Principal Securities Inc. Raises Stock Holdings in Marsh & McLennan Companies, Inc. (NYSE:MMC)

Principal Securities Inc. raised its stake in shares of Marsh & McLennan Companies, Inc. (NYSE:MMC) by 6.6% in the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The fund owned 6,422 shares of the financial services provider’s stock after acquiring an additional 397 shares during the period. Principal Securities Inc.’s holdings in Marsh & McLennan Companies were worth $1,364,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Other large investors have also recently made changes to their positions in the company. Geode Capital Management LLC lifted its stake in Marsh & McLennan Companies by 2.2% during the third quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC now owns 11,905,431 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $2,648,304,000 after purchasing an additional 251,361 shares in the last quarter. Louisbourg Investments Inc. lifted its stake in Marsh & McLennan Companies by 67.2% during the 4th quarter. Louisbourg Investments Inc. now owns 8,211 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $1,744,000 after acquiring an additional 3,300 shares in the last quarter. Citigroup Inc. boosted its holdings in Marsh & McLennan Companies by 4.8% during the 3rd quarter. Citigroup Inc. now owns 508,245 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $113,384,000 after acquiring an additional 23,445 shares during the period. Kinsale Capital Group Inc. increased its stake in Marsh & McLennan Companies by 16.8% during the third quarter. Kinsale Capital Group Inc. now owns 27,004 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $6,024,000 after purchasing an additional 3,880 shares during the period. Finally, Kovitz Investment Group Partners LLC lifted its position in shares of Marsh & McLennan Companies by 197.5% during the third quarter. Kovitz Investment Group Partners LLC now owns 11,116 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $2,480,000 after purchasing an additional 7,380 shares in the last quarter. 87.99% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several equities analysts have commented on the stock. Royal Bank of Canada raised shares of Marsh & McLennan Companies from a “sector perform” rating to an “outperform” rating and raised their price target for the company from $242.00 to $250.00 in a research report on Thursday, December 12th. Evercore ISI reissued an “outperform” rating and set a $242.00 target price on shares of Marsh & McLennan Companies in a research note on Monday, November 25th. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods reduced their price target on Marsh & McLennan Companies from $214.00 to $210.00 and set an “underperform” rating on the stock in a research report on Monday, February 3rd. Wells Fargo & Company upped their target price on shares of Marsh & McLennan Companies from $212.00 to $223.00 and gave the stock an “equal weight” rating in a research note on Friday, January 31st. Finally, UBS Group lifted their price target on shares of Marsh & McLennan Companies from $255.00 to $259.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research note on Tuesday, October 22nd. Two investment analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, ten have issued a hold rating and four have issued a buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the stock has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $230.44.

Marsh & McLennan Companies Price Performance

Shares of NYSE:MMC opened at $230.04 on Wednesday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.44, a quick ratio of 1.14 and a current ratio of 1.13. Marsh & McLennan Companies, Inc. has a one year low of $196.17 and a one year high of $235.50. The company has a 50-day simple moving average of $217.00 and a 200-day simple moving average of $221.99. The stock has a market capitalization of $112.97 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 28.09, a PEG ratio of 2.35 and a beta of 0.96.

Marsh & McLennan Companies (NYSE:MMC) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, January 30th. The financial services provider reported $1.87 earnings per share for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.75 by $0.12. Marsh & McLennan Companies had a return on equity of 32.60% and a net margin of 16.60%. On average, analysts predict that Marsh & McLennan Companies, Inc. will post 9.54 EPS for the current year.

Marsh & McLennan Companies Announces Dividend

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, February 14th. Stockholders of record on Thursday, January 30th were paid a $0.815 dividend. This represents a $3.26 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 1.42%. The ex-dividend date was Thursday, January 30th. Marsh & McLennan Companies’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 39.80%.

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.