Royal London Asset Management Ltd. Grows Holdings in Marsh & McLennan Companies, Inc. (NYSE:MMC)

Royal London Asset Management Ltd. increased its position in Marsh & McLennan Companies, Inc. (NYSE:MMC) by 1.8% in the 4th quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 214,090 shares of the financial services provider’s stock after acquiring an additional 3,743 shares during the quarter. Royal London Asset Management Ltd.’s holdings in Marsh & McLennan Companies were worth $45,475,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Other institutional investors have also added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Geode Capital Management LLC grew its holdings in Marsh & McLennan Companies by 2.2% during the 3rd quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC now owns 11,905,431 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $2,648,304,000 after buying an additional 251,361 shares in the last quarter. Louisbourg Investments Inc. grew its holdings in Marsh & McLennan Companies by 67.2% during the 4th quarter. Louisbourg Investments Inc. now owns 8,211 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $1,744,000 after buying an additional 3,300 shares in the last quarter. Citigroup Inc. grew its holdings in shares of Marsh & McLennan Companies by 4.8% in the third quarter. Citigroup Inc. now owns 508,245 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $113,384,000 after purchasing an additional 23,445 shares in the last quarter. Kovitz Investment Group Partners LLC grew its holdings in shares of Marsh & McLennan Companies by 197.5% in the third quarter. Kovitz Investment Group Partners LLC now owns 11,116 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $2,480,000 after purchasing an additional 7,380 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Sanctuary Advisors LLC grew its holdings in shares of Marsh & McLennan Companies by 4.3% in the third quarter. Sanctuary Advisors LLC now owns 85,424 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $19,461,000 after purchasing an additional 3,553 shares in the last quarter. 87.99% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Insider Buying and Selling at Marsh & McLennan Companies

In other news, CEO Dean Michael Klisura sold 7,121 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated Monday, March 10th. The stock was sold at an average price of $234.97, for a total transaction of $1,673,221.37. Following the sale, the chief executive officer now owns 20,935 shares in the company, valued at approximately $4,919,096.95. The trade was a 25.38 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this hyperlink. Also, VP Stacy Mills sold 1,317 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated Monday, March 10th. The stock was sold at an average price of $234.97, for a total value of $309,455.49. Following the sale, the vice president now owns 2,923 shares in the company, valued at $686,817.31. The trade was a 31.06 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders have sold 57,828 shares of company stock worth $13,350,279 over the last quarter. Insiders own 0.30% of the company’s stock.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of research analysts recently weighed in on the stock. Royal Bank of Canada raised shares of Marsh & McLennan Companies from a “sector perform” rating to an “outperform” rating and raised their target price for the company from $242.00 to $250.00 in a report on Thursday, December 12th. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods cut their target price on shares of Marsh & McLennan Companies from $214.00 to $210.00 and set an “underperform” rating for the company in a report on Monday, February 3rd. Barclays raised their price target on Marsh & McLennan Companies from $236.00 to $246.00 and gave the stock an “equal weight” rating in a research report on Thursday, November 21st. Raymond James restated an “outperform” rating and issued a $250.00 price target (up from $240.00) on shares of Marsh & McLennan Companies in a research report on Thursday, February 6th. Finally, JPMorgan Chase & Co. raised their price target on Marsh & McLennan Companies from $230.00 to $235.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a research report on Friday, January 3rd. Two analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, ten have assigned a hold rating and four have assigned a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the company currently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and an average target price of $230.44.

Marsh & McLennan Companies Price Performance

MMC opened at $233.49 on Friday. The business’s 50-day moving average is $226.65 and its two-hundred day moving average is $223.79. Marsh & McLennan Companies, Inc. has a 1 year low of $196.17 and a 1 year high of $241.84. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.44, a current ratio of 1.13 and a quick ratio of 1.13. The firm has a market capitalization of $114.68 billion, a PE ratio of 28.51, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.70 and a beta of 0.95.

Marsh & McLennan Companies (NYSE:MMC) last posted its earnings results on Thursday, January 30th. The financial services provider reported $1.87 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $1.75 by $0.12. Marsh & McLennan Companies had a return on equity of 32.60% and a net margin of 16.60%. Research analysts anticipate that Marsh & McLennan Companies, Inc. will post 9.61 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Marsh & McLennan Companies Announces Dividend

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, May 15th. Shareholders of record on Thursday, April 3rd will be paid a $0.815 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Thursday, April 3rd. This represents a $3.26 annualized dividend and a yield of 1.40%. Marsh & McLennan Companies’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 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.