Marshall Wace LLP Takes Position in Marsh & McLennan Companies, Inc. (NYSE:MMC)

Marshall Wace LLP purchased a new position in Marsh & McLennan Companies, Inc. (NYSE:MMC - Free Report) during the fourth quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The firm purchased 11,188 shares of the financial services provider's stock, valued at approximately $2,376,000.

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

Insider Transactions at Marsh & McLennan Companies

In other news, CEO Nicholas Mark Studer sold 49,390 shares of Marsh & McLennan Companies stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, March 12th. The stock was sold at an average price of $230.16, for a total transaction of $11,367,602.40. Following the sale, the chief executive officer now owns 28,329 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $6,520,202.64. The trade was a 63.55 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is accessible through the SEC website. Also, CEO Dean Michael Klisura sold 7,121 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, March 10th. The shares were sold at an average price of $234.97, for a total value 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 approximately $4,919,096.95. This represents a 25.38 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last ninety days, insiders have sold 69,634 shares of company stock worth $16,244,986. 0.35% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several research firms recently weighed in on MMC. Barclays lifted their target price on shares of Marsh & McLennan Companies from $246.00 to $249.00 and gave the company an "equal weight" rating in a report on Friday, April 11th. Raymond James reiterated an "outperform" rating and set a $250.00 target price (up from $240.00) on shares of Marsh & McLennan Companies in a report on Thursday, February 6th. Jefferies Financial Group upped their price target on Marsh & McLennan Companies from $237.00 to $244.00 and gave the stock a "hold" rating in a report on Friday, April 11th. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods reduced their target price on shares of Marsh & McLennan Companies from $220.00 to $215.00 and set an "underperform" rating on the stock in a research report on Monday, April 21st. Finally, JPMorgan Chase & Co. raised their price target on shares of Marsh & McLennan Companies from $230.00 to $235.00 and gave the company a "neutral" rating in a report on Friday, January 3rd. Two investment analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, seven have assigned a hold rating and five have assigned a buy rating to the company's stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the stock has an average rating of "Hold" and an average price target of $241.93.

Marsh & McLennan Companies Price Performance

Shares of MMC opened at $219.37 on Friday. Marsh & McLennan Companies, Inc. has a 52 week low of $196.72 and a 52 week high of $248.00. The company has a current ratio of 1.13, a quick ratio of 1.13 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.44. The firm has a market cap of $108.09 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 26.79, a PEG ratio of 2.70 and a beta of 0.85. The stock has a 50 day moving average of $231.78 and a 200-day moving average of $224.61.

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

Marsh & McLennan Companies Dividend Announcement

The business also recently announced 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 1.49%. Marsh & McLennan Companies's payout ratio is currently 39.95%.

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.

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