Erste Asset Management GmbH Takes Position in Marsh & McLennan Companies, Inc. (NYSE:MMC)

Erste Asset Management GmbH bought a new position in shares of Marsh & McLennan Companies, Inc. (NYSE:MMC) during the third quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The institutional investor bought 341,984 shares of the financial services provider’s stock, valued at approximately $76,424,000. Marsh & McLennan Companies accounts for 0.9% of Erste Asset Management GmbH’s portfolio, making the stock its 22nd largest position.

A number of other institutional investors have also added to or reduced their stakes in MMC. FMR LLC increased its holdings in shares of Marsh & McLennan Companies by 2.5% during the third quarter. FMR LLC now owns 21,445,110 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $4,784,190,000 after acquiring an additional 518,185 shares in the last quarter. Legal & General Group Plc lifted its position in Marsh & McLennan Companies by 5.2% during the second quarter. Legal & General Group Plc now owns 4,530,716 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $954,712,000 after purchasing an additional 223,257 shares during the period. Parnassus Investments LLC grew its holdings in shares of Marsh & McLennan Companies by 2.0% in the third quarter. Parnassus Investments LLC now owns 4,274,880 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $953,683,000 after acquiring an additional 85,754 shares during the period. Clearbridge Investments LLC increased its position in shares of Marsh & McLennan Companies by 1.7% during the 2nd quarter. Clearbridge Investments LLC now owns 3,409,110 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $718,368,000 after purchasing an additional 58,461 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Jensen Investment Management Inc. increased its holdings in Marsh & McLennan Companies by 1.3% during the second quarter. Jensen Investment Management Inc. now owns 3,226,258 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $679,837,000 after buying an additional 40,182 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors own 87.99% of the company’s stock.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of research analysts recently issued reports on the company. Roth Mkm boosted their price objective on Marsh & McLennan Companies from $220.00 to $230.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a research note on Friday, October 18th. Evercore ISI restated an “outperform” rating and issued a $242.00 price objective on shares of Marsh & McLennan Companies in a research report on Monday, November 25th. The Goldman Sachs Group set a $220.00 target price on Marsh & McLennan Companies and gave the stock a “sell” rating in a research report on Friday, October 18th. BMO Capital Markets boosted their price target on Marsh & McLennan Companies from $217.00 to $228.00 and gave the stock a “market perform” rating in a report on Tuesday, October 22nd. Finally, Jefferies Financial Group lifted their price objective on shares of Marsh & McLennan Companies from $219.00 to $222.00 and gave the company a “hold” rating in a research report on Wednesday, October 9th. Two equities research analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, twelve have assigned a hold rating and two have assigned a buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the stock presently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and an average target price of $227.60.

Insider Transactions at Marsh & McLennan Companies

In related news, Director Oscar Fanjul sold 2,500 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, October 30th. The stock was sold at an average price of $221.55, for a total transaction of $553,875.00. Following the completion of the sale, the director now directly owns 48,549 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $10,756,030.95. This trade represents a 4.90 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through the SEC website. Company insiders own 0.30% of the company’s stock.

Marsh & McLennan Companies Stock Down 0.0 %

Shares of NYSE MMC opened at $233.23 on Friday. The stock has a market capitalization of $114.54 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 28.72, a P/E/G ratio of 2.81 and a beta of 0.94. Marsh & McLennan Companies, Inc. has a 12-month low of $184.28 and a 12-month high of $235.50. The company has a current ratio of 1.14, a quick ratio of 1.14 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.89. The firm’s 50-day moving average price is $224.26 and its 200-day moving average price is $219.79.

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, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.61 by $0.02. Marsh & McLennan Companies had a return on equity of 32.65% and a net margin of 16.82%. The firm had revenue of $5.70 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $5.71 billion. During the same quarter in the previous year, the business earned $1.57 EPS. The company’s quarterly revenue was up 5.9% on a year-over-year basis. On average, equities research analysts anticipate that Marsh & McLennan Companies, Inc. will post 8.68 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Marsh & McLennan Companies Announces Dividend

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, November 15th. Stockholders of record on Friday, October 4th were paid a $0.815 dividend. This represents a $3.26 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 1.40%. The ex-dividend date was Friday, October 4th. Marsh & McLennan Companies’s dividend payout ratio is currently 40.15%.

Marsh & McLennan Companies 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.