Stock Yards Bank & Trust Co. Sells 3,314 Shares of Marsh & McLennan Companies, Inc. $MRSH

Stock Yards Bank & Trust Co. lowered its stake in Marsh & McLennan Companies, Inc. (NYSE:MRSH) by 2.4% during the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the SEC. The institutional investor owned 133,179 shares of the financial services provider’s stock after selling 3,314 shares during the quarter. Stock Yards Bank & Trust Co.’s holdings in Marsh & McLennan Companies were worth $24,707,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

A number of other institutional investors have also made changes to their positions in the business. Hanson & Doremus Investment Management lifted its position in shares of Marsh & McLennan Companies by 31.3% in the third quarter. Hanson & Doremus Investment Management now owns 214 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $43,000 after purchasing an additional 51 shares in the last quarter. D.A. Davidson & CO. lifted its position in shares of Marsh & McLennan Companies by 1.2% in the third quarter. D.A. Davidson & CO. now owns 4,514 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $910,000 after purchasing an additional 54 shares in the last quarter. Procyon Advisors LLC lifted its position in shares of Marsh & McLennan Companies by 2.5% in the fourth quarter. Procyon Advisors LLC now owns 2,279 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $423,000 after purchasing an additional 56 shares in the last quarter. Lindenwold Advisors INC lifted its position in shares of Marsh & McLennan Companies by 0.4% in the third quarter. Lindenwold Advisors INC now owns 14,994 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $3,022,000 after purchasing an additional 62 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Ashton Thomas Securities LLC lifted its position in shares of Marsh & McLennan Companies by 1.8% in the third quarter. Ashton Thomas Securities LLC now owns 3,663 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $736,000 after purchasing an additional 63 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors own 87.99% of the company’s stock.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of brokerages have recently commented on MRSH. Cantor Fitzgerald boosted their price objective on shares of Marsh & McLennan Companies from $208.00 to $212.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research report on Monday, February 2nd. Mizuho restated a “neutral” rating and set a $199.00 target price (down from $213.00) on shares of Marsh & McLennan Companies in a report on Friday, February 27th. Royal Bank Of Canada restated a “sector perform” rating and set a $200.00 target price on shares of Marsh & McLennan Companies in a report on Friday, January 30th. Wells Fargo & Company boosted their target price on shares of Marsh & McLennan Companies from $199.00 to $203.00 and gave the stock an “equal weight” rating in a report on Friday, January 30th. Finally, JPMorgan Chase & Co. lowered their target price on shares of Marsh & McLennan Companies from $242.00 to $226.00 and set an “overweight” rating on the stock in a report on Wednesday, January 7th. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, five have given a Buy rating, eleven have issued a Hold rating and one has assigned a Sell rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat, the company currently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and a consensus target price of $211.75.

Insider Activity at Marsh & McLennan Companies

In other Marsh & McLennan Companies news, CEO John Q. Doyle sold 16,655 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on Wednesday, March 4th. The shares were sold at an average price of $183.30, for a total value of $3,052,861.50. Following the transaction, the chief executive officer directly owned 116,811 shares in the company, valued at $21,411,456.30. The trade was a 12.48% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this hyperlink. 0.35% of the stock is currently owned by corporate insiders.

Marsh & McLennan Companies Price Performance

NYSE:MRSH opened at $174.98 on Tuesday. Marsh & McLennan Companies, Inc. has a one year low of $164.89 and a one year high of $239.34. The firm has a market capitalization of $84.71 billion, a P/E ratio of 20.76, a P/E/G ratio of 2.38 and a beta of 0.75. The company has a fifty day moving average of $175.26. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.20, a quick ratio of 1.10 and a current ratio of 1.10.

Marsh & McLennan Companies (NYSE:MRSH) last released its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, January 29th. The financial services provider reported $2.12 EPS for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $1.97 by $0.15. Marsh & McLennan Companies had a net margin of 15.42% and a return on equity of 31.60%. The firm had revenue of $6.60 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $6.52 billion. During the same period in the previous year, the company earned $1.87 earnings per share. The company’s quarterly revenue was up 8.7% on a year-over-year basis. As a group, equities research analysts expect that Marsh & McLennan Companies, Inc. will post 9.61 earnings per share for the current year.

Marsh & McLennan Companies Announces Dividend

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, May 15th. Shareholders of record on Thursday, April 9th will be issued a $0.90 dividend. This represents a $3.60 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 2.1%. The ex-dividend date is Thursday, April 9th. Marsh & McLennan Companies’s payout ratio is currently 42.70%.

About Marsh & McLennan Companies

Marsh & McLennan Companies (NYSE: MMC) is a global professional services firm headquartered in New York City that provides advice and solutions in the areas of risk, strategy and people. Founded in 1905, the company has grown into a diversified group of businesses focused on insurance brokerage and risk management, reinsurance, human capital and investment consulting, and management consulting. Its long history and scale position it as a prominent adviser to corporations, governments and other institutions seeking to manage risk and optimize human and financial capital.

The firm operates through several well-known subsidiaries and business units that specialize in distinct services.