AustralianSuper Pty Ltd Raises Position in Marsh & McLennan Companies, Inc. (NYSE:MMC)

AustralianSuper Pty Ltd boosted its holdings in Marsh & McLennan Companies, Inc. (NYSE:MMC) by 18.1% during the third quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The fund owned 23,897 shares of the financial services provider’s stock after acquiring an additional 3,661 shares during the quarter. AustralianSuper Pty Ltd’s holdings in Marsh & McLennan Companies were worth $5,331,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Several other institutional investors and hedge funds have also recently modified their holdings of MMC. US Bancorp DE increased its position in shares of Marsh & McLennan Companies by 2.4% in the third quarter. US Bancorp DE now owns 153,578 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $34,263,000 after purchasing an additional 3,630 shares during the last quarter. HM Payson & Co. raised its position in shares of Marsh & McLennan Companies by 2.7% during the 3rd quarter. HM Payson & Co. now owns 4,937 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $1,101,000 after buying an additional 131 shares in the last quarter. Catalyst Financial Partners LLC lifted its holdings in shares of Marsh & McLennan Companies by 8.1% during the 3rd quarter. Catalyst Financial Partners LLC now owns 1,698 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $379,000 after acquiring an additional 127 shares during the last quarter. Financial Advocates Investment Management increased its stake in Marsh & McLennan Companies by 2.1% in the third quarter. Financial Advocates Investment Management now owns 4,165 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $929,000 after acquiring an additional 85 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Hudson Valley Investment Advisors Inc. ADV raised its position in Marsh & McLennan Companies by 7.0% during the third quarter. Hudson Valley Investment Advisors Inc. ADV now owns 50,332 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $11,229,000 after purchasing an additional 3,276 shares in the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 87.99% of the company’s stock.

Marsh & McLennan Companies Stock Down 1.2 %

Shares of Marsh & McLennan Companies stock opened at $218.27 on Friday. The company has a current ratio of 1.14, a quick ratio of 1.14 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.89. Marsh & McLennan Companies, Inc. has a 12-month low of $184.28 and a 12-month high of $232.32. The company has a market cap of $107.20 billion, a P/E ratio of 26.88, a PEG ratio of 3.29 and a beta of 0.94. The company’s fifty day simple moving average is $225.24 and its two-hundred day simple moving average is $216.12.

Marsh & McLennan Companies (NYSE:MMC) last announced its earnings results on Thursday, October 17th. The financial services provider reported $1.63 EPS for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.61 by $0.02. Marsh & McLennan Companies had a net margin of 16.82% and a return on equity of 32.65%. The firm had revenue of $5.70 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $5.71 billion. During the same quarter in the previous year, the business posted $1.57 EPS. The company’s quarterly revenue was up 5.9% on a year-over-year basis. Research analysts anticipate that Marsh & McLennan Companies, Inc. will post 8.7 EPS for the current year.

Marsh & McLennan Companies Announces Dividend

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, November 15th. Investors of record on Friday, October 4th will be issued a $0.815 dividend. The ex-dividend date is Friday, October 4th. This represents a $3.26 annualized dividend and a yield of 1.49%. Marsh & McLennan Companies’s payout ratio is 40.15%.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other Marsh & McLennan Companies news, Director Oscar Fanjul sold 2,500 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, October 30th. The shares were sold at an average price of $221.55, for a total value of $553,875.00. Following the transaction, the director now directly owns 48,549 shares in the company, valued at approximately $10,756,030.95. This trade represents a 0.00 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this hyperlink. In other Marsh & McLennan Companies news, Director Oscar Fanjul sold 2,500 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, October 30th. The stock was sold at an average price of $221.55, for a total value of $553,875.00. Following the completion of the sale, the director now owns 48,549 shares in the company, valued at $10,756,030.95. This represents a 0.00 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available through this hyperlink. Also, CFO Mark C. Mcgivney sold 5,200 shares of Marsh & McLennan Companies stock in a transaction dated Monday, August 5th. The shares were sold at an average price of $225.03, for a total value of $1,170,156.00. Following the transaction, the chief financial officer now directly owns 33,678 shares in the company, valued at approximately $7,578,560.34. The trade was a 0.00 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. 0.30% of the stock is owned by insiders.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of brokerages recently weighed in on MMC. JPMorgan Chase & Co. raised their price objective on Marsh & McLennan Companies from $210.00 to $230.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a report on Thursday, July 11th. Barclays initiated coverage on shares of Marsh & McLennan Companies in a report on Wednesday, September 4th. They issued an “equal weight” rating and a $236.00 price objective for the company. BMO Capital Markets increased their target price on shares of Marsh & McLennan Companies from $217.00 to $228.00 and gave the company a “market perform” rating in a report on Tuesday, October 22nd. The Goldman Sachs Group set a $220.00 price target on shares of Marsh & McLennan Companies and gave the company a “sell” rating in a research report on Friday, October 18th. Finally, UBS Group increased their target price on Marsh & McLennan Companies from $255.00 to $259.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a report on Tuesday, October 22nd. Two research analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, twelve have assigned a hold rating and two have issued a buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat, the stock currently has an average rating of “Hold” and an average target price of $225.33.

Marsh & McLennan Companies Company Profile

Marsh & McLennan Companies, Inc, a professional services company, provides advice and solutions to clients in the areas of risk, strategy, and people worldwide. It operates through Risk and Insurance Services, and Consulting segments. The Risk and Insurance Services segment offers risk management services, such as risk advice, risk transfer, and risk control and mitigation solutions, as well as insurance and reinsurance broking, strategic advisory services, and analytics solutions, and insurance program management services.