Raymond James & Associates Boosts Holdings in Marsh & McLennan Companies, Inc. (NYSE:MMC)

Raymond James & Associates grew its position in Marsh & McLennan Companies, Inc. (NYSE:MMC) by 2.8% in the 1st quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the SEC. The fund owned 902,278 shares of the financial services provider’s stock after buying an additional 24,662 shares during the period. Raymond James & Associates owned approximately 0.18% of Marsh & McLennan Companies worth $185,851,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Other institutional investors have also recently made changes to their positions in the company. Norges Bank purchased a new position in shares of Marsh & McLennan Companies in the fourth quarter worth $1,048,077,000. Price T Rowe Associates Inc. MD boosted its holdings in shares of Marsh & McLennan Companies by 32.7% during the 4th quarter. Price T Rowe Associates Inc. MD now owns 10,243,245 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $1,940,789,000 after acquiring an additional 2,526,701 shares during the last quarter. Impax Asset Management Group plc bought a new stake in shares of Marsh & McLennan Companies in the fourth quarter worth approximately $261,787,000. Corient Private Wealth LLC raised its holdings in shares of Marsh & McLennan Companies by 322.7% during the fourth quarter. Corient Private Wealth LLC now owns 761,238 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $144,232,000 after purchasing an additional 581,131 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Montrusco Bolton Investments Inc. grew its holdings in shares of Marsh & McLennan Companies by 62.3% in the fourth quarter. Montrusco Bolton Investments Inc. now owns 1,475,835 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $274,552,000 after acquiring an additional 566,675 shares during the period. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 87.99% of the company’s stock.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In related news, CEO Martine Ferland sold 9,128 shares of Marsh & McLennan Companies stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, March 5th. The stock was sold at an average price of $201.63, for a total value of $1,840,478.64. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief executive officer now owns 9,979 shares in the company, valued at $2,012,065.77. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available at this hyperlink. In related news, CEO Martine Ferland sold 9,128 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, March 5th. The shares were sold at an average price of $201.63, for a total value of $1,840,478.64. Following the transaction, the chief executive officer now owns 9,979 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $2,012,065.77. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this link. Also, VP Stacy Mills sold 1,461 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, March 14th. The stock was sold at an average price of $209.16, for a total transaction of $305,582.76. Following the transaction, the vice president now directly owns 2,923 shares in the company, valued at $611,374.68. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders sold 36,751 shares of company stock valued at $7,448,163 in the last three months. Corporate insiders own 0.30% of the company’s stock.

Marsh & McLennan Companies Price Performance

NYSE MMC traded down $3.52 on Friday, reaching $197.95. The company had a trading volume of 1,783,604 shares, compared to its average volume of 1,810,961. The firm’s 50 day moving average price is $203.10 and its 200 day moving average price is $197.19. Marsh & McLennan Companies, Inc. has a 12 month low of $171.47 and a 12 month high of $209.20. The stock has a market capitalization of $97.53 billion, a PE ratio of 25.12, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 3.30 and a beta of 0.90. The company has a quick ratio of 1.14, a current ratio of 1.14 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.97.

Marsh & McLennan Companies (NYSE:MMC) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, April 18th. The financial services provider reported $2.89 EPS for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $2.80 by $0.09. Marsh & McLennan Companies had a return on equity of 34.14% and a net margin of 16.84%. The company had revenue of $6.50 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $6.38 billion. During the same period in the prior year, the company earned $2.53 earnings per share. The firm’s revenue was up 9.7% on a year-over-year basis. As a group, equities analysts predict that Marsh & McLennan Companies, Inc. will post 8.69 earnings per share for the current year.

Marsh & McLennan Companies Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, May 15th. Investors of record on Thursday, April 4th will be paid a dividend of $0.71 per share. This represents a $2.84 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 1.43%. The ex-dividend date is Wednesday, April 3rd. Marsh & McLennan Companies’s payout ratio is 36.04%.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several brokerages have issued reports on MMC. The Goldman Sachs Group cut Marsh & McLennan Companies from a “buy” rating to a “sell” rating and dropped their target price for the stock from $215.00 to $185.00 in a research report on Monday, January 8th. Piper Sandler cut shares of Marsh & McLennan Companies from an “overweight” rating to a “neutral” rating and set a $211.00 target price for the company. in a report on Wednesday, April 17th. Morgan Stanley lifted their price target on shares of Marsh & McLennan Companies from $205.00 to $210.00 and gave the stock an “equal weight” rating in a research note on Monday, April 15th. Wells Fargo & Company raised their target price on Marsh & McLennan Companies from $212.00 to $213.00 and gave the stock an “equal weight” rating in a report on Friday, April 19th. Finally, Royal Bank of Canada upped their price target on Marsh & McLennan Companies from $208.00 to $210.00 and gave the stock a “sector perform” rating in a research report on Friday, April 19th. Two research analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, ten have issued a hold rating and four have assigned a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the company currently has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $207.69.

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.