1248 Management LLC Sells 663 Shares of Marsh & McLennan Companies, Inc. $MMC

1248 Management LLC lowered its stake in shares of Marsh & McLennan Companies, Inc. (NYSE:MMC) by 13.0% in the first quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The firm owned 4,444 shares of the financial services provider’s stock after selling 663 shares during the quarter. 1248 Management LLC’s holdings in Marsh & McLennan Companies were worth $1,084,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

A number of other large investors have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the stock. Vanguard Group Inc. boosted its position in Marsh & McLennan Companies by 1.3% during the first quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 45,321,445 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $11,059,792,000 after purchasing an additional 581,930 shares during the period. Wellington Management Group LLP boosted its position in Marsh & McLennan Companies by 54.2% during the first quarter. Wellington Management Group LLP now owns 12,814,788 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $3,127,193,000 after purchasing an additional 4,505,548 shares during the period. UBS AM a distinct business unit of UBS ASSET MANAGEMENT AMERICAS LLC boosted its position in Marsh & McLennan Companies by 13.2% during the fourth quarter. UBS AM a distinct business unit of UBS ASSET MANAGEMENT AMERICAS LLC now owns 5,218,488 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $1,108,459,000 after purchasing an additional 609,602 shares during the period. Goldman Sachs Group Inc. boosted its position in Marsh & McLennan Companies by 8.5% during the first quarter. Goldman Sachs Group Inc. now owns 4,345,211 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $1,060,362,000 after purchasing an additional 340,907 shares during the period. Finally, Nuveen LLC bought a new stake in Marsh & McLennan Companies during the first quarter worth approximately $1,038,594,000. Institutional investors own 87.99% of the company’s stock.

Marsh & McLennan Companies Stock Up 2.2%

Shares of NYSE MMC opened at $203.19 on Friday. The stock has a market cap of $99.89 billion, a PE ratio of 24.36, a PEG ratio of 2.50 and a beta of 0.81. The business has a fifty day moving average of $207.04 and a two-hundred day moving average of $220.64. Marsh & McLennan Companies, Inc. has a 52-week low of $196.27 and a 52-week high of $248.00. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.19, a quick ratio of 1.20 and a current ratio of 1.20.

Marsh & McLennan Companies (NYSE:MMC) last released its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, July 17th. The financial services provider reported $2.72 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $2.66 by $0.06. Marsh & McLennan Companies had a return on equity of 31.90% and a net margin of 16.00%.The business had revenue of $6.97 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $6.92 billion. During the same period in the previous year, the business posted $2.41 earnings per share. The firm’s revenue for the quarter was up 12.1% compared to the same quarter last year. As a group, equities research analysts expect that Marsh & McLennan Companies, Inc. will post 9.61 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Marsh & McLennan Companies Increases Dividend

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, August 15th. Stockholders of record on Thursday, July 24th were given a dividend of $0.90 per share. This represents a $3.60 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 1.8%. The ex-dividend date was Thursday, July 24th. This is an increase from Marsh & McLennan Companies’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.82. Marsh & McLennan Companies’s dividend payout ratio is presently 43.17%.

Insider Activity

In other news, CEO John Q. Doyle sold 21,079 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, September 2nd. The stock was sold at an average price of $205.65, for a total transaction of $4,334,896.35. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief executive officer directly owned 87,681 shares in the company, valued at approximately $18,031,597.65. The trade was a 19.38% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this hyperlink. Insiders own 0.35% of the company’s stock.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several equities research analysts have recently weighed in on MMC shares. Wells Fargo & Company reduced their price objective on Marsh & McLennan Companies from $229.00 to $226.00 and set an “equal weight” rating for the company in a research report on Friday, July 18th. Morgan Stanley reduced their price objective on Marsh & McLennan Companies from $225.00 to $220.00 and set an “equal weight” rating for the company in a research report on Monday, August 18th. Citigroup started coverage on Marsh & McLennan Companies in a research report on Wednesday, August 13th. They issued a “neutral” rating and a $226.00 price objective for the company. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods reduced their price objective on Marsh & McLennan Companies from $214.00 to $210.00 and set an “underperform” rating for the company in a research report on Monday, July 21st. Finally, Barclays reduced their target price on Marsh & McLennan Companies from $249.00 to $233.00 and set an “equal weight” rating for the company in a research report on Monday, July 7th. Six research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, nine have assigned a Hold rating and two have assigned a Sell rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the stock has an average rating of “Hold” and an average price target of $238.76.

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.