Plato Investment Management Ltd Increases Stock Position in Marsh & McLennan Companies, Inc. (NYSE:MMC)

Plato Investment Management Ltd lifted its position in shares of Marsh & McLennan Companies, Inc. (NYSE:MMC - Free Report) by 17.0% in the third quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The firm owned 19,184 shares of the financial services provider's stock after purchasing an additional 2,781 shares during the period. Plato Investment Management Ltd's holdings in Marsh & McLennan Companies were worth $4,275,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

A number of other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also bought and sold shares of MMC. Headlands Technologies LLC purchased a new position in Marsh & McLennan Companies during the 1st quarter valued at $27,000. Avantax Advisory Services Inc. boosted its position in Marsh & McLennan Companies by 22.1% during the 1st quarter. Avantax Advisory Services Inc. now owns 14,548 shares of the financial services provider's stock valued at $2,997,000 after acquiring an additional 2,636 shares in the last quarter. Blair William & Co. IL raised its position in shares of Marsh & McLennan Companies by 0.4% in the 1st quarter. Blair William & Co. IL now owns 40,912 shares of the financial services provider's stock worth $8,427,000 after acquiring an additional 166 shares in the last quarter. Brighton Jones LLC lifted its stake in shares of Marsh & McLennan Companies by 13.5% in the 1st quarter. Brighton Jones LLC now owns 10,668 shares of the financial services provider's stock valued at $2,197,000 after purchasing an additional 1,268 shares during the period. Finally, Dorsey & Whitney Trust CO LLC raised its holdings in Marsh & McLennan Companies by 5.3% in the first quarter. Dorsey & Whitney Trust CO LLC now owns 5,085 shares of the financial services provider's stock worth $1,047,000 after purchasing an additional 256 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors own 87.99% of the company's stock.

Marsh & McLennan Companies Stock Performance

MMC stock traded down $4.23 during midday trading on Thursday, reaching $221.50. 1,439,675 shares of the company's stock traded hands, compared to its average volume of 1,687,984. The stock's 50-day moving average is $224.56 and its 200 day moving average is $217.70. The stock has a market cap of $108.78 billion, a P/E ratio of 27.67, a PEG ratio of 3.35 and a beta of 0.94. Marsh & McLennan Companies, Inc. has a 52-week low of $184.28 and a 52-week high of $232.32. The company has a current ratio of 1.14, a quick ratio of 1.14 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.89.

Marsh & McLennan Companies (NYSE:MMC - Get Free Report) last announced its earnings results on Thursday, October 17th. The financial services provider reported $1.63 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 company had revenue of $5.70 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $5.71 billion. During the same period last year, the firm earned $1.57 EPS. Marsh & McLennan Companies's revenue for the quarter was up 5.9% compared to the same quarter last year. As a group, analysts anticipate that Marsh & McLennan Companies, Inc. will post 8.7 EPS for the current year.

Marsh & McLennan Companies Announces Dividend

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, November 15th. Investors of record on Friday, October 4th will be paid a dividend of $0.815 per share. The ex-dividend date is Friday, October 4th. This represents a $3.26 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 1.47%. Marsh & McLennan Companies's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 40.15%.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other Marsh & McLennan Companies news, Director Oscar Fanjul sold 2,500 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, October 30th. The stock was sold at an average price of $221.55, for a total transaction of $553,875.00. Following the sale, the director now directly owns 48,549 shares of the company's stock, valued at $10,756,030.95. This trade represents a 4.90 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through the SEC website. 0.30% of the stock is owned by company insiders.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of analysts have recently weighed in on MMC shares. Roth Mkm upped their target price on shares of Marsh & McLennan Companies from $220.00 to $230.00 and gave the stock a "neutral" rating in a research report on Friday, October 18th. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods upped their price objective on shares of Marsh & McLennan Companies from $209.00 to $212.00 and gave the stock an "underperform" rating in a report on Tuesday, October 22nd. Bank of America lifted their target price on shares of Marsh & McLennan Companies from $248.00 to $250.00 and gave the company a "neutral" rating in a report on Thursday, October 10th. The Goldman Sachs Group set a $220.00 price target on Marsh & McLennan Companies and gave the stock a "sell" rating in a research note on Friday, October 18th. Finally, Jefferies Financial Group upped their price target on shares of Marsh & McLennan Companies from $219.00 to $222.00 and gave the stock a "hold" rating in a research note on Wednesday, October 9th. Two investment analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, twelve have issued a hold rating and two have issued a buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat, the stock presently has an average rating of "Hold" and a consensus price target of $225.33.

Marsh & McLennan Companies Profile

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.