Blue Trust Inc. Acquires 2,611 Shares of Marsh & McLennan Companies, Inc. (NYSE:MMC)

Blue Trust Inc. increased its holdings in Marsh & McLennan Companies, Inc. (NYSE:MMC) by 14.9% during the 3rd quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the SEC. The fund owned 20,081 shares of the financial services provider’s stock after purchasing an additional 2,611 shares during the period. Blue Trust Inc.’s holdings in Marsh & McLennan Companies were worth $4,231,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Several other large investors also recently bought and sold shares of the business. Vanguard Group Inc. increased its position in Marsh & McLennan Companies by 0.3% in the first quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 43,917,270 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $9,046,079,000 after purchasing an additional 119,236 shares during the last quarter. Price T Rowe Associates Inc. MD boosted its stake in Marsh & McLennan Companies by 3.7% during the first quarter. Price T Rowe Associates Inc. MD now owns 10,624,073 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $2,188,348,000 after buying an additional 380,828 shares during the period. Legal & General Group Plc boosted its stake in Marsh & McLennan Companies by 5.2% during the second quarter. Legal & General Group Plc now owns 4,530,716 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $954,712,000 after buying an additional 223,257 shares during the period. Clearbridge Investments LLC boosted its stake in Marsh & McLennan Companies by 1.7% during the second quarter. Clearbridge Investments LLC now owns 3,409,110 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $718,368,000 after buying an additional 58,461 shares during the period. Finally, Jensen Investment Management Inc. boosted its stake in Marsh & McLennan Companies by 1.3% during the second quarter. Jensen Investment Management Inc. now owns 3,226,258 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $679,837,000 after buying an additional 40,182 shares during the period. Institutional investors own 87.99% of the company’s stock.

Insider Buying and Selling

In related news, CFO Mark C. Mcgivney sold 10,265 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, August 2nd. The shares were sold at an average price of $226.41, for a total value of $2,324,098.65. Following the transaction, the chief financial officer now owns 33,678 shares in the company, valued at approximately $7,625,035.98. This represents a 0.00 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this link. In other Marsh & McLennan Companies news, CFO Mark C. Mcgivney sold 5,200 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, August 5th. The stock was sold at an average price of $225.03, for a total value of $1,170,156.00. Following the sale, the chief financial officer now owns 33,678 shares in the company, valued at approximately $7,578,560.34. This represents a 0.00 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is accessible through this link. Also, CFO Mark C. Mcgivney sold 10,265 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, August 2nd. The stock was sold at an average price of $226.41, for a total value of $2,324,098.65. Following the completion of the sale, the chief financial officer now owns 33,678 shares in the company, valued at approximately $7,625,035.98. This represents a 0.00 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last quarter, insiders have sold 19,566 shares of company stock worth $4,420,137. 0.30% of the stock is owned by company insiders.

Analyst Ratings Changes

MMC has been the subject of several recent analyst reports. JPMorgan Chase & Co. lifted their price objective 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. Wells Fargo & Company dropped their price objective on shares of Marsh & McLennan Companies from $212.00 to $211.00 and set an “equal weight” rating for the company in a research note on Thursday, October 10th. Jefferies Financial Group boosted their target price on shares of Marsh & McLennan Companies from $219.00 to $222.00 and gave the company a “hold” rating in a research note on Wednesday, October 9th. Royal Bank of Canada boosted their target price on shares of Marsh & McLennan Companies from $232.00 to $242.00 and gave the company a “sector perform” rating in a research note on Friday. Finally, The Goldman Sachs Group set a $220.00 target price on shares of Marsh & McLennan Companies and gave the company a “sell” rating in a research note on Friday. Two investment analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, twelve have given a hold rating and three have issued a buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the stock presently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and an average target price of $220.13.

Marsh & McLennan Companies Stock Performance

Shares of Marsh & McLennan Companies stock opened at $224.66 on Friday. Marsh & McLennan Companies, Inc. has a one year low of $184.02 and a one year high of $232.32. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.91, a quick ratio of 1.17 and a current ratio of 1.17. The company has a market capitalization of $110.70 billion, a PE ratio of 28.51, a P/E/G ratio of 3.58 and a beta of 0.94. The company has a 50-day simple moving average of $225.28 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $214.91.

Marsh & McLennan Companies (NYSE:MMC) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, October 17th. The financial services provider reported $1.63 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $1.61 by $0.02. Marsh & McLennan Companies had a net margin of 16.97% and a return on equity of 33.92%. The firm had revenue of $5.70 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $5.71 billion. During the same quarter in the prior year, the company posted $1.57 earnings per share. The company’s revenue for the quarter was up 5.9% compared to the same quarter last year. Research analysts expect that Marsh & McLennan Companies, Inc. will post 8.73 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Marsh & McLennan Companies Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, November 15th. Investors of record on Friday, October 4th will be issued a $0.815 dividend. The ex-dividend date is Friday, October 4th. This represents a $3.26 annualized dividend and a yield of 1.45%. Marsh & McLennan Companies’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 41.37%.

Marsh & McLennan Companies Company Profile

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.