Wetzel Investment Advisors Inc. Reduces Stake in Marsh & McLennan Companies, Inc. (NYSE:MMC)

Wetzel Investment Advisors Inc. lowered its position in Marsh & McLennan Companies, Inc. (NYSE:MMC) by 42.0% in the second quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The firm owned 220 shares of the financial services provider’s stock after selling 159 shares during the quarter. Wetzel Investment Advisors Inc.’s holdings in Marsh & McLennan Companies were worth $45,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Several other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also recently bought and sold shares of the company. Indiana Trust & Investment Management CO acquired a new position in Marsh & McLennan Companies in the first quarter valued at approximately $25,000. Private Wealth Management Group LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Marsh & McLennan Companies during the 4th quarter worth about $26,000. Headlands Technologies LLC purchased a new stake in Marsh & McLennan Companies in the 1st quarter valued at about $27,000. Sachetta LLC purchased a new position in Marsh & McLennan Companies during the fourth quarter worth about $29,000. Finally, Clear Investment Research LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Marsh & McLennan Companies during the fourth quarter valued at about $33,000. 87.99% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of equities analysts recently weighed in on the stock. Roth Mkm increased their price objective on shares of Marsh & McLennan Companies from $200.00 to $220.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a research report on Friday, July 19th. Bank of America raised their price target on Marsh & McLennan Companies from $223.00 to $233.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a research report on Wednesday, May 22nd. JPMorgan Chase & Co. upped their target price on shares of Marsh & McLennan Companies from $210.00 to $230.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a research note on Thursday, July 11th. Barclays assumed coverage on Marsh & McLennan Companies in a report on Wednesday, September 4th. They issued an “equal weight” rating and a $236.00 target price for the company. Finally, Royal Bank of Canada boosted their price target on shares of Marsh & McLennan Companies from $228.00 to $232.00 and gave the stock a “sector perform” rating in a report on Friday, July 19th. Two equities research analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, twelve have assigned a hold rating and four have assigned a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the company presently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and a consensus target price of $215.53.

Marsh & McLennan Companies Stock Up 0.5 %

Shares of NYSE:MMC opened at $231.84 on Wednesday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.91, a current ratio of 1.17 and a quick ratio of 1.17. Marsh & McLennan Companies, Inc. has a 1-year low of $184.02 and a 1-year high of $232.32. The firm has a fifty day moving average price of $221.18 and a 200 day moving average price of $211.04. The stock has a market cap of $114.23 billion, a P/E ratio of 29.42, a P/E/G ratio of 3.18 and a beta of 0.94.

Marsh & McLennan Companies (NYSE:MMC) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, July 18th. The financial services provider reported $2.41 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $2.40 by $0.01. The business had revenue of $6.22 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $6.31 billion. Marsh & McLennan Companies had a net margin of 16.97% and a return on equity of 33.92%. The business’s revenue was up 5.9% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period in the previous year, the business posted $2.20 earnings per share. Sell-side analysts predict that Marsh & McLennan Companies, Inc. will post 8.74 EPS for the current year.

Marsh & McLennan Companies Increases Dividend

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Thursday, August 15th. Stockholders of record on Monday, July 15th were issued a $0.815 dividend. This represents a $3.26 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 1.41%. The ex-dividend date was Thursday, July 25th. This is an increase from Marsh & McLennan Companies’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.71. Marsh & McLennan Companies’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 41.37%.

Insider Activity

In other news, VP Stacy Mills sold 4,101 shares of Marsh & McLennan Companies stock in a transaction on Friday, August 2nd. The stock was sold at an average price of $225.77, for a total transaction of $925,882.77. Following the completion of the transaction, the vice president now owns 2,923 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $659,925.71. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this link. In related news, VP Stacy Mills sold 4,101 shares of the stock in a transaction on Friday, August 2nd. The stock was sold at an average price of $225.77, for a total transaction of $925,882.77. Following the sale, the vice president now owns 2,923 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $659,925.71. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. Also, SVP Paul Beswick sold 2,169 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, July 16th. The shares were sold at an average price of $220.00, for a total transaction of $477,180.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the senior vice president now directly owns 11,861 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $2,609,420. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last three months, insiders sold 27,735 shares of company stock worth $6,151,377. Company insiders own 0.30% of the company’s stock.

About Marsh & McLennan Companies

Marsh & McLennan Companies, Inc, a professional services company, provides advice and solutions to clients in the areas of risk, strategy, and people worldwide. It operates through Risk and Insurance Services, and Consulting segments. The Risk and Insurance Services segment offers risk management services, such as risk advice, risk transfer, and risk control and mitigation solutions, as well as insurance and reinsurance broking, strategic advisory services, and analytics solutions, and insurance program management services.