.P. now owns 904 shares of the industrial products company’s stock worth $99,000 after acquiring an additional 729 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors own 95.19% of the company’s stock.

The stock has a market cap of $2.64 billion, a PE ratio of 7.74 and a beta of 1.37. The firm has a 50-day simple moving average of $96.14 and a 200-day simple moving average of $109.75. The company has a quick ratio of 1.05, a current ratio of 2.04 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.96.

Middleby (NASDAQ:MIDD) last posted its earnings results on Wednesday, February 26th. The industrial products company reported $2.00 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $1.71 by $0.29. The firm had revenue of $787.63 million for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $759.84 million. Middleby had a return on equity of 20.64% and a net margin of 11.90%. The business’s quarterly revenue was up 4.1% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter in the prior year, the business posted $1.79 earnings per share. On average, research analysts expect that Middleby Corp will post 7.28 earnings per share for the current year.

Middleby Company Profile (NASDAQ:MIDD)

The Middleby Corporation designs, manufactures, markets, distributes, and services foodservice, food processing, and residential kitchen equipment in the United States, Canada, Asia, Europe, the Middle East, and Latin America. Its Commercial Foodservice Equipment Group segment offers foodservice equipment for quick and full-service restaurants, convenience stores, retail outlets, hotels, and other institutions.

Shares of ConturaEnergyInc . (NASDAQ:CTRA) were down 23.6% during trading on Tuesday after B. Riley lowered their price target on the stock from $11.00 to $9.00. B. Riley currently has a buy rating on the stock. ConturaEnergyInc . traded as low as $1.93 and last traded at $2.10, approximately 512,700 shares changed hands during mid-day trading. An increase of 122% from the average daily volume of 231,116 shares. The stock had previously closed at $2.75.

A number of other equities analysts also recently commented on the stock. Benchmark started coverage on shares of ConturaEnergyInc . in a research note on Friday, March 20th. They issued a “buy” rating and a $8.00 target price on the stock. Zacks Investment Research raised shares of ConturaEnergyInc . from a “sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Wednesday, February 12th. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a hold rating and three have given a buy rating to the stock. The stock has a consensus rating of “Buy” and a consensus price target of $31.67.

Institutional investors and hedge funds have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the stock. First Trust Advisors LP grew its holdings in ConturaEnergyInc . by 33.8% during the 3rd quarter. First Trust Advisors LP now owns 44,600 shares of the company’s stock valued at $1,247,000 after purchasing an additional 11,261 shares in the last quarter. Voloridge Investment Management LLC acquired a new stake in ConturaEnergyInc . during the 3rd quarter valued at $1,020,000. Barclays PLC grew its holdings in ConturaEnergyInc . by 16.9% during the 3rd quarter. Barclays PLC now owns 339,050 shares of the company’s stock valued at $9,480,000 after purchasing an additional 48,905 shares in the last quarter. Russell Investments Group Ltd. acquired a new stake in ConturaEnergyInc . during the 3rd quarter valued at $324,000. Finally, State Street Corp grew its holdings in ConturaEnergyInc . by 8.3% during the 3rd quarter. State Street Corp now owns 333,079 shares of the company’s stock valued at $9,313,000 after purchasing an additional 25,536 shares in the last quarter.The stock’s fifty day moving average is $5.27 and its two-hundred day moving average is $13.26.

ConturaEnergyInc . (NASDAQ:CTRA) last released its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, March 18th. The company reported ($3.71) earnings per share for the quarter, missing the Zacks’ consensus estimate of ($2.09) by ($1.62). The company had revenue of $499.08 million for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $497.20 million.

ConturaEnergyInc . Company Profile (NASDAQ:CTRA)

Contura Energy, Inc extracts, processes, and markets steam and metallurgical coal to electric utilities, steel and coke producers, and industrial customers in the United States and internationally. The company operates in three segments: Central Appalachia Operations, Northern Appalachia Operations, and Trading and Logistics.