Sentry Investment Management LLC Reduces Holdings in Marsh & McLennan Companies, Inc. (NYSE:MMC)

Sentry Investment Management LLC cut its stake in Marsh & McLennan Companies, Inc. (NYSE:MMC) by 14.0% in the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The fund owned 2,025 shares of the financial services provider’s stock after selling 330 shares during the period. Sentry Investment Management LLC’s holdings in Marsh & McLennan Companies were worth $430,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Several other hedge funds also recently made changes to their positions in MMC. Assenagon Asset Management S.A. boosted its holdings in shares of Marsh & McLennan Companies by 7,320.9% in the fourth quarter. Assenagon Asset Management S.A. now owns 1,108,758 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $235,511,000 after acquiring an additional 1,093,817 shares during the period. FMR LLC boosted its stake in Marsh & McLennan Companies by 2.5% during the 3rd quarter. FMR LLC now owns 21,445,110 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $4,784,190,000 after purchasing an additional 518,185 shares during the period. The Manufacturers Life Insurance Company grew its position in Marsh & McLennan Companies by 127.9% during the 3rd quarter. The Manufacturers Life Insurance Company now owns 899,716 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $200,718,000 after purchasing an additional 504,897 shares during the last quarter. Los Angeles Capital Management LLC raised its holdings in shares of Marsh & McLennan Companies by 219.5% in the third quarter. Los Angeles Capital Management LLC now owns 529,239 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $118,068,000 after buying an additional 363,569 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Erste Asset Management GmbH acquired a new stake in shares of Marsh & McLennan Companies during the third quarter worth about $76,424,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 87.99% of the company’s stock.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several analysts have commented on the company. JPMorgan Chase & Co. upped their price objective on Marsh & McLennan Companies from $230.00 to $235.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a research note on Friday, January 3rd. Evercore ISI restated an “outperform” rating and set a $242.00 price target on shares of Marsh & McLennan Companies in a research note on Monday, November 25th. Wells Fargo & Company lifted their price objective on shares of Marsh & McLennan Companies from $212.00 to $223.00 and gave the company an “equal weight” rating in a research report on Friday, January 31st. Barclays lifted their price objective on Marsh & McLennan Companies from $236.00 to $246.00 and gave the company an “equal weight” rating in a report on Thursday, November 21st. Finally, Royal Bank of Canada raised Marsh & McLennan Companies from a “sector perform” rating to an “outperform” rating and raised their price target for the company from $242.00 to $250.00 in a report on Thursday, December 12th. Two investment analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, ten have issued a hold rating and four have issued a buy rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the company currently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and a consensus target price of $230.44.

Marsh & McLennan Companies Stock Performance

NYSE:MMC opened at $232.63 on Tuesday. Marsh & McLennan Companies, Inc. has a 1-year low of $196.17 and a 1-year high of $235.50. The firm has a 50 day simple moving average of $218.61 and a 200-day simple moving average of $222.41. The firm has a market cap of $114.25 billion, a PE ratio of 28.40, a P/E/G ratio of 2.70 and a beta of 0.96. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.44, a current ratio of 1.13 and a quick ratio of 1.13.

Marsh & McLennan Companies (NYSE:MMC) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, January 30th. The financial services provider reported $1.87 earnings per share for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.75 by $0.12. Marsh & McLennan Companies had a return on equity of 32.60% and a net margin of 16.60%. On average, equities analysts expect that Marsh & McLennan Companies, Inc. will post 9.61 EPS for the current year.

Marsh & McLennan Companies Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, February 14th. Shareholders of record on Thursday, January 30th were paid a $0.815 dividend. This represents a $3.26 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 1.40%. The ex-dividend date was Thursday, January 30th. Marsh & McLennan Companies’s payout ratio is 39.80%.

Marsh & McLennan Companies Profile

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.