Marsh & McLennan Companies, Inc. (NYSE:MMC) Position Decreased by Essex Financial Services Inc.

Essex Financial Services Inc. trimmed its holdings in shares of Marsh & McLennan Companies, Inc. (NYSE:MMC) by 7.4% in the fourth quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the SEC. The institutional investor owned 2,351 shares of the financial services provider’s stock after selling 187 shares during the period. Essex Financial Services Inc.’s holdings in Marsh & McLennan Companies were worth $446,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Several other institutional investors also recently modified their holdings of MMC. Impax Asset Management Group plc acquired a new stake in Marsh & McLennan Companies during the 4th quarter worth about $261,787,000. Assenagon Asset Management S.A. raised its stake in Marsh & McLennan Companies by 3,413.7% during the 4th quarter. Assenagon Asset Management S.A. now owns 532,670 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $100,925,000 after purchasing an additional 517,510 shares during the period. Healthcare of Ontario Pension Plan Trust Fund grew its holdings in shares of Marsh & McLennan Companies by 1,496.4% during the third quarter. Healthcare of Ontario Pension Plan Trust Fund now owns 447,000 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $85,064,000 after buying an additional 419,000 shares in the last quarter. Adage Capital Partners GP L.L.C. raised its position in Marsh & McLennan Companies by 60.5% during the third quarter. Adage Capital Partners GP L.L.C. now owns 791,161 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $150,558,000 after buying an additional 298,300 shares during the period. Finally, Northern Trust Corp grew its stake in Marsh & McLennan Companies by 4.8% during the 3rd quarter. Northern Trust Corp now owns 5,979,821 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $1,137,960,000 after acquiring an additional 271,408 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors own 87.99% of the company’s stock.

Marsh & McLennan Companies Stock Down 0.1 %

MMC stock opened at $199.26 on Friday. The business’s 50-day simple moving average is $202.93 and its 200 day simple moving average is $197.34. The company has a quick ratio of 1.14, a current ratio of 1.14 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.97. The company has a market cap of $98.18 billion, a PE ratio of 25.29, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 3.32 and a beta of 0.90. Marsh & McLennan Companies, Inc. has a twelve month low of $171.47 and a twelve month high of $209.20.

Marsh & McLennan Companies (NYSE:MMC) last issued its earnings results on Thursday, April 18th. The financial services provider reported $2.89 EPS for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $2.80 by $0.09. The firm had revenue of $6.50 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $6.38 billion. Marsh & McLennan Companies had a return on equity of 34.14% and a net margin of 16.84%. Marsh & McLennan Companies’s quarterly revenue was up 9.7% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period last year, the business earned $2.53 earnings per share. On average, research analysts anticipate that Marsh & McLennan Companies, Inc. will post 8.69 earnings per share for the current year.

Marsh & McLennan Companies Announces Dividend

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, May 15th. Stockholders of record on Thursday, April 4th will be paid a $0.71 dividend. The ex-dividend date is Wednesday, April 3rd. This represents a $2.84 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 1.43%. Marsh & McLennan Companies’s dividend payout ratio is currently 36.04%.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other Marsh & McLennan Companies news, VP Stacy Mills sold 1,461 shares of the stock in a transaction on Thursday, March 14th. The stock was sold at an average price of $209.16, for a total transaction of $305,582.76. Following the completion of the transaction, the vice president now directly owns 2,923 shares in the company, valued at $611,374.68. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this hyperlink. In other news, SVP Paul Beswick sold 2,169 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, March 5th. The shares were sold at an average price of $202.00, for a total transaction of $438,138.00. Following the completion of the sale, the senior vice president now owns 14,199 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $2,868,198. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is accessible through this link. Also, VP Stacy Mills sold 1,461 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction that occurred on 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 directly owns 2,923 shares in the company, valued at $611,374.68. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders sold 36,751 shares of company stock worth $7,448,163 in the last 90 days. 0.30% of the stock is owned by company insiders.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

MMC has been the topic of a number of research analyst reports. Jefferies Financial Group upped their price objective on shares of Marsh & McLennan Companies from $197.00 to $208.00 and gave the company a “hold” rating in a research note on Friday, April 19th. Royal Bank of Canada upped their target price on Marsh & McLennan Companies from $208.00 to $210.00 and gave the stock a “sector perform” rating in a research report on Friday, April 19th. Piper Sandler lowered shares of Marsh & McLennan Companies from an “overweight” rating to a “neutral” rating and set a $211.00 price objective on the stock. in a research report on Wednesday, April 17th. UBS Group boosted their target price on shares of Marsh & McLennan Companies from $236.00 to $238.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research report on Monday, April 22nd. Finally, TD Cowen lifted their price objective on shares of Marsh & McLennan Companies from $189.00 to $201.00 and gave the company a “hold” rating in a research note on Monday, April 22nd. Two investment analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, ten have given a hold rating and four have assigned a buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the company presently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and an average price target of $207.69.

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 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.