Sumitomo Life Insurance Co. bought a new stake in shares of Marsh & McLennan Companies, Inc. (NYSE:MRSH – Free Report) in the 2nd quarter, HoldingsChannel reports. The fund bought 3,820 shares of the financial services provider’s stock, valued at approximately $637,000.
A number of other hedge funds and other institutional investors also recently made changes to their positions in MRSH. Focus Partners Advisor Solutions LLC bought a new position in Marsh & McLennan Companies during the second quarter valued at $2,153,000. Swiss Life Asset Management Ltd raised its stake in shares of Marsh & McLennan Companies by 9.5% in the fourth quarter. Swiss Life Asset Management Ltd now owns 134,542 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $24,960,000 after buying an additional 11,648 shares during the period. Essex LLC bought a new stake in shares of Marsh & McLennan Companies in the first quarter valued at $2,891,000. Vanguard Group Inc. lifted its position in shares of Marsh & McLennan Companies by 0.8% during the 4th quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 46,589,633 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $8,643,309,000 after buying an additional 387,100 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Benjamin Edwards Inc. grew its stake in shares of Marsh & McLennan Companies by 26.6% during the 4th quarter. Benjamin Edwards Inc. now owns 35,293 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $6,549,000 after acquiring an additional 7,418 shares during the period. 87.99% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.
Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth
MRSH has been the topic of a number of research reports. Piper Sandler lowered their price objective on Marsh & McLennan Companies from $190.00 to $182.00 and set a “neutral” rating on the stock in a research note on Tuesday, May 26th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. increased their target price on shares of Marsh & McLennan Companies from $206.00 to $212.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research report on Monday, July 13th. Wells Fargo & Company boosted their price target on shares of Marsh & McLennan Companies from $186.00 to $188.00 and gave the company an “equal weight” rating in a research report on Wednesday, July 22nd. Weiss Ratings upgraded shares of Marsh & McLennan Companies from a “hold (c-)” rating to a “hold (c)” rating in a research note on Friday, August 7th. Finally, Cantor Fitzgerald lifted their price objective on shares of Marsh & McLennan Companies from $210.00 to $218.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research note on Thursday, July 9th. One analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, five have issued a Buy rating, eleven have given a Hold rating and one has issued a Sell rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the stock has an average rating of “Hold” and an average price target of $203.50.
Insiders Place Their Bets
In related news, CEO John Q. Doyle sold 16,656 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, June 2nd. The stock was sold at an average price of $161.71, for a total transaction of $2,693,441.76. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief executive officer directly owned 116,811 shares in the company, valued at $18,889,506.81. The trade was a 12.48% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this hyperlink. The transaction was executed under a pre-arranged Rule 10b5-1 trading plan. Also, insider Martin South sold 7,100 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, July 28th. The shares were sold at an average price of $189.99, for a total value of $1,348,929.00. Following the completion of the sale, the insider directly owned 16,632 shares in the company, valued at approximately $3,159,913.68. The trade was a 29.92% decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale is available in the SEC filing. Insiders have sold 36,469 shares of company stock valued at $6,291,345 in the last ninety days. Corporate insiders own 0.38% of the company’s stock.
Marsh & McLennan Companies Stock Up 1.0%
MRSH stock opened at $192.17 on Friday. Marsh & McLennan Companies, Inc. has a twelve month low of $156.60 and a twelve month high of $212.65. The stock has a market cap of $91.71 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 23.49, a PEG ratio of 2.75 and a beta of 0.59. The company has a quick ratio of 1.14, a current ratio of 1.14 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.22. The firm’s 50-day moving average is $179.88.
Marsh & McLennan Companies (NYSE:MRSH – Get Free Report) last released its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, July 21st. The financial services provider reported $2.96 EPS for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $2.89 by $0.07. The company had revenue of $7.28 billion during the quarter. Marsh & McLennan Companies had a net margin of 14.24% and a return on equity of 32.67%. The business’s quarterly revenue was up 6.2% compared to the same quarter last year. On average, equities research analysts anticipate that Marsh & McLennan Companies, Inc. will post 10.43 EPS for the current fiscal year.
Marsh & McLennan Companies Increases Dividend
The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, August 14th. Investors of record on Thursday, July 23rd were given a $0.99 dividend. This represents a $3.96 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 2.1%. This is a boost from Marsh & McLennan Companies’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.90. The ex-dividend date was Thursday, July 23rd. Marsh & McLennan Companies’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 48.41%.
Marsh & McLennan Companies Company Profile
Marsh & McLennan Companies (NYSE: MMC) is a global professional services firm headquartered in New York City that provides advice and solutions in the areas of risk, strategy and people. Founded in 1905, the company has grown into a diversified group of businesses focused on insurance brokerage and risk management, reinsurance, human capital and investment consulting, and management consulting. Its long history and scale position it as a prominent adviser to corporations, governments and other institutions seeking to manage risk and optimize human and financial capital.
The firm operates through several well-known subsidiaries and business units that specialize in distinct services.
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