LPL Financial LLC Acquires 56,295 Shares of Marsh & McLennan Companies, Inc. (NYSE:MMC)

LPL Financial LLC lifted its holdings in Marsh & McLennan Companies, Inc. (NYSE:MMC) by 23.6% in the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The fund owned 294,788 shares of the financial services provider’s stock after acquiring an additional 56,295 shares during the period. LPL Financial LLC owned 0.06% of Marsh & McLennan Companies worth $62,669,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Several other institutional investors and hedge funds also recently added to or reduced their stakes in MMC. Financial Life Planners bought a new position in Marsh & McLennan Companies in the 4th quarter valued at $33,000. Sierra Ocean LLC bought a new position in shares of Marsh & McLennan Companies in the fourth quarter worth about $36,000. Albion Financial Group UT purchased a new position in Marsh & McLennan Companies in the 4th quarter worth about $38,000. Golden State Wealth Management LLC bought a new stake in Marsh & McLennan Companies during the 4th quarter valued at about $41,000. Finally, Halbert Hargrove Global Advisors LLC bought a new position in Marsh & McLennan Companies in the 4th quarter worth about $45,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 87.99% of the company’s stock.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other news, CEO Nicholas Mark Studer sold 49,390 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, March 12th. The stock was sold at an average price of $230.16, for a total value of $11,367,602.40. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief executive officer now owns 28,329 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $6,520,202.64. The trade was a 63.55 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available through the SEC website. Also, VP Stacy Mills sold 1,317 shares of the firm’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 directly owns 2,923 shares in the company, valued at approximately $686,817.31. This trade represents a 31.06 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last ninety days, insiders sold 57,828 shares of company stock valued at $13,350,279. 0.30% of the stock is owned by insiders.

Marsh & McLennan Companies Stock Up 0.9 %

NYSE:MMC opened at $238.72 on Thursday. The company has a current ratio of 1.13, a quick ratio of 1.13 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.44. Marsh & McLennan Companies, Inc. has a twelve month low of $196.17 and a twelve month high of $241.84. The company has a market cap of $117.24 billion, a PE ratio of 29.15, a P/E/G ratio of 2.70 and a beta of 0.95. The company’s 50 day moving average is $228.56 and its two-hundred day moving average is $223.95.

Marsh & McLennan Companies (NYSE:MMC) last released 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%. Analysts anticipate that Marsh & McLennan Companies, Inc. will post 9.61 EPS for the current year.

Marsh & McLennan Companies Announces Dividend

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, May 15th. Investors of record on Thursday, April 3rd will be issued 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 1.37%. Marsh & McLennan Companies’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 39.80%.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of brokerages recently issued reports on MMC. Wells Fargo & Company boosted their price target on Marsh & McLennan Companies from $212.00 to $223.00 and gave the company an “equal weight” rating in a report on Friday, January 31st. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods dropped their price target on Marsh & McLennan Companies from $214.00 to $210.00 and set an “underperform” rating on the stock in a research report on Monday, February 3rd. Raymond James reaffirmed an “outperform” rating and issued a $250.00 price objective (up from $240.00) on shares of Marsh & McLennan Companies in a research note on Thursday, February 6th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. raised their target price on shares of Marsh & McLennan Companies from $230.00 to $235.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a research report on Friday, January 3rd. Finally, Redburn Atlantic started coverage on shares of Marsh & McLennan Companies in a research report on Tuesday. They issued a “buy” rating and a $281.00 price target for the company. Two investment analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, ten have assigned a hold rating and five have given a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat, Marsh & McLennan Companies has an average rating of “Hold” and an average target price of $233.41.

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.