Bridges Investment Management Inc. Grows Position in Marsh & McLennan Companies, Inc. (NYSE:MMC)

Bridges Investment Management Inc. increased its holdings in shares of Marsh & McLennan Companies, Inc. (NYSE:MMC - Free Report) by 11.4% during the 4th quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The institutional investor owned 49,405 shares of the financial services provider's stock after acquiring an additional 5,066 shares during the period. Bridges Investment Management Inc.'s holdings in Marsh & McLennan Companies were worth $10,494,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

A number of other institutional investors and hedge funds have also made changes to their positions in the business. Geode Capital Management LLC raised its stake in Marsh & McLennan Companies by 2.2% during the third quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC now owns 11,905,431 shares of the financial services provider's stock valued at $2,648,304,000 after buying an additional 251,361 shares during the last quarter. Louisbourg Investments Inc. raised its position in shares of Marsh & McLennan Companies by 67.2% in the 4th quarter. Louisbourg Investments Inc. now owns 8,211 shares of the financial services provider's stock worth $1,744,000 after purchasing an additional 3,300 shares during the last quarter. Citigroup Inc. boosted its stake in Marsh & McLennan Companies by 4.8% in the 3rd quarter. Citigroup Inc. now owns 508,245 shares of the financial services provider's stock worth $113,384,000 after purchasing an additional 23,445 shares in the last quarter. Kinsale Capital Group Inc. increased its stake in Marsh & McLennan Companies by 16.8% during the 3rd quarter. Kinsale Capital Group Inc. now owns 27,004 shares of the financial services provider's stock valued at $6,024,000 after purchasing an additional 3,880 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Kovitz Investment Group Partners LLC raised its holdings in Marsh & McLennan Companies by 197.5% in the third quarter. Kovitz Investment Group Partners LLC now owns 11,116 shares of the financial services provider's stock worth $2,480,000 after buying an additional 7,380 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors own 87.99% of the company's stock.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several equities analysts recently issued reports on MMC shares. Barclays upped their price objective on Marsh & McLennan Companies from $236.00 to $246.00 and gave the company an "equal weight" rating in a research report on Thursday, November 21st. Raymond James reiterated an "outperform" rating and issued a $250.00 price objective (up from $240.00) on shares of Marsh & McLennan Companies in a report on Thursday, February 6th. Evercore ISI restated an "outperform" rating and set a $242.00 target price on shares of Marsh & McLennan Companies in a research note on Monday, November 25th. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods decreased their price objective on shares of Marsh & McLennan Companies from $214.00 to $210.00 and set an "underperform" rating for the company in a report on Monday, February 3rd. Finally, Royal Bank of Canada raised shares of Marsh & McLennan Companies from a "sector perform" rating to an "outperform" rating and lifted their target price for the stock from $242.00 to $250.00 in a research report on Thursday, December 12th. Two equities research analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, ten have given a hold rating and four have issued a buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat, the company currently has an average rating of "Hold" and a consensus price target of $230.44.

Marsh & McLennan Companies Stock Performance

NYSE:MMC traded up $1.18 during mid-day trading on Wednesday, hitting $237.95. 1,723,084 shares of the company traded hands, compared to its average volume of 1,623,442. Marsh & McLennan Companies, Inc. has a one year low of $196.17 and a one year high of $241.84. The company has a quick ratio of 1.13, a current ratio of 1.13 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.44. The firm has a market cap of $116.86 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 29.05, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.70 and a beta of 0.96. The stock's fifty day moving average price is $221.47 and its 200-day moving average price is $223.08.

Marsh & McLennan Companies (NYSE:MMC - Get Free Report) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, January 30th. The financial services provider reported $1.87 EPS for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $1.75 by $0.12. Marsh & McLennan Companies had a net margin of 16.60% and a return on equity of 32.60%. Research analysts anticipate that Marsh & McLennan Companies, Inc. will post 9.61 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Marsh & McLennan Companies Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, February 14th. Stockholders of record on Thursday, January 30th were paid a $0.815 dividend. This represents a $3.26 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 1.37%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Thursday, January 30th. Marsh & McLennan Companies's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 39.80%.

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.