Barclays Lowers Marsh & McLennan Companies (NYSE:MRSH) Price Target to $206.00

Marsh & McLennan Companies (NYSE:MRSH) had its price target cut by investment analysts at Barclays from $209.00 to $206.00 in a report issued on Wednesday,Benzinga reports. The brokerage currently has an “overweight” rating on the financial services provider’s stock. Barclays‘s price target would suggest a potential upside of 17.64% from the stock’s current price.

MRSH has been the subject of a number of other research reports. Evercore lowered their price target on Marsh & McLennan Companies from $237.00 to $236.00 and set an “outperform” rating for the company in a research report on Wednesday, January 7th. Citigroup boosted their price objective on Marsh & McLennan Companies from $201.00 to $205.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a report on Tuesday, February 3rd. Raymond James Financial raised Marsh & McLennan Companies from an “outperform” rating to a “strong-buy” rating and set a $225.00 price objective for the company in a report on Tuesday, February 17th. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods cut their price target on Marsh & McLennan Companies from $206.00 to $200.00 and set a “market perform” rating for the company in a research note on Tuesday. Finally, Morgan Stanley cut their price target on Marsh & McLennan Companies from $195.00 to $190.00 and set an “equal weight” rating for the company in a research note on Monday. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, five have assigned a Buy rating, eleven have assigned a Hold rating and one has issued a Sell rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the stock presently has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $211.19.

Marsh & McLennan Companies Stock Up 1.4%

Shares of Marsh & McLennan Companies stock traded up $2.45 during trading on Wednesday, reaching $175.11. The company’s stock had a trading volume of 598,710 shares, compared to its average volume of 3,074,815. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.20, a quick ratio of 1.10 and a current ratio of 1.10. The stock has a market capitalization of $84.78 billion, a P/E ratio of 20.79, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.38 and a beta of 0.75. Marsh & McLennan Companies has a 1-year low of $164.89 and a 1-year high of $239.34. The company has a 50-day moving average price of $174.75.

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

Insider Activity

In other news, CEO John Q. Doyle sold 16,655 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, March 4th. The stock was sold at an average price of $183.30, for a total value of $3,052,861.50. Following the completion of the sale, the chief executive officer directly owned 116,811 shares in the company, valued at $21,411,456.30. This represents 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 link. 0.35% of the stock is owned by company insiders.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

A number of large investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in MRSH. Brighton Jones LLC lifted its holdings in Marsh & McLennan Companies by 51.2% in the fourth quarter. Brighton Jones LLC now owns 8,738 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $1,856,000 after acquiring an additional 2,960 shares during the last quarter. Bison Wealth LLC raised its stake in shares of Marsh & McLennan Companies by 39.6% in the fourth quarter. Bison Wealth LLC now owns 3,064 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $651,000 after acquiring an additional 869 shares in the last quarter. StoneX Group Inc. raised its stake in shares of Marsh & McLennan Companies by 10.4% in the second quarter. StoneX Group Inc. now owns 1,368 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $299,000 after acquiring an additional 129 shares in the last quarter. Gamco Investors INC. ET AL raised its stake in shares of Marsh & McLennan Companies by 2.7% in the second quarter. Gamco Investors INC. ET AL now owns 19,347 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $4,230,000 after acquiring an additional 505 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Daiwa Securities Group Inc. raised its stake in shares of Marsh & McLennan Companies by 5.6% in the second quarter. Daiwa Securities Group Inc. now owns 74,523 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $16,294,000 after acquiring an additional 3,951 shares in the last quarter. 87.99% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

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.