Marsh & McLennan Companies, Inc. (NYSE:MMC) Receives Average Recommendation of “Hold” from Brokerages

Marsh & McLennan Companies, Inc. (NYSE:MMC) has been given a consensus recommendation of “Hold” by the fifteen brokerages that are presently covering the stock, Marketbeat reports. Two research analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, ten have given a hold rating and three have issued a buy rating on the company. The average twelve-month price objective among brokerages that have covered the stock in the last year is $228.60.

A number of research firms have recently weighed in on MMC. The Goldman Sachs Group set a $220.00 target price on Marsh & McLennan Companies and gave the stock a “sell” rating in a report on Friday, October 18th. UBS Group increased their target price on shares of Marsh & McLennan Companies from $255.00 to $259.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research report on Tuesday, October 22nd. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods increased their price target on Marsh & McLennan Companies from $212.00 to $214.00 and gave the stock an “underperform” rating in a research report on Friday, January 10th. Jefferies Financial Group upped their target price on Marsh & McLennan Companies from $219.00 to $222.00 and gave the company a “hold” rating in a research report on Wednesday, October 9th. Finally, Barclays boosted their price target on Marsh & McLennan Companies from $236.00 to $246.00 and gave the company an “equal weight” rating in a research note on Thursday, November 21st.

Marsh & McLennan Companies Price Performance

Shares of MMC opened at $215.23 on Monday. The firm has a market capitalization of $105.71 billion, a PE ratio of 26.51, a PEG ratio of 2.31 and a beta of 0.96. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.89, a current ratio of 1.14 and a quick ratio of 1.14. The company’s 50-day moving average is $218.62 and its 200-day moving average is $221.15. Marsh & McLennan Companies has a fifty-two week low of $188.31 and a fifty-two week high of $235.50.

Marsh & McLennan Companies (NYSE:MMC) last posted its earnings results on Thursday, October 17th. The financial services provider reported $1.63 EPS for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $1.61 by $0.02. The company had revenue of $5.70 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $5.71 billion. Marsh & McLennan Companies had a return on equity of 32.65% and a net margin of 16.82%. The firm’s revenue for the quarter was up 5.9% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter in the prior year, the business earned $1.57 earnings per share. Equities analysts forecast that Marsh & McLennan Companies will post 8.68 EPS for the current year.

Marsh & McLennan Companies Announces Dividend

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, February 14th. Shareholders of record on Thursday, January 30th will be given a $0.815 dividend. The ex-dividend date is Thursday, January 30th. This represents a $3.26 annualized dividend and a yield of 1.51%. Marsh & McLennan Companies’s dividend payout ratio is presently 40.15%.

Insider Activity at Marsh & McLennan Companies

In related news, Director Oscar Fanjul sold 2,500 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction on Wednesday, October 30th. The shares were sold at an average price of $221.55, for a total value of $553,875.00. Following the sale, the director now owns 48,549 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $10,756,030.95. The trade was a 4.90 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available through the SEC website. 0.30% of the stock is owned by company insiders.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Marsh & McLennan Companies

A number of hedge funds have recently made changes to their positions in MMC. Assenagon Asset Management S.A. raised its holdings in Marsh & McLennan Companies by 7,320.9% during the 4th quarter. Assenagon Asset Management S.A. now owns 1,108,758 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $235,511,000 after purchasing an additional 1,093,817 shares during the last quarter. FMR LLC boosted its position in Marsh & McLennan Companies by 2.5% during the third quarter. FMR LLC now owns 21,445,110 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $4,784,190,000 after acquiring an additional 518,185 shares during the last quarter. The Manufacturers Life Insurance Company raised its position in shares of Marsh & McLennan Companies by 127.9% in the 3rd quarter. The Manufacturers Life Insurance Company now owns 899,716 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $200,718,000 after acquiring an additional 504,897 shares in the last quarter. International Assets Investment Management LLC boosted its position in shares of Marsh & McLennan Companies by 31,846.5% during the 3rd quarter. International Assets Investment Management LLC now owns 427,764 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $95,430,000 after purchasing an additional 426,425 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Truist Financial Corp increased its holdings in Marsh & McLennan Companies by 93.9% in the second quarter. Truist Financial Corp now owns 761,974 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $160,563,000 after purchasing an additional 368,970 shares in the last quarter. 87.99% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

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.