Stifel Financial Corp Grows Position in Marsh & McLennan Companies, Inc. (NYSE:MMC)

Stifel Financial Corp lifted its stake in Marsh & McLennan Companies, Inc. (NYSE:MMC - Free Report) by 551.0% in the 4th quarter, according to its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The institutional investor owned 2,224,932 shares of the financial services provider's stock after purchasing an additional 1,883,146 shares during the period. Stifel Financial Corp owned 0.45% of Marsh & McLennan Companies worth $472,599,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Several other institutional investors and hedge funds also recently bought and sold shares of MMC. TD Waterhouse Canada Inc. lifted its position in shares of Marsh & McLennan Companies by 9.5% during the 4th quarter. TD Waterhouse Canada Inc. now owns 94,952 shares of the financial services provider's stock valued at $20,171,000 after buying an additional 8,246 shares in the last quarter. Tower Research Capital LLC TRC boosted its position in shares of Marsh & McLennan Companies by 60.4% in the fourth quarter. Tower Research Capital LLC TRC now owns 31,364 shares of the financial services provider's stock worth $6,662,000 after purchasing an additional 11,806 shares during the period. Transce3nd LLC bought a new stake in shares of Marsh & McLennan Companies during the 4th quarter valued at $39,000. Kayne Anderson Rudnick Investment Management LLC increased its stake in Marsh & McLennan Companies by 7.5% in the 4th quarter. Kayne Anderson Rudnick Investment Management LLC now owns 240,484 shares of the financial services provider's stock worth $51,081,000 after buying an additional 16,853 shares in the last quarter. Finally, MML Investors Services LLC lifted its position in shares of Marsh & McLennan Companies by 2.8% in the fourth quarter. MML Investors Services LLC now owns 48,034 shares of the financial services provider's stock valued at $10,203,000 after acquiring an additional 1,299 shares in the last quarter. 87.99% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Insider Activity

In other news, VP Stacy Mills sold 1,317 shares of the company's stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, March 10th. The shares were 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 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, CEO Nicholas Mark Studer sold 49,390 shares of the business's stock in a transaction on Wednesday, March 12th. The shares were sold at an average price of $230.16, for a total value of $11,367,602.40. Following the completion of the sale, the chief executive officer now owns 28,329 shares in the company, valued at $6,520,202.64. This represents a 63.55 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders have sold 69,634 shares of company stock worth $16,244,986 in the last quarter. Corporate insiders own 0.35% of the company's stock.

Analyst Ratings Changes

MMC has been the subject of several recent analyst reports. Raymond James restated an "outperform" rating and issued a $250.00 price target (up from $240.00) on shares of Marsh & McLennan Companies in a research note on Thursday, February 6th. UBS Group raised their target price on shares of Marsh & McLennan Companies from $259.00 to $261.00 and gave the company a "buy" rating in a research note on Wednesday, April 9th. Redburn Atlantic began coverage on shares of Marsh & McLennan Companies in a report on Tuesday, March 25th. They set a "buy" rating and a $281.00 price objective for the company. Wells Fargo & Company boosted their target price on Marsh & McLennan Companies from $223.00 to $232.00 and gave the stock an "equal weight" rating in a research report on Thursday, April 10th. Finally, JPMorgan Chase & Co. raised their price target on Marsh & McLennan Companies from $230.00 to $235.00 and gave the company a "neutral" rating in a report on Friday, January 3rd. Two investment analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, seven have assigned a hold rating and five have assigned a buy rating to the company's stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the company has an average rating of "Hold" and an average price target of $241.93.

Marsh & McLennan Companies Stock Down 0.0 %

MMC stock traded down $0.04 during trading on Thursday, hitting $219.00. 1,792,858 shares of the company's stock traded hands, compared to its average volume of 1,866,399. The company has a quick ratio of 1.13, a current ratio of 1.13 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.44. The firm has a market capitalization of $107.95 billion, a P/E ratio of 26.74, a PEG ratio of 2.70 and a beta of 0.85. The business has a fifty day simple moving average of $232.20 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $224.66. Marsh & McLennan Companies, Inc. has a 1 year low of $196.72 and a 1 year high of $248.00.

Marsh & McLennan Companies (NYSE:MMC - Get Free Report) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, April 17th. The financial services provider reported $3.06 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping analysts' consensus estimates of $3.02 by $0.04. Marsh & McLennan Companies had a net margin of 16.60% and a return on equity of 32.60%. The business had revenue of $6.70 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $7.08 billion. During the same quarter last year, the company posted $2.89 earnings per share. Sell-side analysts anticipate that Marsh & McLennan Companies, Inc. will post 9.61 EPS for the current year.

Marsh & McLennan Companies Announces Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, May 15th. Shareholders of record on Thursday, April 3rd will be given a $0.815 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Thursday, April 3rd. This represents a $3.26 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 1.49%. Marsh & McLennan Companies's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 39.95%.

Marsh & McLennan Companies Company 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.