Marsh & McLennan Companies, Inc. (NYSE:MMC) Shares Sold by BI Asset Management Fondsmaeglerselskab A S

BI Asset Management Fondsmaeglerselskab A S cut its holdings in shares of Marsh & McLennan Companies, Inc. (NYSE:MMC - Free Report) by 20.1% in the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The firm owned 40,526 shares of the financial services provider's stock after selling 10,175 shares during the quarter. BI Asset Management Fondsmaeglerselskab A S's holdings in Marsh & McLennan Companies were worth $8,608,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission.

Several other institutional investors and hedge funds have also recently bought and sold shares of MMC. Vanguard Group Inc. raised its stake in shares of Marsh & McLennan Companies by 0.8% in the 4th quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 44,739,515 shares of the financial services provider's stock valued at $9,503,120,000 after acquiring an additional 356,618 shares during the period. Geode Capital Management LLC raised its position in Marsh & McLennan Companies by 1.2% in the fourth quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC now owns 12,050,565 shares of the financial services provider's stock valued at $2,554,841,000 after purchasing an additional 145,134 shares during the period. Norges Bank acquired a new position in Marsh & McLennan Companies during the fourth quarter worth $1,236,186,000. Amundi boosted its position in shares of Marsh & McLennan Companies by 81.1% during the fourth quarter. Amundi now owns 4,072,976 shares of the financial services provider's stock worth $860,824,000 after buying an additional 1,823,807 shares during the period. Finally, JPMorgan Chase & Co. raised its holdings in shares of Marsh & McLennan Companies by 4.8% in the 3rd quarter. JPMorgan Chase & Co. now owns 3,999,771 shares of the financial services provider's stock valued at $892,309,000 after buying an additional 184,239 shares during the period. 87.99% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Marsh & McLennan Companies Stock Performance

NYSE MMC traded up $7.51 during trading hours on Tuesday, hitting $219.61. The company had a trading volume of 2,482,929 shares, compared to its average volume of 1,864,701. Marsh & McLennan Companies, Inc. has a 1-year low of $196.72 and a 1-year high of $248.00. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.44, a quick ratio of 1.13 and a current ratio of 1.13. The company has a market cap of $108.25 billion, a PE ratio of 26.81, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.70 and a beta of 0.85. The business has a 50 day moving average of $232.39 and a 200-day moving average of $224.70.

Marsh & McLennan Companies (NYSE:MMC - Get Free Report) last released its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, April 17th. The financial services provider reported $3.06 EPS for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $3.02 by $0.04. The company had revenue of $6.70 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $7.08 billion. Marsh & McLennan Companies had a return on equity of 32.60% and a net margin of 16.60%. During the same quarter in the previous year, the company posted $2.89 earnings per share. As a group, equities research analysts expect that Marsh & McLennan Companies, Inc. will post 9.61 EPS for the current year.

Marsh & McLennan Companies Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently disclosed 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 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 1.48%. Marsh & McLennan Companies's dividend payout ratio is presently 39.95%.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several research firms have weighed in on MMC. Jefferies Financial Group lifted their target price on Marsh & McLennan Companies from $237.00 to $244.00 and gave the company a "hold" rating in a research report on Friday, April 11th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. increased their target price on shares of Marsh & McLennan Companies from $230.00 to $235.00 and gave the stock a "neutral" rating in a report on Friday, January 3rd. Barclays upped their price objective on Marsh & McLennan Companies from $246.00 to $249.00 and gave the stock an "equal weight" rating in a research report on Friday, April 11th. Wells Fargo & Company lifted their target price on Marsh & McLennan Companies from $223.00 to $232.00 and gave the company an "equal weight" rating in a report on Thursday, April 10th. Finally, Raymond James reaffirmed an "outperform" rating and issued a $250.00 price target (up previously from $240.00) on shares of Marsh & McLennan Companies in a research report on Thursday, February 6th. Two equities research analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, eight have issued a hold rating and five have issued a buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat.com, Marsh & McLennan Companies has a consensus rating of "Hold" and a consensus price target of $239.20.

Insider Activity

In other news, CEO Dean Michael Klisura sold 7,121 shares of the company's stock in a transaction that occurred on 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 completion of the sale, the chief executive officer now owns 20,935 shares in the company, valued at $4,919,096.95. This represents a 25.38 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this link. Also, SVP Paul Beswick sold 2,237 shares of Marsh & McLennan Companies stock in a transaction on Thursday, April 3rd. The shares were sold at an average price of $246.00, for a total transaction of $550,302.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the senior vice president now owns 13,522 shares in the company, valued at approximately $3,326,412. This trade represents a 14.20 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Over the last three months, insiders sold 69,634 shares of company stock valued at $16,244,986. Insiders own 0.35% of the company's stock.

About Marsh & McLennan Companies

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.