Marsh & McLennan Companies, Inc. (NYSE:MMC) Shares Acquired by Banque Cantonale Vaudoise

Banque Cantonale Vaudoise raised its holdings in shares of Marsh & McLennan Companies, Inc. (NYSE:MMC) by 64.6% in the 2nd quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The firm owned 7,094 shares of the financial services provider’s stock after acquiring an additional 2,784 shares during the period. Banque Cantonale Vaudoise’s holdings in Marsh & McLennan Companies were worth $1,334,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Other institutional investors have also recently made changes to their positions in the company. Jones Financial Companies Lllp increased its holdings in shares of Marsh & McLennan Companies by 40.5% during the 2nd quarter. Jones Financial Companies Lllp now owns 184 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $35,000 after purchasing an additional 53 shares in the last quarter. Capital Advisors Ltd. LLC purchased a new stake in Marsh & McLennan Companies in the 2nd quarter worth $36,000. Raleigh Capital Management Inc. increased its holdings in Marsh & McLennan Companies by 91.1% in the 1st quarter. Raleigh Capital Management Inc. now owns 258 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $43,000 after acquiring an additional 123 shares in the last quarter. Nemes Rush Group LLC purchased a new stake in Marsh & McLennan Companies in the 2nd quarter worth $43,000. Finally, Almanack Investment Partners LLC. purchased a new stake in Marsh & McLennan Companies in the 3rd quarter worth $43,000. 86.64% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Marsh & McLennan Companies Stock Performance

Shares of MMC stock opened at $198.00 on Wednesday. The stock has a market capitalization of $97.63 billion, a PE ratio of 28.53, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.28 and a beta of 0.97. Marsh & McLennan Companies, Inc. has a 52-week low of $151.86 and a 52-week high of $201.00. The stock’s 50-day moving average price is $193.17 and its 200 day moving average price is $187.68. The company has a quick ratio of 1.08, a current ratio of 1.08 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.02.

Marsh & McLennan Companies (NYSE:MMC) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, October 19th. The financial services provider reported $1.57 EPS for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $1.39 by $0.18. The business had revenue of $5.38 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $5.22 billion. Marsh & McLennan Companies had a return on equity of 34.01% and a net margin of 15.61%. The company’s quarterly revenue was up 12.8% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter in the previous year, the company earned $1.18 EPS. As a group, equities research analysts forecast that Marsh & McLennan Companies, Inc. will post 7.93 EPS for the current year.

Marsh & McLennan Companies Announces Dividend

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, November 15th. Investors of record on Friday, October 6th will be given a dividend of $0.71 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Thursday, October 5th. This represents a $2.84 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 1.43%. Marsh & McLennan Companies’s dividend payout ratio is currently 40.92%.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

MMC has been the subject of a number of research reports. StockNews.com initiated coverage on shares of Marsh & McLennan Companies in a report on Thursday, October 5th. They set a “buy” rating for the company. Bank of America raised shares of Marsh & McLennan Companies from an “underperform” rating to a “neutral” rating and upped their target price for the company from $189.00 to $210.00 in a research report on Friday, July 21st. Wells Fargo & Company raised their price target on Marsh & McLennan Companies from $200.00 to $208.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research note on Friday, July 21st. Citigroup raised their price target on Marsh & McLennan Companies from $201.00 to $205.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a research note on Friday, October 20th. Finally, Royal Bank of Canada lifted their target price on Marsh & McLennan Companies from $195.00 to $200.00 and gave the stock a “sector perform” rating in a research report on Friday, October 20th. Ten equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and five have issued a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat, the stock has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $201.38.

Insider Buying and Selling

In related news, CMO John Jude Jones sold 4,908 shares of Marsh & McLennan Companies stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, November 3rd. The stock was sold at an average price of $193.08, for a total transaction of $947,636.64. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief marketing officer now directly owns 7,978 shares in the company, valued at approximately $1,540,392.24. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at the SEC website. In other Marsh & McLennan Companies news, Director Oscar Fanjul sold 3,000 shares of the stock in a transaction on Tuesday, August 29th. The stock was sold at an average price of $194.90, for a total transaction of $584,700.00. Following the transaction, the director now owns 63,012 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $12,281,038.80. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available at the SEC website. Also, CMO John Jude Jones sold 4,908 shares of the stock in a transaction on Friday, November 3rd. The stock was sold at an average price of $193.08, for a total value of $947,636.64. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief marketing officer now directly owns 7,978 shares in the company, valued at $1,540,392.24. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders own 0.30% of the company’s stock.

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 in two segments, Risk and Insurance Services, and Consulting. 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.