Grimes & Company Inc. Trims Stock Holdings in Marsh & McLennan Companies, Inc. (NYSE:MMC)

Grimes & Company Inc. decreased its stake in Marsh & McLennan Companies, Inc. (NYSE:MMC) by 1.5% in the first quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 8,936 shares of the financial services provider’s stock after selling 135 shares during the quarter. Grimes & Company Inc.’s holdings in Marsh & McLennan Companies were worth $2,181,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also bought and sold shares of the company. Sierra Ocean LLC bought a new position in shares of Marsh & McLennan Companies in the fourth quarter worth about $36,000. Ameriflex Group Inc. bought a new position in shares of Marsh & McLennan Companies in the fourth quarter worth about $37,000. City Holding Co. bought a new position in shares of Marsh & McLennan Companies in the first quarter worth about $37,000. Transce3nd LLC bought a new position in shares of Marsh & McLennan Companies in the fourth quarter worth about $39,000. Finally, Halbert Hargrove Global Advisors LLC bought a new position in shares of Marsh & McLennan Companies in the fourth quarter worth about $45,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 87.99% of the company’s stock.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of brokerages recently commented on MMC. Barclays increased their price target on Marsh & McLennan Companies from $246.00 to $249.00 and gave the company an “equal weight” rating in a research note on Friday, April 11th. Redburn Atlantic began coverage on Marsh & McLennan Companies in a research note on Tuesday, March 25th. They set a “buy” rating and a $281.00 price target for the company. UBS Group increased their price target on Marsh & McLennan Companies from $259.00 to $261.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research note on Wednesday, April 9th. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods dropped their price target on Marsh & McLennan Companies from $220.00 to $215.00 and set an “underperform” rating for the company in a research note on Monday, April 21st. Finally, Wells Fargo & Company upped their price objective on Marsh & McLennan Companies from $223.00 to $232.00 and gave the company an “equal weight” rating in a research report on Thursday, April 10th. Two research 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. According to MarketBeat.com, the company has an average rating of “Hold” and an average price target of $241.93.

Insider Buying and Selling

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 $3,326,412. This trade represents a 14.20% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available through the SEC website. Also, CEO Dean Michael Klisura sold 9,569 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction on Monday, March 31st. The stock was sold at an average price of $245.00, for a total value of $2,344,405.00. Following the transaction, the chief executive officer now owns 20,935 shares in the company, valued at $5,129,075. The trade was a 31.37% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. 0.35% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

Marsh & McLennan Companies Price Performance

Shares of MMC stock opened at $215.73 on Wednesday. Marsh & McLennan Companies, Inc. has a 52-week low of $207.21 and a 52-week high of $248.00. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.32, a quick ratio of 1.14 and a current ratio of 1.14. The firm has a market capitalization of $106.30 billion, a P/E ratio of 26.44, a P/E/G ratio of 2.65 and a beta of 0.83. The stock has a 50 day moving average price of $226.07 and a 200 day moving average price of $225.10.

Marsh & McLennan Companies (NYSE:MMC) last issued 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 return on equity of 32.19% and a net margin of 16.13%. The firm had revenue of $6.70 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $7.08 billion. During the same period last year, the company earned $2.89 EPS. As a group, sell-side analysts predict that Marsh & McLennan Companies, Inc. will post 9.61 earnings per share for the current year.

About Marsh & McLennan Companies

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.