Marsh & McLennan Companies (NYSE:MMC) Stock Price Down 4.7% – Here’s What Happened

Marsh & McLennan Companies, Inc. (NYSE:MMC) shares were down 4.7% during mid-day trading on Monday . The company traded as low as $220.08 and last traded at $219.23. Approximately 390,213 shares were traded during trading, a decline of 80% from the average daily volume of 1,919,667 shares. The stock had previously closed at $230.01.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of research firms recently commented on MMC. Redburn Atlantic initiated coverage on Marsh & McLennan Companies in a research note on Tuesday, March 25th. They issued a “buy” rating and a $281.00 price objective on the stock. Wells Fargo & Company boosted their price target on shares of 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. UBS Group increased their price objective on shares of Marsh & McLennan Companies from $259.00 to $261.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research report on Wednesday, April 9th. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods dropped their target price on shares of Marsh & McLennan Companies from $220.00 to $215.00 and set an “underperform” rating on the stock in a report on Monday, April 21st. Finally, Barclays increased their price target on Marsh & McLennan Companies from $246.00 to $249.00 and gave the stock an “equal weight” rating in a report on Friday, April 11th. Two equities research analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, seven have given a hold rating and five have assigned a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the stock presently has an average rating of “Hold” and an average target price of $241.93.

Marsh & McLennan Companies Trading Down 1.0%

The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.44, a current ratio of 1.13 and a quick ratio of 1.13. The firm has a fifty day simple moving average of $226.81 and a 200-day simple moving average of $225.64. The firm has a market cap of $106.37 billion, a P/E ratio of 26.35, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.70 and a beta of 0.83.

Marsh & McLennan Companies (NYSE:MMC) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, April 17th. The financial services provider reported $3.06 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate 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 the consensus estimate of $7.08 billion. During the same quarter last year, the firm posted $2.89 EPS. On average, equities research analysts expect that Marsh & McLennan Companies, Inc. will post 9.61 earnings per share for the current year.

Insider Buying and Selling at Marsh & McLennan Companies

In other Marsh & McLennan Companies news, SVP Paul Beswick sold 2,237 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction on Thursday, April 3rd. The stock was sold at an average price of $246.00, for a total transaction of $550,302.00. Following the transaction, the senior vice president now directly owns 13,522 shares in the company, valued at approximately $3,326,412. This trade represents a 14.20% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through the SEC website. Also, CEO Dean Michael Klisura sold 9,569 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on Monday, March 31st. The stock was sold at an average price of $245.00, for a total transaction of $2,344,405.00. Following the completion of the sale, the chief executive officer now owns 20,935 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $5,129,075. The trade was a 31.37% decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Company insiders own 0.35% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the stock. Vanguard Group Inc. increased its position in Marsh & McLennan Companies by 1.3% in the first quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 45,321,445 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $11,059,792,000 after buying an additional 581,930 shares during the last quarter. Wellington Management Group LLP increased its holdings in Marsh & McLennan Companies by 54.2% in the 1st quarter. Wellington Management Group LLP now owns 12,814,788 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $3,127,193,000 after acquiring an additional 4,505,548 shares during the last quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC lifted its holdings in Marsh & McLennan Companies by 1.2% during the fourth quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC now owns 12,050,565 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $2,554,841,000 after purchasing an additional 145,134 shares during the last quarter. Price T Rowe Associates Inc. MD boosted its position in Marsh & McLennan Companies by 1.0% during the fourth quarter. Price T Rowe Associates Inc. MD now owns 10,151,020 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $2,156,179,000 after purchasing an additional 96,750 shares during the period. Finally, Northern Trust Corp increased its stake in shares of Marsh & McLennan Companies by 14.0% in the fourth quarter. Northern Trust Corp now owns 5,934,340 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $1,260,513,000 after purchasing an additional 726,713 shares in the last quarter. 87.99% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

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.