Ellevest Inc. Trims Position in Marsh & McLennan Companies, Inc. (NYSE:MMC)

Ellevest Inc. lowered its stake in shares of Marsh & McLennan Companies, Inc. (NYSE:MMC) by 8.5% during the fourth quarter, HoldingsChannel.com reports. The institutional investor owned 3,027 shares of the financial services provider’s stock after selling 282 shares during the period. Ellevest Inc.’s holdings in Marsh & McLennan Companies were worth $643,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission.

Other institutional investors have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Vanguard Group Inc. grew its stake in shares of Marsh & McLennan Companies by 0.8% in the 4th quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 44,739,515 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $9,503,120,000 after purchasing an additional 356,618 shares during the last quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC grew its position in Marsh & McLennan Companies by 1.2% in the 4th quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC now owns 12,050,565 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $2,554,841,000 after buying an additional 145,134 shares during the last quarter. Price T Rowe Associates Inc. MD increased its stake in Marsh & McLennan Companies by 1.0% in the 4th quarter. Price T Rowe Associates Inc. MD now owns 10,151,020 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $2,156,179,000 after buying an additional 96,750 shares during the period. Northern Trust Corp lifted its stake in shares of Marsh & McLennan Companies by 14.0% in the 4th quarter. Northern Trust Corp now owns 5,934,340 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $1,260,513,000 after acquiring an additional 726,713 shares during the period. Finally, Norges Bank purchased a new stake in shares of Marsh & McLennan Companies in the fourth quarter valued at about $1,236,186,000. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 87.99% of the company’s stock.

Marsh & McLennan Companies Price Performance

Shares of NYSE:MMC opened at $226.79 on Friday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.44, a quick ratio of 1.13 and a current ratio of 1.13. The business’s fifty day moving average price is $230.14 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $224.66. The stock has a market cap of $111.75 billion, a PE ratio of 27.69, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.70 and a beta of 0.85. Marsh & McLennan Companies, Inc. has a one year low of $201.77 and a one year high of $248.00.

Marsh & McLennan Companies (NYSE:MMC) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, April 17th. The financial services provider reported $3.06 EPS for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $3.02 by $0.04. The business had revenue of $6.70 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $7.08 billion. Marsh & McLennan Companies had a return on equity of 32.60% and a net margin of 16.60%. During the same quarter last year, the company earned $2.89 earnings per share. On average, analysts forecast that Marsh & McLennan Companies, Inc. will post 9.61 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Marsh & McLennan Companies Announces Dividend

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, May 15th. Investors of record on Thursday, April 3rd will be given a dividend of $0.815 per share. The ex-dividend date is Thursday, April 3rd. This represents a $3.26 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 1.44%. Marsh & McLennan Companies’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 39.95%.

Insider Buying and Selling at Marsh & McLennan Companies

In related news, VP Stacy Mills sold 1,317 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, March 10th. The shares were sold at an average price of $234.97, for a total value of $309,455.49. Following the completion of the sale, the vice president now directly owns 2,923 shares in the company, valued at approximately $686,817.31. The trade was a 31.06 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through the SEC website. Also, CEO Nicholas Mark Studer sold 49,390 shares of Marsh & McLennan Companies stock in a transaction on Wednesday, March 12th. The shares were sold at an average price of $230.16, for a total transaction of $11,367,602.40. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief executive officer now owns 28,329 shares in the company, valued at approximately $6,520,202.64. This trade represents a 63.55 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last three months, insiders sold 69,634 shares of company stock worth $16,244,986. Insiders own 0.35% of the company’s stock.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

MMC has been the subject of several analyst reports. Barclays increased their price target on shares of Marsh & McLennan Companies from $246.00 to $249.00 and gave the stock an “equal weight” rating in a report on Friday, April 11th. Raymond James reissued an “outperform” rating and issued a $250.00 price target (up from $240.00) on shares of Marsh & McLennan Companies in a report on Thursday, February 6th. Jefferies Financial Group upped their price objective on Marsh & McLennan Companies from $237.00 to $244.00 and gave the stock a “hold” rating in a report on Friday, April 11th. Wells Fargo & Company raised their target price on Marsh & McLennan Companies from $223.00 to $232.00 and gave the company an “equal weight” rating in a report on Thursday, April 10th. Finally, UBS Group upped their price target on shares of Marsh & McLennan Companies from $259.00 to $261.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research note on Wednesday, April 9th. Two investment analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, seven have issued a hold rating and five have given a buy rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the company has a consensus rating of “Hold” and a consensus target price of $241.93.

Marsh & McLennan Companies Company Profile

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.