Principal Financial Group Inc. Buys 24,624 Shares of Marsh & McLennan Companies, Inc. (NYSE:MMC)

Principal Financial Group Inc. increased its stake in shares of Marsh & McLennan Companies, Inc. (NYSE:MMC - Free Report) by 3.0% in the third quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the SEC. The fund owned 839,757 shares of the financial services provider's stock after buying an additional 24,624 shares during the period. Principal Financial Group Inc. owned about 0.17% of Marsh & McLennan Companies worth $187,341,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Several other hedge funds have also added to or reduced their stakes in MMC. Carmichael Hill & Associates Inc. increased its stake in shares of Marsh & McLennan Companies by 85.7% during the 3rd quarter. Carmichael Hill & Associates Inc. now owns 130 shares of the financial services provider's stock worth $29,000 after purchasing an additional 60 shares during the last quarter. Catalyst Capital Advisors LLC bought a new stake in shares of Marsh & McLennan Companies in the third quarter valued at $31,000. Crewe Advisors LLC lifted its position in shares of Marsh & McLennan Companies by 100.0% during the 2nd quarter. Crewe Advisors LLC now owns 160 shares of the financial services provider's stock valued at $34,000 after buying an additional 80 shares during the last quarter. Capital Performance Advisors LLP purchased a new stake in Marsh & McLennan Companies in the 3rd quarter worth about $41,000. Finally, Ridgewood Investments LLC bought a new stake in Marsh & McLennan Companies in the 2nd quarter valued at about $41,000. Institutional investors own 87.99% of the company's stock.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

MMC has been the subject of several analyst reports. Bank of America raised their price objective on shares of Marsh & McLennan Companies from $248.00 to $250.00 and gave the stock a "neutral" rating in a report on Thursday, October 10th. Jefferies Financial Group lifted their price target on Marsh & McLennan Companies from $219.00 to $222.00 and gave the company a "hold" rating in a research report on Wednesday, October 9th. Wells Fargo & Company dropped their price objective on Marsh & McLennan Companies from $212.00 to $211.00 and set an "equal weight" rating on the stock in a report on Thursday, October 10th. BMO Capital Markets lifted their target price on Marsh & McLennan Companies from $217.00 to $228.00 and gave the company a "market perform" rating in a report on Tuesday, October 22nd. Finally, UBS Group raised their price objective on shares of Marsh & McLennan Companies from $255.00 to $259.00 and gave the company a "buy" rating in a research report on Tuesday, October 22nd. Two investment analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, ten have given a hold rating and three have given a buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat, Marsh & McLennan Companies has an average rating of "Hold" and a consensus target price of $228.13.

Insider Activity

In related news, Director Oscar Fanjul sold 2,500 shares of the business'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 transaction, the director now owns 48,549 shares in the company, valued at $10,756,030.95. The trade was a 4.90 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this link. 0.30% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

Marsh & McLennan Companies Price Performance

MMC traded up $1.39 during trading on Friday, reaching $211.74. The stock had a trading volume of 3,007,464 shares, compared to its average volume of 1,716,253. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.89, a quick ratio of 1.14 and a current ratio of 1.14. The business has a 50-day moving average of $223.17 and a 200-day moving average of $220.87. Marsh & McLennan Companies, Inc. has a one year low of $184.55 and a one year high of $235.50. The stock has a market cap of $103.99 billion, a PE ratio of 26.08, a PEG ratio of 2.58 and a beta of 0.94.

Marsh & McLennan Companies (NYSE:MMC - Get Free Report) last released its earnings results on Thursday, October 17th. The financial services provider reported $1.63 earnings per share 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 during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $5.71 billion. During the same quarter in the previous year, the company posted $1.57 EPS. Marsh & McLennan Companies's quarterly revenue was up 5.9% compared to the same quarter last year. As a group, equities research analysts anticipate that Marsh & McLennan Companies, Inc. will post 8.68 EPS for the current fiscal year.

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.