Mark McGivney
Chief Financial Officer at Marsh & McLennan Companies
Thank you, John, and good morning. Our second quarter results were outstanding, with continued momentum in underlying growth, mid-teens adjusted EPS growth, solid margin expansion. Our consolidated revenue increased 9% to $5.9 billion with underlying growth of 11%. Operating income was $1.5 billion and adjusted operating income was also $1.5 billion, up 17%. Our adjusted operating margin increased 100 basis points to 27.7%, a good result given the headwinds from the talent investments we made in 2022, the timing of our annual raises, and a continued rebound in expenses such as T&E that we mentioned last quarter.
GAAP EPS was $2.07 and adjusted EPS was $2.20, up 16% over last year. For the first six months of 2023, underlying revenue growth was 10%, our adjusted operating income grew 15% to $3.3 billion, our adjusted operating margin increased 130 basis points, and our adjusted EPS increased 13% to $4.74. Looking at Risk & Insurance Services, second quarter revenue was $3.7 billion, up 12% compared with a year ago, or 13% on an underlying basis. This result marks the ninth consecutive quarter of 8% or higher underlying growth in RIS and continues the best stretch of growth in nearly two decades. Operating income increased 20% to $1.2 billion. Adjusted operating income increased 18% to $1.2 billion, and our adjusted operating margin expanded 140 basis points to 34.2%. For the first six months of the year, revenue in RIS was $7.6 billion with underlying growth of 12%. Adjusted operating income increased 17% to $2.6 billion, and the margin increased 170 basis points to 36.4%.
At Marsh, revenue in the quarter was $3 billion, up 9% from a year ago, or 10% on an underlying basis. This comes on top of 9% growth in the second quarter of last year. Growth in the second quarter reflected strong new business and excellent retention. In U.S. and Canada, underlying growth was 9% for the quarter. In international, underlying growth was 10% and comes on top of 9% in the second quarter of 2022. Latin America was up 17%, EMEA was up 11%, and Asia-Pacific grew 6%. For the first six months of the year, Marsh's revenue was $5.8 billion with underlying growth of 9%. U.S. and Canada grew 8% and international was up 10%.
Guy Carpenter's revenue was $576 million in the quarter, up 10%, or 11% on an underlying basis, driven by strong growth across all regions and global specialty. For the first six months of the year, Guy Carpenter generated $1.6 billion of revenue and 10% underlying growth.
In the consulting segment, second quarter revenue was $2.2 billion, up 4% from a year ago, or 8% on an underlying basis. Consulting operating income was $388 million. Adjusted operating income increased 9% to $403 million. The adjusted operating margin was 19.2% compared to 19.3% in the second quarter of last year. For the first six months of 2023, consulting revenue was $4.2 billion, representing underlying growth of 6%, and adjusted operating income increased 5% to $809 million.
Mercer's revenue was $1.4 billion in the quarter, up 6% on an underlying basis, representing the ninth consecutive quarter of 5% or higher underlying growth in Mercer. Wealth grew 3%, driven by continued strength in defined benefits. Investment management also delivered modest growth. Our assets under management were $393 billion at the end of the second quarter, up 11% sequentially and 14% compared to the second quarter of last year. Growth was driven by a modest rebound in capital markets, positive net flows, and our transaction with Westpac.
Health's underlying growth was 10%, reflecting strength in all segments and regions. Career revenue increased 6% on top of 17% growth in the second quarter of last year. We continue to see demand for rewards, talent strategy, and workforce transformation advice and solutions. For the first six months of the year, revenue at Mercer was $2.7 billion with 7% underlying growth.
Oliver Wyman's revenue in the quarter was $798 million, an increase of 11% on an underlying basis, and reflected continued strength in the Middle East and Europe, and a rebound in the Americas. For the first six months of the year, revenue at Oliver Wyman was $1.5 billion, an increase of 6% on an underlying basis.
Foreign exchange was a $0.02 headwind in the second quarter. Assuming exchange rates remain at current levels, we expect FX to be a $0.01 headwind in the third quarter and a $0.01 benefit in the fourth quarter. We reported $65 million of total restructuring costs in the quarter, approximately $50 million of which relates to the program we announced in the fourth quarter. These charges include costs related to severance, lease exits, and streamlining our technology environment. We continue to expect total charges under this program to be $375 million to $400 million. To date, we've incurred approximately $300 million of charges and currently expect to incur most of the remaining costs in 2023. We still expect to achieve total savings of roughly $300 million by 2024 and now expect to realize approximately $200 million in 2023.
Our other net benefit credit was $60 million in the quarter. For the full year 2023, we expect our other net benefit credit will be about $240 million. Investment income was $3 million in the second quarter on a GAAP basis and $2 million on an adjusted basis. Interest expense in the second quarter was $146 million, up from $114 million in the second quarter of 2022. This reflects an increase in long-term debt and higher interest rates on short-term borrowings, which we use for efficient working capital management. Based on our current forecast, we expect approximately $142 million of interest expense in the third quarter and approximately $567 million for the full year.
Our effective adjusted tax-rate in the second quarter was 24.2% compared with 23.7% in the second quarter of last year. Our tax rate in both periods benefited from favorable discrete items. The largest discrete item this quarter was the accounting for share-based compensation. Excluding discrete items, our effective adjusted tax rate was approximately 25.5%. When we give forward guidance around our tax rate, we do not project discrete items which can be positive or negative. Based on the current environment, it is reasonable to assume a tax rate between 25% and 26% for 2023.
Turning to capital management and our balance sheet. We ended the quarter with total debt of $12.6 billion. Our next scheduled debt maturity is October 2023 when $250 million of senior notes mature. We continue to expect to deploy approximately $4 billion of capital in 2023 across dividends, acquisitions, and share repurchases. The ultimate level of share repurchase will depend on how the M&A pipeline develops. Last week, we raised our quarterly dividend by 20%, marking our 14th consecutive year of dividend growth. This increase, the largest in 25 years, reflects our strong earnings growth over the past couple of years, confidence in our outlook. Our cash position at the end of the second-quarter was $1.2 billion. Uses of cash in the quarter totaled $1 billion, and included $295 million for dividends, $421 million for acquisitions, and $300 million for share repurchases. For the first six months, uses of cash totaled $1.9 billion and included $591 million for dividends, $701 million for acquisitions, and $600 million for share repurchases.
Given our strong results in the first half, we now expect high-single-digit underlying revenue growth for the full year. We continue to expect margin expansion for the full year and strong growth in adjusted EPS. This guidance is based on our outlook today. But as John mentioned, there continues to be uncertainty in the environment looking forward. So, outcomes could be different than our current assumptions. Overall, our excellent start leaves us well-positioned for another great year in 2023.
And with that, I'm happy to turn it back to John.
