Marsh & McLennan Companies, Inc. (NYSE:MMC) Shares Sold by Martingale Asset Management L P

Martingale Asset Management L P lowered its stake in Marsh & McLennan Companies, Inc. (NYSE:MMC - Free Report) by 6.0% during the 4th quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The fund owned 86,657 shares of the financial services provider's stock after selling 5,490 shares during the quarter. Martingale Asset Management L P's holdings in Marsh & McLennan Companies were worth $18,407,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

A number of other large investors have also added to or reduced their stakes in MMC. Vanguard Group Inc. increased its position in Marsh & McLennan Companies by 0.8% during the fourth 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 last quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC lifted its stake in shares of Marsh & McLennan Companies by 1.2% in the 4th quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC now owns 12,050,565 shares of the financial services provider's stock worth $2,554,841,000 after purchasing an additional 145,134 shares during the period. Norges Bank bought a new position in Marsh & McLennan Companies in the fourth quarter worth approximately $1,236,186,000. Amundi grew its position in shares of Marsh & McLennan Companies by 81.1% during the 4th quarter. Amundi now owns 4,072,976 shares of the financial services provider's stock valued at $860,824,000 after acquiring an additional 1,823,807 shares during the period. Finally, JPMorgan Chase & Co. increased its stake 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 worth $892,309,000 after purchasing an additional 184,239 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors own 87.99% of the company's stock.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of brokerages have commented on MMC. Wells Fargo & Company upped their price target on Marsh & McLennan Companies from $223.00 to $232.00 and gave the stock an "equal weight" rating in a research report on Thursday. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods upped their price objective on Marsh & McLennan Companies from $210.00 to $220.00 and gave the stock an "underperform" rating in a research note on Wednesday, April 9th. Redburn Atlantic started coverage on shares of Marsh & McLennan Companies in a research report on Tuesday, March 25th. They set a "buy" rating and a $281.00 price objective on the stock. Barclays raised their price objective on Marsh & McLennan Companies from $246.00 to $249.00 and gave the company an "equal weight" rating in a research report on Friday. Finally, Raymond James restated an "outperform" rating and set a $250.00 price target (up previously from $240.00) on shares of Marsh & McLennan Companies in a report on Thursday, February 6th. 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. According to data from MarketBeat.com, Marsh & McLennan Companies presently has a consensus rating of "Hold" and an average target price of $236.12.

Insider Transactions at Marsh & McLennan Companies

In other news, VP Stacy Mills sold 1,317 shares of Marsh & McLennan Companies stock in a transaction on Monday, March 10th. The stock was sold at an average price of $234.97, for a total value of $309,455.49. Following the transaction, the vice president now directly owns 2,923 shares in the company, valued at approximately $686,817.31. This trade represents a 31.06 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. Also, SVP Paul Beswick sold 2,237 shares of the company's stock in a transaction on Thursday, April 3rd. The stock was sold at an average price of $246.00, for a total value of $550,302.00. Following the sale, the senior vice president now owns 13,522 shares of the company's stock, valued at $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. In the last 90 days, insiders have sold 69,634 shares of company stock valued at $16,244,986. 0.30% of the stock is currently owned by corporate insiders.

Marsh & McLennan Companies Trading Up 2.0 %

NYSE MMC traded up $4.67 during trading on Monday, hitting $238.01. The stock had a trading volume of 527,914 shares, compared to its average volume of 2,188,466. The stock has a market capitalization of $117.32 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 29.06, a P/E/G ratio of 2.70 and a beta of 0.85. The stock has a 50 day simple moving average of $232.84 and a 200 day simple moving average of $224.62. Marsh & McLennan Companies, Inc. has a one year low of $196.17 and a one 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.

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 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%. Sell-side analysts predict that Marsh & McLennan Companies, Inc. will post 9.61 earnings per share for the current year.

Marsh & McLennan Companies Dividend Announcement

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 given a dividend of $0.815 per share. This represents a $3.26 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 1.37%. The ex-dividend date is Thursday, April 3rd. Marsh & McLennan Companies's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 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.