DnB Asset Management AS Sells 25,627 Shares of Marsh & McLennan Companies, Inc. (NYSE:MMC)

DnB Asset Management AS reduced its holdings in shares of Marsh & McLennan Companies, Inc. (NYSE:MMC - Free Report) by 20.3% in the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The firm owned 100,515 shares of the financial services provider's stock after selling 25,627 shares during the period. DnB Asset Management AS's holdings in Marsh & McLennan Companies were worth $21,350,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Other hedge funds have also recently made changes to their positions in the company. Townsquare Capital LLC lifted its stake in Marsh & McLennan Companies by 53.6% in the third quarter. Townsquare Capital LLC now owns 10,130 shares of the financial services provider's stock valued at $2,260,000 after buying an additional 3,535 shares during the period. Blueshift Asset Management LLC acquired a new position in shares of Marsh & McLennan Companies during the 3rd quarter valued at $313,000. Fiduciary Trust Co boosted its stake in Marsh & McLennan Companies by 49.3% during the third quarter. Fiduciary Trust Co now owns 12,883 shares of the financial services provider's stock worth $2,874,000 after acquiring an additional 4,253 shares in the last quarter. Public Sector Pension Investment Board grew its holdings in Marsh & McLennan Companies by 2.7% in the third quarter. Public Sector Pension Investment Board now owns 85,793 shares of the financial services provider's stock worth $19,140,000 after purchasing an additional 2,268 shares during the period. Finally, Financial Counselors Inc. increased its stake in Marsh & McLennan Companies by 15.0% in the third quarter. Financial Counselors Inc. now owns 2,894 shares of the financial services provider's stock valued at $646,000 after purchasing an additional 377 shares in the last quarter. 87.99% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

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Insiders Place Their Bets

In other Marsh & McLennan Companies news, CEO Nicholas Mark Studer sold 49,390 shares of the company's stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, March 12th. The stock was sold at an average price of $230.16, for a total value of $11,367,602.40. Following the transaction, the chief executive officer now directly owns 28,329 shares in the company, valued at $6,520,202.64. This represents a 63.55 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this hyperlink. Also, CEO Dean Michael Klisura sold 9,569 shares of Marsh & McLennan Companies stock in a transaction dated Monday, March 31st. The shares were sold at an average price of $245.00, for a total value of $2,344,405.00. Following the sale, the chief executive officer now owns 20,935 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $5,129,075. This trade represents a 31.37 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders have sold a total of 67,397 shares of company stock worth $15,694,684 over the last 90 days. Corporate insiders own 0.30% of the company's stock.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several brokerages have recently commented on MMC. Redburn Atlantic began coverage on Marsh & McLennan Companies in a research note on Tuesday, March 25th. They issued a "buy" rating and a $281.00 target price for the company. JPMorgan Chase & Co. boosted their price objective on Marsh & McLennan Companies from $230.00 to $235.00 and gave the company a "neutral" rating in a report on Friday, January 3rd. Wells Fargo & Company increased their target price on Marsh & McLennan Companies from $212.00 to $223.00 and gave the stock an "equal weight" rating in a report on Friday, January 31st. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods decreased their price target on shares of Marsh & McLennan Companies from $214.00 to $210.00 and set an "underperform" rating for the company in a research note 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 raised their price objective for the company from $242.00 to $250.00 in a research note on Thursday, December 12th. Two research analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, ten have assigned a hold rating and five have assigned a buy rating to the company's stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the stock presently has a consensus rating of "Hold" and a consensus target price of $233.41.

Marsh & McLennan Companies Stock Performance

Shares of NYSE:MMC traded down $0.13 during midday trading on Wednesday, reaching $243.87. The company had a trading volume of 706,785 shares, compared to its average volume of 1,803,920. The stock has a market cap of $119.77 billion, a P/E ratio of 29.78, a P/E/G ratio of 2.70 and a beta of 0.95. The company's 50 day moving average price is $230.73 and its 200 day moving average price is $224.28. The company has a current ratio of 1.13, a quick ratio of 1.13 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.44. Marsh & McLennan Companies, Inc. has a 52-week low of $196.17 and a 52-week high of $245.98.

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

Marsh & McLennan Companies Announces Dividend

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, May 15th. Investors of record on Thursday, April 3rd will be paid a $0.815 dividend. The ex-dividend date is Thursday, April 3rd. This represents a $3.26 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 1.34%. Marsh & McLennan Companies's dividend payout ratio is 39.80%.

Marsh & McLennan Companies Profile

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.