Marsh & McLennan Companies, Inc. (NYSE:MMC) Shares Sold by Securian Asset Management Inc.

Securian Asset Management Inc. lessened its stake in Marsh & McLennan Companies, Inc. (NYSE:MMC) by 3.0% in the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The firm owned 26,395 shares of the financial services provider’s stock after selling 803 shares during the quarter. Securian Asset Management Inc.’s holdings in Marsh & McLennan Companies were worth $5,607,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Other institutional investors and hedge funds have also modified their holdings of the company. Geode Capital Management LLC lifted its holdings in shares of Marsh & McLennan Companies by 2.2% in the 3rd quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC now owns 11,905,431 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $2,648,304,000 after buying an additional 251,361 shares during the period. Louisbourg Investments Inc. lifted its holdings in shares of Marsh & McLennan Companies by 67.2% in the 4th quarter. Louisbourg Investments Inc. now owns 8,211 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $1,744,000 after buying an additional 3,300 shares during the period. Citigroup Inc. lifted its holdings in shares of Marsh & McLennan Companies by 4.8% in the 3rd quarter. Citigroup Inc. now owns 508,245 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $113,384,000 after buying an additional 23,445 shares during the period. Kinsale Capital Group Inc. lifted its holdings in shares of Marsh & McLennan Companies by 16.8% in the 3rd quarter. Kinsale Capital Group Inc. now owns 27,004 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $6,024,000 after buying an additional 3,880 shares during the period. Finally, Kovitz Investment Group Partners LLC raised its holdings in Marsh & McLennan Companies by 197.5% in the 3rd 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 during the period. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 87.99% of the company’s stock.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of equities analysts recently weighed in on the company. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods reduced their price target on Marsh & McLennan Companies from $214.00 to $210.00 and set an “underperform” rating for the company in a report on Monday, February 3rd. Evercore ISI reaffirmed an “outperform” rating and issued a $242.00 price target on shares of Marsh & McLennan Companies in a report on Monday, November 25th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. boosted their price objective on Marsh & McLennan Companies from $230.00 to $235.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a research note on Friday, January 3rd. Royal Bank of Canada upgraded Marsh & McLennan Companies from a “sector perform” rating to an “outperform” rating and boosted their price objective for the stock from $242.00 to $250.00 in a research note on Thursday, December 12th. Finally, Wells Fargo & Company boosted their price objective on 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. Two research analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, ten have given a hold rating and four have given a buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the stock has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $230.44.

Marsh & McLennan Companies Trading Down 1.4 %

MMC opened at $232.98 on Wednesday. Marsh & McLennan Companies, Inc. has a one year low of $196.17 and a one year high of $241.84. The stock has a market capitalization of $114.42 billion, a PE ratio of 28.45, a P/E/G ratio of 2.70 and a beta of 0.95. The business’s 50 day moving average price is $223.72 and its 200 day moving average price is $223.49. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.44, a quick ratio of 1.13 and a current ratio of 1.13.

Marsh & McLennan Companies (NYSE:MMC) last released its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, January 30th. The financial services provider reported $1.87 EPS for the quarter, beating 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%. As a group, equities research analysts expect that Marsh & McLennan Companies, Inc. will post 9.61 EPS for the current year.

Marsh & McLennan Companies Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, February 14th. Investors of record on Thursday, January 30th were issued a $0.815 dividend. This represents a $3.26 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 1.40%. The ex-dividend date was Thursday, January 30th. Marsh & McLennan Companies’s dividend payout ratio is presently 39.80%.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other Marsh & McLennan Companies news, VP Stacy Mills sold 1,317 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on Monday, March 10th. The stock was sold at an average price of $234.97, for a total transaction of $309,455.49. Following the transaction, the vice president now directly owns 2,923 shares in the company, valued at $686,817.31. This represents a 31.06 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at the SEC website. Also, CEO Dean Michael Klisura sold 7,121 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on Monday, March 10th. The stock was sold at an average price of $234.97, for a total value of $1,673,221.37. Following the transaction, the chief executive officer now owns 20,935 shares in the company, valued at $4,919,096.95. This trade represents a 25.38 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. 0.30% of the stock is owned by insiders.

Marsh & McLennan Companies 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.