CME Group, the second largest futures exchange in the world in terms of trading volume, reported strong financials for the third quarter of 2015. Revenues increased 11.5% y-o-y to $850.3 mn and surpassed consensus estimate of $846 mn. The growth was primarily attributable to improvement in clearing and transaction fees (up 11.4%), market data and information services (up 13.5%) and access and communication fees (up 3.8%). The company’s average daily volume jumped 7% y-o-y to 14.4 mn contracts in the quarter. Operating expenses inched up just 0.6% to $333.9 mn due to solid expense discipline, and operating income rose 20% to $516.4 mn, with operating margin expanding 4.2 percentage points to 60.7%. Adjusted earnings per share jumped 21.4% to $1.02 topping analysts’ average projection of 98 cents. In Q3, CME paid dividends worth of $168 mn or 50 cents per share, which offers annualized dividend yield of 2.1%. My outlook for CME remains optimistic. I believe that increasing trading volumes and non-transaction revenues combined with aggressive focus on improving execution and enhancing efficiency will continue to drive the company’s financials going forward. I also note that CME’s growth initiatives are significantly increasing its global activity, with electronic trading revenues from customers outside the United States reaching a record 32% in Q3. Additionally, the Letter of Intent with Taiwan Futures Exchange and Korea Financial Investment Association opens new growth opportunities in Asia. Currently, CME’s stock is testing a $98.5 resistance level. I'd buy on breaking it out, with the medium-term goal of $105.. $CME, CME Group Inc. / 1440