Shares of Marsh & McLennan Companies, Inc. (NYSE:MMC – Get Free Report) have received an average recommendation of “Hold” from the fourteen research firms that are currently covering the firm, Marketbeat.com reports. Eleven research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and three have assigned a buy rating to the company. The average 12 month price objective among brokers that have issued ratings on the stock in the last year is $193.23.
MMC has been the topic of a number of analyst reports. Wells Fargo & Company boosted their price objective on shares of Marsh & McLennan Companies from $200.00 to $208.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research report on Friday, July 21st. Morgan Stanley increased their price target on Marsh & McLennan Companies from $202.00 to $205.00 and gave the company an “equal weight” rating in a research note on Friday, July 21st. Roth Capital reiterated a “neutral” rating on shares of Marsh & McLennan Companies in a research note on Monday, April 24th. StockNews.com raised shares of Marsh & McLennan Companies from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a research note on Friday, July 21st. Finally, Evercore ISI raised shares of Marsh & McLennan Companies from an “in-line” rating to an “outperform” rating and raised their price objective for the stock from $195.00 to $199.00 in a research note on Thursday, June 8th.
Insider Activity
In other news, CEO Dean Michael Klisura sold 12,976 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, July 26th. The stock was sold at an average price of $192.20, for a total value of $2,493,987.20. Following the transaction, the chief executive officer now owns 20,935 shares in the company, valued at approximately $4,023,707. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available at this hyperlink. In related news, CEO Dean Michael Klisura sold 12,976 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, July 26th. The stock was sold at an average price of $192.20, for a total value of $2,493,987.20. Following the transaction, the chief executive officer now owns 20,935 shares in the company, valued at approximately $4,023,707. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this hyperlink. Also, CFO Mark C. Mcgivney sold 70,106 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated Thursday, June 29th. The stock was sold at an average price of $185.53, for a total transaction of $13,006,766.18. Following the sale, the chief financial officer now directly owns 33,678 shares in the company, valued at approximately $6,248,279.34. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Company insiders own 0.30% of the company’s stock.
Institutional Inflows and Outflows
Several large investors have recently modified their holdings of the stock. Parallel Advisors LLC lifted its holdings in shares of Marsh & McLennan Companies by 5.6% during the 2nd quarter. Parallel Advisors LLC now owns 6,073 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $1,142,000 after acquiring an additional 324 shares in the last quarter. Envestnet Asset Management Inc. raised its holdings in shares of Marsh & McLennan Companies by 2.4% during the second quarter. Envestnet Asset Management Inc. now owns 976,202 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $183,604,000 after buying an additional 23,317 shares during the last quarter. Smith Salley & Associates increased its holdings in shares of Marsh & McLennan Companies by 17.2% during the second quarter. Smith Salley & Associates now owns 1,614 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $304,000 after purchasing an additional 237 shares during the period. Markel Group Inc. increased its holdings in shares of Marsh & McLennan Companies by 1.4% during the second quarter. Markel Group Inc. now owns 659,500 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $124,039,000 after purchasing an additional 9,000 shares during the period. Finally, American International Group Inc. boosted its stake in Marsh & McLennan Companies by 0.8% during the second quarter. American International Group Inc. now owns 163,853 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $30,817,000 after buying an additional 1,345 shares in the last quarter. 86.33% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.
Marsh & McLennan Companies Price Performance
Shares of NYSE:MMC opened at $189.59 on Monday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.84, a current ratio of 1.05 and a quick ratio of 1.05. Marsh & McLennan Companies has a 1-year low of $148.11 and a 1-year high of $194.16. The firm’s 50 day simple moving average is $183.87 and its two-hundred day simple moving average is $175.04. The company has a market capitalization of $93.65 billion, a P/E ratio of 28.95, a P/E/G ratio of 2.34 and a beta of 0.94.
Marsh & McLennan Companies (NYSE:MMC – Get Free Report) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, July 20th. The financial services provider reported $2.20 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $2.12 by $0.08. The company had revenue of $5.88 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $5.77 billion. Marsh & McLennan Companies had a net margin of 15.20% and a return on equity of 33.69%. Marsh & McLennan Companies’s revenue for the quarter was up 9.2% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period in the previous year, the firm posted $1.89 EPS. Research analysts expect that Marsh & McLennan Companies will post 7.71 EPS for the current fiscal year.
Marsh & McLennan Companies Increases Dividend
The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, August 15th. Shareholders of record on Thursday, July 27th will be paid a $0.71 dividend. This is an increase from Marsh & McLennan Companies’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.59. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Wednesday, July 26th. This represents a $2.84 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 1.50%. Marsh & McLennan Companies’s payout ratio is 43.36%.
About Marsh & McLennan Companies
Marsh & McLennan Cos., Inc is a professional services firm, which engages in offering clients advice and solutions in risk, strategy, and people. It operates through the Risk and Insurance Services, and Consulting segments. The Risk and Insurance Services segment is involved in risk management activities, as well as insurance and reinsurance broking and services.
Further Reading
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