Marsh & McLennan Companies (MMC) Set to Announce Earnings on Thursday

Marsh & McLennan Companies (NYSE:MMC) is set to issue its quarterly earnings data before the market opens on Thursday, April 18th. Analysts expect the company to announce earnings of $2.79 per share for the quarter. Investors interested in registering for the company’s conference call can do so using this link.

Marsh & McLennan Companies (NYSE:MMC) last released its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, January 25th. The financial services provider reported $1.68 earnings per share for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $1.63 by $0.05. The company had revenue of $5.55 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $5.54 billion. Marsh & McLennan Companies had a return on equity of 33.72% and a net margin of 16.52%. The business’s quarterly revenue was up 10.6% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period in the previous year, the business posted $1.47 earnings per share. On average, analysts expect Marsh & McLennan Companies to post $9 EPS for the current fiscal year and $9 EPS for the next fiscal year.

Marsh & McLennan Companies Price Performance

Marsh & McLennan Companies stock opened at $197.32 on Tuesday. The stock’s 50 day moving average is $202.60 and its 200 day moving average is $196.64. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.96, a current ratio of 1.10 and a quick ratio of 1.10. The firm has a market cap of $97.38 billion, a P/E ratio of 26.20, a P/E/G ratio of 3.61 and a beta of 0.90. Marsh & McLennan Companies has a one year low of $171.47 and a one year high of $209.20.

Marsh & McLennan Companies Announces Dividend

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, May 15th. Shareholders of record on Thursday, April 4th will be paid a $0.71 dividend. This represents a $2.84 annualized dividend and a yield of 1.44%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Wednesday, April 3rd. Marsh & McLennan Companies’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 37.72%.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

MMC has been the topic of a number of research reports. Wells Fargo & Company lowered Marsh & McLennan Companies from an “overweight” rating to an “equal weight” rating and set a $212.00 target price on the stock. in a research report on Thursday, April 11th. Morgan Stanley increased their target price on shares of Marsh & McLennan Companies from $205.00 to $210.00 and gave the company an “equal weight” rating in a report on Monday. StockNews.com cut shares of Marsh & McLennan Companies from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Tuesday, December 19th. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods boosted their price objective on Marsh & McLennan Companies from $185.00 to $188.00 and gave the stock an “underperform” rating in a research report on Wednesday, April 10th. Finally, JPMorgan Chase & Co. boosted their price objective on Marsh & McLennan Companies from $190.00 to $198.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a research report on Monday, April 8th. Two analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, ten have issued a hold rating and three have given a buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat.com, the company currently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and an average target price of $204.29.

Insider Activity at Marsh & McLennan Companies

In other Marsh & McLennan Companies news, CFO Mark C. Mcgivney sold 12,494 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Monday, March 4th. The stock was sold at an average price of $200.79, for a total value of $2,508,670.26. Following the transaction, the chief financial officer now directly owns 33,678 shares in the company, valued at approximately $6,762,205.62. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this hyperlink. In other news, CFO Mark C. Mcgivney sold 12,494 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Monday, March 4th. The stock was sold at an average price of $200.79, for a total value of $2,508,670.26. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief financial officer now directly owns 33,678 shares in the company, valued at approximately $6,762,205.62. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through the SEC website. Also, VP Stacy Mills sold 1,461 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Thursday, March 14th. The stock was sold at an average price of $209.16, for a total value of $305,582.76. Following the completion of the transaction, the vice president now owns 2,923 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $611,374.68. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last three months, insiders have sold 36,751 shares of company stock worth $7,448,163. 0.35% of the stock is owned by company insiders.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Marsh & McLennan Companies

Several institutional investors have recently bought and sold shares of the stock. Vanguard Group Inc. boosted its stake in Marsh & McLennan Companies by 0.4% during the 4th quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 43,798,034 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $8,298,414,000 after purchasing an additional 180,128 shares during the last quarter. Moneta Group Investment Advisors LLC boosted its stake in shares of Marsh & McLennan Companies by 105,777.7% in the 4th quarter. Moneta Group Investment Advisors LLC now owns 9,772,516 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $1,617,156,000 after buying an additional 9,763,286 shares during the last quarter. Morgan Stanley boosted its stake in shares of Marsh & McLennan Companies by 49.2% in the 4th quarter. Morgan Stanley now owns 6,293,827 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $1,041,503,000 after buying an additional 2,075,928 shares during the last quarter. Nuveen Asset Management LLC boosted its stake in shares of Marsh & McLennan Companies by 2.7% in the 4th quarter. Nuveen Asset Management LLC now owns 4,576,692 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $867,146,000 after buying an additional 120,636 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Legal & General Group Plc lifted its position in Marsh & McLennan Companies by 20.5% during the fourth quarter. Legal & General Group Plc now owns 4,369,238 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $827,840,000 after purchasing an additional 744,138 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 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.