Franklin Resources Inc. Purchases New Position in Marsh & McLennan Companies, Inc. $MRSH

Franklin Resources Inc. purchased a new stake in shares of Marsh & McLennan Companies, Inc. (NYSE:MRSH) during the 4th quarter, Holdings Channel.com reports. The institutional investor purchased 1,554,402 shares of the financial services provider’s stock, valued at approximately $288,373,000.

Several other hedge funds and other institutional investors also recently modified their holdings of MRSH. Headlands Technologies LLC purchased a new position in Marsh & McLennan Companies during the 2nd quarter valued at about $29,000. KERR FINANCIAL PLANNING Corp bought a new stake in Marsh & McLennan Companies during the fourth quarter worth about $27,000. Financial Life Planners bought a new stake in Marsh & McLennan Companies during the third quarter worth about $32,000. City Holding Co. bought a new stake in Marsh & McLennan Companies during the fourth quarter worth about $29,000. Finally, JPL Wealth Management LLC bought a new stake in Marsh & McLennan Companies during the third quarter worth about $35,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 87.99% of the company’s stock.

Marsh & McLennan Companies Trading Up 1.8%

Shares of NYSE MRSH opened at $165.52 on Wednesday. The company has a market capitalization of $79.96 billion, a PE ratio of 20.69, a PEG ratio of 2.37 and a beta of 0.62. Marsh & McLennan Companies, Inc. has a 52-week low of $156.60 and a 52-week high of $222.57. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.28, a quick ratio of 1.11 and a current ratio of 1.11.

Marsh & McLennan Companies (NYSE:MRSH) last issued its earnings results on Thursday, April 16th. The financial services provider reported $3.29 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $3.21 by $0.08. The firm had revenue of $7.30 billion for the quarter. Marsh & McLennan Companies had a net margin of 14.26% and a return on equity of 31.87%. The company’s revenue was up 7.6% compared to the same quarter last year. As a group, research analysts expect that Marsh & McLennan Companies, Inc. will post 10.38 earnings per share for the current year.

Insider Activity

In other news, CEO John Q. Doyle sold 16,656 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, June 2nd. The shares were sold at an average price of $161.71, for a total value of $2,693,441.76. Following the transaction, the chief executive officer owned 116,811 shares in the company, valued at approximately $18,889,506.81. This represents a 12.48% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is accessible through this link. The transaction was executed under a pre-arranged Rule 10b5-1 trading plan. Corporate insiders own 0.38% of the company’s stock.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several equities research analysts recently commented on MRSH shares. Wells Fargo & Company dropped their price objective on shares of Marsh & McLennan Companies from $203.00 to $178.00 and set an “equal weight” rating on the stock in a research note on Thursday, April 9th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. dropped their price objective on shares of Marsh & McLennan Companies from $226.00 to $206.00 and set an “overweight” rating on the stock in a research note on Thursday, April 9th. Raymond James Financial raised shares of Marsh & McLennan Companies from an “outperform” rating to a “strong-buy” rating and set a $225.00 price objective on the stock in a research note on Tuesday, February 17th. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods boosted their price objective on shares of Marsh & McLennan Companies from $200.00 to $203.00 and gave the stock a “market perform” rating in a research note on Friday, April 17th. Finally, Piper Sandler dropped their price objective on shares of Marsh & McLennan Companies from $190.00 to $182.00 and set a “neutral” rating on the stock in a research note on Tuesday, May 26th. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, six have issued a Buy rating, ten have issued a Hold rating and one has given a Sell rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the stock presently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and an average target price of $200.19.

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.