Suncoast Equity Management Boosts Holdings in Marsh & McLennan Companies, Inc. $MMC

Suncoast Equity Management lifted its stake in Marsh & McLennan Companies, Inc. (NYSE:MMC) by 1.8% in the 2nd quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The firm owned 20,082 shares of the financial services provider’s stock after purchasing an additional 350 shares during the period. Marsh & McLennan Companies accounts for about 0.4% of Suncoast Equity Management’s investment portfolio, making the stock its 26th biggest holding. Suncoast Equity Management’s holdings in Marsh & McLennan Companies were worth $4,391,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission.

Several other institutional investors and hedge funds have also recently modified their holdings of MMC. Accent Capital Management LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Marsh & McLennan Companies in the 1st quarter worth about $25,000. Knuff & Co LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Marsh & McLennan Companies in the 1st quarter worth about $28,000. Activest Wealth Management lifted its position in shares of Marsh & McLennan Companies by 2,775.0% in the 1st quarter. Activest Wealth Management now owns 115 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $28,000 after purchasing an additional 111 shares during the period. Westside Investment Management Inc. lifted its position in shares of Marsh & McLennan Companies by 363.3% in the 2nd quarter. Westside Investment Management Inc. now owns 139 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $30,000 after purchasing an additional 109 shares during the period. Finally, Access Investment Management LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Marsh & McLennan Companies in the 2nd quarter worth about $39,000. 87.99% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Insider Activity at Marsh & McLennan Companies

In other news, CEO John Q. Doyle sold 21,079 shares of Marsh & McLennan Companies stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, September 2nd. The shares were sold at an average price of $205.65, for a total value of $4,334,896.35. Following the completion of the sale, the chief executive officer directly owned 87,681 shares in the company, valued at $18,031,597.65. The trade was a 19.38% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available through this link. 0.35% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of brokerages recently issued reports on MMC. Wolfe Research began coverage on shares of Marsh & McLennan Companies in a research report on Tuesday, September 16th. They set a “peer perform” rating for the company. UBS Group lowered their price target on shares of Marsh & McLennan Companies from $258.00 to $257.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a research report on Wednesday, October 8th. Morgan Stanley lowered their price target on shares of Marsh & McLennan Companies from $220.00 to $215.00 and set an “equal weight” rating for the company in a research report on Tuesday, October 7th. Citigroup began coverage on shares of Marsh & McLennan Companies in a research report on Wednesday, August 13th. They set a “neutral” rating and a $226.00 price target for the company. Finally, Evercore ISI lowered their price target on shares of Marsh & McLennan Companies from $243.00 to $237.00 and set an “outperform” rating for the company in a research report on Friday, October 17th. Seven investment analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, ten have issued a Hold rating and one has issued a Sell rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the company currently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and an average price target of $228.63.

Marsh & McLennan Companies Stock Down 1.1%

Shares of Marsh & McLennan Companies stock opened at $178.47 on Thursday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.19, a quick ratio of 1.12 and a current ratio of 1.12. The stock has a market capitalization of $87.43 billion, a PE ratio of 21.40, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.25 and a beta of 0.78. Marsh & McLennan Companies, Inc. has a 52-week low of $174.18 and a 52-week high of $248.00. The company has a 50-day simple moving average of $196.60 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $209.81.

Marsh & McLennan Companies (NYSE:MMC) last issued its earnings results on Thursday, October 16th. The financial services provider reported $1.85 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $1.78 by $0.07. The business had revenue of $6.35 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $6.34 billion. Marsh & McLennan Companies had a net margin of 15.60% and a return on equity of 31.79%. The business’s revenue for the quarter was up 11.5% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period in the previous year, the company earned $1.63 earnings per share. On average, analysts anticipate that Marsh & McLennan Companies, Inc. will post 9.61 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Marsh & McLennan Companies Announces Dividend

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, November 14th. Stockholders of record on Thursday, October 2nd will be paid a $0.90 dividend. The ex-dividend date is Thursday, October 2nd. This represents a $3.60 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 2.0%. Marsh & McLennan Companies’s payout ratio is currently 43.17%.

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.