Erste Asset Management GmbH Purchases 11,991 Shares of Marsh & McLennan Companies, Inc. (NYSE:MMC)

Erste Asset Management GmbH raised its position in Marsh & McLennan Companies, Inc. (NYSE:MMC) by 3.5% during the 4th quarter, HoldingsChannel.com reports. The institutional investor owned 353,975 shares of the financial services provider’s stock after acquiring an additional 11,991 shares during the period. Marsh & McLennan Companies makes up about 0.9% of Erste Asset Management GmbH’s holdings, making the stock its 23rd largest holding. Erste Asset Management GmbH’s holdings in Marsh & McLennan Companies were worth $75,331,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC).

Other hedge funds have also recently made changes to their positions in the company. Connor Clark & Lunn Investment Management Ltd. increased its stake in Marsh & McLennan Companies by 82.8% in the 4th quarter. Connor Clark & Lunn Investment Management Ltd. now owns 168,493 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $35,790,000 after acquiring an additional 76,336 shares during the last quarter. Avantax Advisory Services Inc. increased its stake in Marsh & McLennan Companies by 5.9% in the 4th quarter. Avantax Advisory Services Inc. now owns 28,788 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $6,115,000 after acquiring an additional 1,612 shares during the last quarter. Great Lakes Advisors LLC increased its stake in Marsh & McLennan Companies by 80.6% in the 4th quarter. Great Lakes Advisors LLC now owns 2,184 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $464,000 after acquiring an additional 975 shares during the last quarter. EverSource Wealth Advisors LLC increased its stake in Marsh & McLennan Companies by 7.1% in the 4th quarter. EverSource Wealth Advisors LLC now owns 5,042 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $1,071,000 after acquiring an additional 335 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Sequoia Financial Advisors LLC increased its stake in Marsh & McLennan Companies by 13.1% in the 4th quarter. Sequoia Financial Advisors LLC now owns 130,509 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $27,721,000 after acquiring an additional 15,079 shares during the last quarter. 87.99% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other Marsh & McLennan Companies news, CEO Dean Michael Klisura sold 7,121 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred 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 completion of the sale, the chief executive officer now owns 20,935 shares in the company, valued at approximately $4,919,096.95. This trade represents a 25.38 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through the SEC website. Also, VP Stacy Mills sold 1,317 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, March 10th. The stock was 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 owns 2,923 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $686,817.31. This trade represents a 31.06 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Company insiders own 0.30% of the company’s stock.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of equities analysts have weighed in on the company. Wells Fargo & Company upped their target price 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. Barclays upped their price objective on Marsh & McLennan Companies from $236.00 to $246.00 and gave the stock an “equal weight” rating in a report on Thursday, November 21st. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods cut their price objective 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. Royal Bank of Canada upgraded Marsh & McLennan Companies from a “sector perform” rating to an “outperform” rating and upped their price objective for the stock from $242.00 to $250.00 in a report on Thursday, December 12th. Finally, JPMorgan Chase & Co. upped their price objective on Marsh & McLennan Companies from $230.00 to $235.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a report on Friday, January 3rd. Two analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, ten have given a hold rating and four have assigned a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the company has a consensus rating of “Hold” and a consensus target price of $230.44.

Marsh & McLennan Companies Trading Down 1.4 %

Shares of MMC stock opened at $229.78 on Thursday. The stock has a market capitalization of $112.85 billion, a PE ratio of 28.06, a P/E/G ratio of 2.70 and a beta of 0.95. Marsh & McLennan Companies, Inc. has a 1-year low of $196.17 and a 1-year high of $241.84. The business has a 50-day moving average of $224.07 and a 200 day moving average of $223.53. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.44, a current ratio of 1.13 and a quick ratio of 1.13.

Marsh & McLennan Companies (NYSE:MMC) last issued its earnings results on Thursday, January 30th. The financial services provider reported $1.87 earnings per share for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate 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, sell-side analysts anticipate that Marsh & McLennan Companies, Inc. will post 9.61 earnings per share for the current year.

Marsh & McLennan Companies Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, May 15th. Shareholders of record on Thursday, April 3rd will be issued a $0.815 dividend. This represents a $3.26 annualized dividend and a yield of 1.42%. Marsh & McLennan Companies’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 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.