Washington Trust Bank Cuts Stock Position in Marsh & McLennan Companies, Inc. (NYSE:MMC)

Washington Trust Bank trimmed its stake in shares of Marsh & McLennan Companies, Inc. (NYSE:MMC - Free Report) by 1.7% in the 4th quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The institutional investor owned 62,932 shares of the financial services provider's stock after selling 1,084 shares during the quarter. Marsh & McLennan Companies accounts for 1.3% of Washington Trust Bank's holdings, making the stock its 26th largest holding. Washington Trust Bank's holdings in Marsh & McLennan Companies were worth $13,367,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC).

Several other hedge funds have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in MMC. Financial Life Planners acquired a new stake in shares of Marsh & McLennan Companies in the 4th quarter valued at $33,000. Sierra Ocean LLC purchased a new position in Marsh & McLennan Companies in the fourth quarter valued at approximately $36,000. Albion Financial Group UT acquired a new stake in Marsh & McLennan Companies during the fourth quarter worth approximately $38,000. Golden State Wealth Management LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Marsh & McLennan Companies during the 4th quarter worth approximately $41,000. Finally, Halbert Hargrove Global Advisors LLC purchased a new position in shares of Marsh & McLennan Companies in the 4th quarter valued at $45,000. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 87.99% of the company's stock.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several equities research analysts have recently weighed in on the stock. 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 research note on Friday, January 3rd. Wells Fargo & Company boosted their price target on shares of Marsh & McLennan Companies from $212.00 to $223.00 and gave the stock an "equal weight" rating in a research note on Friday, January 31st. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods reduced 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 research report on Monday, February 3rd. Raymond James reiterated an "outperform" rating and set a $250.00 target price (up previously from $240.00) on shares of Marsh & McLennan Companies in a research report on Thursday, February 6th. Finally, Royal Bank of Canada upgraded Marsh & McLennan Companies from a "sector perform" rating to an "outperform" rating and lifted their price target 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 given a buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat, Marsh & McLennan Companies presently has an average rating of "Hold" and an average price target of $233.41.

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Insider Activity

In related news, CEO Nicholas Mark Studer sold 49,390 shares of the stock in a transaction on 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 of the company's stock, valued at approximately $6,520,202.64. This trade represents a 63.55 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through the SEC website. Also, VP Stacy Mills sold 1,317 shares of the business's stock in a transaction dated Monday, March 10th. The shares were sold at an average price of $234.97, for a total value of $309,455.49. Following the sale, the vice president now directly owns 2,923 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $686,817.31. This trade represents a 31.06 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders sold a total of 57,828 shares of company stock valued at $13,350,279 over the last 90 days. Insiders own 0.30% of the company's stock.

Marsh & McLennan Companies Price Performance

Shares of MMC stock traded up $2.10 during trading hours on Wednesday, hitting $238.72. The company's stock had a trading volume of 1,873,660 shares, compared to its average volume of 1,636,818. 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 twelve month low of $196.17 and a twelve month high of $241.84. The stock has a market cap of $117.24 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 29.15, a P/E/G ratio of 2.70 and a beta of 0.95. The business has a fifty day moving average of $228.03 and a 200-day moving average of $223.84.

Marsh & McLennan Companies (NYSE:MMC - Get Free Report) last announced its earnings results on Thursday, January 30th. The financial services provider reported $1.87 EPS for the quarter, beating 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, equities research analysts anticipate that Marsh & McLennan Companies, Inc. will post 9.61 EPS for the current year.

Marsh & McLennan Companies Announces Dividend

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, May 15th. Shareholders of record on Thursday, April 3rd will be issued 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 1.37%. 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.