CME Group
CME on Nasdaq. CME Group sells futures and options trading and clearing to traders and firms. Market value $98.9bn.
Price checks use the past 12 months to June 2026. Some use the latest annual report instead, as marked. Quality checks use five annual reports, the latest for the year to December 2025.
We can't read total debt from the filing, so debt is left out.
Should I look at this?
Not a fit for our list right now
Why it could be worth it
See Financial services stocks that passed both tests
This is not advice. Check the numbers below.
Yearly profit per dollar of owners' money: 12 cents. Above 10 is good.
What you pay for each dollar of net assets: $3.67.
Profit per $100 you pay: $4.41.
Quality score: 68 of 100. Price score: 27 of 100. Our list needs 70 on quality and 60 on price.
$270.03 a share, 24% above its 1-year low
Over the past year the price has ranged from $218.31 to $329.16.
Dividend: 4.0% a year
Paid every year for at least 5 years
Prices from Monday’s close (5 October).
Five years of cash, in billions
| Revenue | |||||
| Revenue | $4.7bn | $5.0bn | $5.6bn | $6.1bn | $6.5bn |
| Operating margin | |||||
| Operating margin | n/a | n/a | n/a | n/a | n/a |
| Debt to equity | |||||
| Debt to equity | n/a | n/a | n/a | n/a | n/a |
| Shares outstanding | |||||
| Shares outstanding | 0.36bn | 0.36bn | 0.36bn | 0.36bn | 0.36bn |
Health checks
- Free cash flow positiveDoesn't apply to banks and insurers
- Accounting checksDoesn't apply to banks and insurers
- DebtDoesn't apply to banks and insurers
- Revenue growth, five yearsSlow, 6.0% a year
- Buying back its own sharesRoughly flat
The quarter to June 2026
How the business did, compared with the same quarter a year earlier.
- Sales: $1.7 billion last quarter, about the same as a year ago.
- Profit: $1 billion, about the same as a year ago.
- Spare cash over the past 12 months: $4.2 billion, up from $4.1 billion.
- About the same number of shares as a year ago.
- Sales grew on a year ago in 3 of the last 4 quarters.
| Quarter to | Amount |
|---|---|
| September 2024 | $1.6bn |
| December 2024 | $1.5bn |
| March 2025 | $1.6bn |
| June 2025 | $1.7bn |
| September 2025 | $1.5bn |
| December 2025 | $1.6bn |
| March 2026 | $1.9bn |
| June 2026 | $1.7bn |
| Quarter to | Amount |
|---|---|
| September 2024 | $901m |
| December 2024 | $864m |
| March 2025 | $944m |
| June 2025 | $1.0bn |
| September 2025 | $897m |
| December 2025 | $1.2bn |
| March 2026 | $1.2bn |
| June 2026 | $1.0bn |
From the company's quarterly reports to the SEC.
Dates
- Next results (estimated)
- 21 October 2026
- Last annual report (10-K)
- 26 February 2026
- Next quarterly (estimated, 10-Q)
- 23 October 2026
Who owns it
20 long-term investors we follow own it, up from 18 last quarter. 1,701 funds in all.
- Longview PartnersLongview team
- Value
- $221m
- Share of fund
- 3.6%
- Markel GroupTom Gayner
- Value
- $11m
- Share of fund
- <0.1%
- Lindsell TrainNick Train
- Value
- $2m
- Share of fund
- <0.1%
| Fund | Value | Share of that fund | Change |
|---|---|---|---|
| Sanders CapitalLew Sanders | $1.1bn | 1.1% | Added |
| Longview PartnersLongview team | $221m | 3.6% | |
| Mawer Investment ManagementMawer team | $211m | 1.4% | Cut |
| GuardCap Asset ManagementGuardCap team | $172m | 12.2% | Cut |
| Baupost GroupSeth Klarman | $137m | 2.5% | New |
| Scharf InvestmentsBrian Krawez | $64m | 2.1% | Cut |
| Horizon KineticsMurray Stahl | $63m | 0.7% | Added |
| Troy Asset ManagementSebastian Lyon (founder) | $62m | 1.7% | Added |
| Cambiar InvestorsBrian Barish | $50m | 2.2% | Added |
| Gotham Asset ManagementJoel Greenblatt | $44m | 0.1% | Added |
| Mairs & PowerAndy Adams | $43m | 0.4% | New |
| Viking Global InvestorsAndreas Halvorsen | $34m | <0.1% | New |
| Marathon Asset ManagementNeil Ostrer | $21m | 0.9% | Cut |
| Cantillon Capital ManagementWilliam von Mueffling | $14m | 2.1% | Cut |
| Markel GroupTom Gayner | $11m | <0.1% | |
| Century ManagementArnold Van Den Berg | $5m | 1.0% | Added |
| Lindsell TrainNick Train | $2m | <0.1% | |
| First Manhattan Co.First Manhattan partners | $1m | <0.1% | Cut |
| Seilern Investment ManagementPeter Seilern | $839,154 | 0.1% | Cut |
| GAMCO InvestorsMario Gabelli | $596,683 | <0.1% | Cut |
Sold out this quarter
- Egerton CapitalJohn ArmitageSold out
Largest holders overall
- BlackRock$6.7bnCut
- Vanguard Capital Management$5.2bn
- State Street$3.6bn
- Banque Cantonale Vaudoise$3.3bnAdded
- Morgan Stanley$2.1bnAdded
- Geode Capital Management$2.0bn
- Vanguard Portfolio Management$2.0bn
- Capital World Investors$1.5bn
- JPMorgan Chase$1.3bnCut
- Sanders Capital$1.1bnAdded
From 13F filings for the quarter ended 30 June 2026.
Big holders and activists
1 investor owns more than 5%.
- Vanguard Capital ManagementPassive investor7.4%Since 31 March 2026
- The Vanguard GroupPassive investorSold down below 5%Since 13 March 2026
| Holder | Stake | Since | |
|---|---|---|---|
Vanguard Capital Management Passive investor | 7.4% | 31 March 2026 | |
The Vanguard Group Passive investor | Sold down below 5% | 13 March 2026 |
From Schedule 13D and 13G filings: anyone owning more than 5% must file one.
What insiders did
In the last 12 months, 1 insider bought $666,921 of shares on the open market. 10 sold $30m, $1m of it under preset trading plans.
- SHEPARD WILLIAM RDirectorBought
- Date
- 25 September 2026
- Shares
- 293
- Price
- $268.76
- Value
- $78,626
- Cook Elizabeth ADirectorSold
- Date
- 14 September 2026
- Shares
- 500
- Price
- $280.11
- Value
- $140,055
- DUFFY TERRENCE AChairman and CEO, DirectorSold
- Date
- 10 September 2026
- Shares
- 15,000
- Price
- $274.44
- Value
- $4m
- SHEPARD WILLIAM RDirectorBought
- Date
- 25 June 2026
- Shares
- 339
- Price
- $230.57
- Value
- $78,186
- Piell Hilda HarrisSr MD & Chief HR OfficerSold
- Date
- 18 May 2026
- Shares
- 5,753
- Price
- $304.63
- Value
- $2m
- DUFFY TERRENCE AChairman and CEO, DirectorSold
- Date
- 15 May 2026
- Shares
- 35,000
- Price
- $298.51
- Value
- $10m
- SHEPARD WILLIAM RDirectorBought
- Date
- 26 March 2026
- Shares
- 1,470
- Price
- $297.38
- Value
- $437,101
- Marcus Jonathan LSr MD General CounselSoldunder a preset trading plan
- Date
- 17 March 2026
- Shares
- 3,291
- Price
- $313.37
- Value
- $1m
- Vroman KenChief Transformation OfficerSold
- Date
- 12 March 2026
- Shares
- 5,160
- Price
- $309.00
- Value
- $2m
- Cook Elizabeth ADirectorSold
- Date
- 6 March 2026
- Shares
- 1,000
- Price
- $320.00
- Value
- $320,000
| Date | Who | Did | Shares | Price | Value |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 25 September 2026 | SHEPARD WILLIAM R Director | Bought | 293 | $268.76 | $78,626 |
| 14 September 2026 | Cook Elizabeth A Director | Sold | 500 | $280.11 | $140,055 |
| 10 September 2026 | DUFFY TERRENCE A Chairman and CEO, Director | Sold | 15,000 | $274.44 | $4m |
| 25 June 2026 | SHEPARD WILLIAM R Director | Bought | 339 | $230.57 | $78,186 |
| 18 May 2026 | Piell Hilda Harris Sr MD & Chief HR Officer | Sold | 5,753 | $304.63 | $2m |
| 15 May 2026 | DUFFY TERRENCE A Chairman and CEO, Director | Sold | 35,000 | $298.51 | $10m |
| 26 March 2026 | SHEPARD WILLIAM R Director | Bought | 1,470 | $297.38 | $437,101 |
| 17 March 2026 | Marcus Jonathan L Sr MD General Counsel | Sold under a preset trading plan | 3,291 | $313.37 | $1m |
| 12 March 2026 | Vroman Ken Chief Transformation Officer | Sold | 5,160 | $309.00 | $2m |
| 6 March 2026 | Cook Elizabeth A Director | Sold | 1,000 | $320.00 | $320,000 |
From Form 4 filings: insiders must report trades in their own company's shares within two days.
Warning signs in its filings
Problems the company itself reported to the SEC, in its own words.
None of the warning signs we check for were found.
We look for five warning signs: doubt it can keep going, weak checks on its own accounts, a notice that its past accounts can't be relied on, a change of auditor, and one customer bringing in a big share of sales. We don't check lawsuits, investigations or debt yet.
We checked the auditor's report, internal controls, restatement notices, auditor changes and big customers in the 10-K filed 26 Feb 2026, plus the 10-Q filed 24 Jul 2026 and 9 later 8-Ks.
A 10-K is the yearly report every US company files with the SEC. An 8-K is a short notice of a big event.
What could go wrong
Cheap for a reason is the question the numbers cannot answer.
Whether the price already reflects the risks is what the deep dive is for.
The deep dive
Everything above is arithmetic on public filings. The deep dive reads the last ten years of annual reports, the proxy statements, and the earnings calls, then argues the case the way Buffett, Klarman, and Hohn would, and checks every claim against the source.
- What the business is worth, as a range, and the margin of safety at today’s price
- Prices to start buying, buy, and buy hard
- The three things that would make this a mistake
- Every number footnoted to the filing it came from
Your first deep dive is free.
Not advice. Numbers on this page come from SEC filings and are updated each night; prices are updated again after the US market closes. The five-year figures are rounded.