Sciencast Management LP Grows Stake in Marsh & McLennan Companies, Inc. (NYSE:MMC)

Sciencast Management LP lifted its holdings in shares of Marsh & McLennan Companies, Inc. (NYSE:MMC - Free Report) by 14.4% during the 4th quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the SEC. The institutional investor owned 14,335 shares of the financial services provider's stock after acquiring an additional 1,809 shares during the period. Marsh & McLennan Companies accounts for approximately 0.8% of Sciencast Management LP's investment portfolio, making the stock its 12th biggest holding. Sciencast Management LP's holdings in Marsh & McLennan Companies were worth $3,045,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Several other institutional investors have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in MMC. Geode Capital Management LLC grew its position in shares of Marsh & McLennan Companies by 2.2% in the 3rd quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC now owns 11,905,431 shares of the financial services provider's stock valued at $2,648,304,000 after buying an additional 251,361 shares during the last quarter. Louisbourg Investments Inc. boosted its stake in Marsh & McLennan Companies by 67.2% in the fourth quarter. Louisbourg Investments Inc. now owns 8,211 shares of the financial services provider's stock valued at $1,744,000 after acquiring an additional 3,300 shares in the last quarter. Citigroup Inc. boosted its position in shares of Marsh & McLennan Companies by 4.8% in the 3rd quarter. Citigroup Inc. now owns 508,245 shares of the financial services provider's stock valued at $113,384,000 after purchasing an additional 23,445 shares during the period. Kovitz Investment Group Partners LLC grew its stake in Marsh & McLennan Companies by 197.5% during the 3rd quarter. Kovitz Investment Group Partners LLC now owns 11,116 shares of the financial services provider's stock worth $2,480,000 after buying an additional 7,380 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Sanctuary Advisors LLC lifted its stake in Marsh & McLennan Companies by 4.3% in the third quarter. Sanctuary Advisors LLC now owns 85,424 shares of the financial services provider's stock valued at $19,461,000 after buying an additional 3,553 shares during the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 87.99% of the company's stock.

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Insider Buying and Selling at Marsh & McLennan Companies

In other news, VP Stacy Mills sold 1,317 shares of the business's stock in a transaction on Monday, March 10th. The shares were sold at an average price of $234.97, for a total transaction of $309,455.49. Following the completion of the sale, the vice president now directly owns 2,923 shares of the company's stock, valued at $686,817.31. The trade was a 31.06 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this link. Also, CEO Nicholas Mark Studer sold 49,390 shares of the stock in a transaction on Wednesday, March 12th. The stock was sold at an average price of $230.16, for a total value of $11,367,602.40. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief executive officer now directly owns 28,329 shares in the company, valued at $6,520,202.64. This trade represents a 63.55 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders sold 57,828 shares of company stock worth $13,350,279 in the last 90 days. 0.30% of the stock is owned by company insiders.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several research firms recently commented on MMC. JPMorgan Chase & Co. upped their price target on shares of Marsh & McLennan Companies from $230.00 to $235.00 and gave the company a "neutral" rating in a research report on Friday, January 3rd. Redburn Atlantic started coverage on shares of Marsh & McLennan Companies in a research note on Tuesday. They set a "buy" rating and a $281.00 target price for the company. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods decreased their price objective on Marsh & McLennan Companies from $214.00 to $210.00 and set an "underperform" rating for the company in a research report on Monday, February 3rd. Royal Bank of Canada upgraded Marsh & McLennan Companies from a "sector perform" rating to an "outperform" rating and upped their price target for the stock from $242.00 to $250.00 in a research note on Thursday, December 12th. Finally, Wells Fargo & Company raised their target price on shares of Marsh & McLennan Companies from $212.00 to $223.00 and gave the stock an "equal weight" rating in a research note on Friday, January 31st. Two research analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, ten have issued a hold rating and five have given a buy rating to the company's stock. According to MarketBeat.com, Marsh & McLennan Companies currently has an average rating of "Hold" and an average price target of $233.41.

Marsh & McLennan Companies Price Performance

NYSE:MMC traded up $2.10 during mid-day trading on Wednesday, hitting $238.72. 1,873,660 shares of the company's stock traded hands, compared to its average volume of 1,636,818. Marsh & McLennan Companies, Inc. has a 1 year low of $196.17 and a 1 year high of $241.84. The company has a market cap of $117.24 billion, a PE ratio of 29.15, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.70 and a beta of 0.95. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.44, a quick ratio of 1.13 and a current ratio of 1.13. The firm's 50 day simple moving average is $228.03 and its 200 day simple moving average is $223.84.

Marsh & McLennan Companies (NYSE:MMC - Get Free Report) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, January 30th. The financial services provider reported $1.87 EPS for the quarter, topping analysts' consensus estimates of $1.75 by $0.12. Marsh & McLennan Companies had a net margin of 16.60% and a return on equity of 32.60%. Sell-side analysts expect that Marsh & McLennan Companies, Inc. will post 9.61 EPS for the current year.

Marsh & McLennan Companies Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently declared 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. This represents a $3.26 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 1.37%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Thursday, April 3rd. Marsh & McLennan Companies's payout ratio is 39.80%.

Marsh & McLennan Companies Profile

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.