M&G Plc Decreases Stock Position in Marsh & McLennan Companies, Inc. (NYSE:MMC)

M&G PLC cut its holdings in Marsh & McLennan Companies, Inc. (NYSE:MMC - Free Report) by 8.6% during the third quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 492,103 shares of the financial services provider's stock after selling 46,443 shares during the period. M&G PLC owned 0.10% of Marsh & McLennan Companies worth $109,739,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

A number of other institutional investors have also added to or reduced their stakes in MMC. Headlands Technologies LLC purchased a new position in Marsh & McLennan Companies during the first quarter valued at $27,000. Carmichael Hill & Associates Inc. lifted its position in shares of Marsh & McLennan Companies by 85.7% in the third quarter. Carmichael Hill & Associates Inc. now owns 130 shares of the financial services provider's stock worth $29,000 after buying an additional 60 shares in the last quarter. Catalyst Capital Advisors LLC bought a new position in Marsh & McLennan Companies during the third quarter valued at approximately $31,000. Crewe Advisors LLC increased its stake in Marsh & McLennan Companies by 100.0% in the 2nd quarter. Crewe Advisors LLC now owns 160 shares of the financial services provider's stock worth $34,000 after acquiring an additional 80 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Iron Horse Wealth Management LLC raised its holdings in shares of Marsh & McLennan Companies by 712.5% during the 2nd quarter. Iron Horse Wealth Management LLC now owns 195 shares of the financial services provider's stock worth $41,000 after acquiring an additional 171 shares in the last quarter. 87.99% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Marsh & McLennan Companies Trading Down 0.0 %

Shares of NYSE:MMC traded down $0.07 during trading on Thursday, reaching $223.18. 2,050,793 shares of the company were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 1,684,445. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.89, a current ratio of 1.14 and a quick ratio of 1.14. The firm has a market capitalization of $109.61 billion, a PE ratio of 27.49, a P/E/G ratio of 3.29 and a beta of 0.94. The business's fifty day simple moving average is $224.95 and its 200-day simple moving average is $216.86. Marsh & McLennan Companies, Inc. has a 12-month low of $184.28 and a 12-month high of $232.32.

Marsh & McLennan Companies (NYSE:MMC - Get Free Report) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, October 17th. The financial services provider reported $1.63 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping analysts' consensus estimates of $1.61 by $0.02. Marsh & McLennan Companies had a return on equity of 32.65% and a net margin of 16.82%. The business had revenue of $5.70 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $5.71 billion. During the same quarter in the prior year, the company earned $1.57 EPS. The business's revenue was up 5.9% compared to the same quarter last year. On average, research analysts anticipate that Marsh & McLennan Companies, Inc. will post 8.7 EPS for the current year.

Marsh & McLennan Companies Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, November 15th. Stockholders of record on Friday, October 4th will be paid a dividend of $0.815 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, October 4th. This represents a $3.26 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 1.46%. Marsh & McLennan Companies's dividend payout ratio is presently 40.15%.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several equities research analysts recently weighed in on the stock. The Goldman Sachs Group set a $220.00 price target on shares of Marsh & McLennan Companies and gave the stock a "sell" rating in a research report on Friday, October 18th. Jefferies Financial Group increased their price target on shares of Marsh & McLennan Companies from $219.00 to $222.00 and gave the company a "hold" rating in a report on Wednesday, October 9th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. boosted their price objective on Marsh & McLennan Companies from $210.00 to $230.00 and gave the stock a "neutral" rating in a research note on Thursday, July 11th. Royal Bank of Canada raised their price objective on Marsh & McLennan Companies from $232.00 to $242.00 and gave the company a "sector perform" rating in a research note on Friday, October 18th. Finally, Keefe, Bruyette & Woods increased their price target on Marsh & McLennan Companies from $209.00 to $212.00 and gave the company an "underperform" rating in a report on Tuesday, October 22nd. Two investment analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, twelve have given a hold rating and two have given a buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat, the company presently has a consensus rating of "Hold" and an average target price of $225.33.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other news, Director Oscar Fanjul sold 2,500 shares of the business's stock in a transaction on Wednesday, October 30th. The stock was sold at an average price of $221.55, for a total value of $553,875.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the director now directly owns 48,549 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $10,756,030.95. The trade was a 0.00 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is accessible through this link. 0.35% of the stock is currently owned by insiders.

About Marsh & McLennan Companies

Marsh & McLennan Companies, Inc, a professional services company, provides advice and solutions to clients in the areas of risk, strategy, and people worldwide. It operates through Risk and Insurance Services, and Consulting segments. The Risk and Insurance Services segment offers risk management services, such as risk advice, risk transfer, and risk control and mitigation solutions, as well as insurance and reinsurance broking, strategic advisory services, and analytics solutions, and insurance program management services.