Blueshift Asset Management LLC Makes New Investment in Marsh & McLennan Companies, Inc. (NYSE:MMC)

Blueshift Asset Management LLC acquired a new stake in Marsh & McLennan Companies, Inc. (NYSE:MMC) during the third quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the SEC. The fund acquired 1,405 shares of the financial services provider’s stock, valued at approximately $313,000.

Several other institutional investors and hedge funds also recently made changes to their positions in the business. FMR LLC lifted its stake in Marsh & McLennan Companies by 2.5% in 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 buying an additional 518,185 shares during the period. Legal & General Group Plc lifted its position in shares of Marsh & McLennan Companies by 5.2% during the 2nd quarter. Legal & General Group Plc now owns 4,530,716 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $954,712,000 after acquiring an additional 223,257 shares during the period. Parnassus Investments LLC grew its holdings in Marsh & McLennan Companies by 2.0% in the third quarter. Parnassus Investments LLC now owns 4,274,880 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $953,683,000 after purchasing an additional 85,754 shares during the period. Clearbridge Investments LLC increased its stake in Marsh & McLennan Companies by 1.7% in the second quarter. Clearbridge Investments LLC now owns 3,409,110 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $718,368,000 after purchasing an additional 58,461 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Jensen Investment Management Inc. boosted its position in shares of Marsh & McLennan Companies by 1.3% during the 2nd quarter. Jensen Investment Management Inc. now owns 3,226,258 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $679,837,000 after purchasing an additional 40,182 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors own 87.99% of the company’s stock.

Insider Buying and Selling at Marsh & McLennan Companies

In related news, Director Oscar Fanjul sold 2,500 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, October 30th. The stock was sold at an average price of $221.55, for a total value of $553,875.00. Following the sale, the director now directly owns 48,549 shares in the company, valued at approximately $10,756,030.95. The trade was a 4.90 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is accessible through this hyperlink. Corporate insiders own 0.30% of the company’s stock.

Marsh & McLennan Companies Stock Up 0.2 %

Shares of NYSE:MMC opened at $233.24 on Friday. The company has a market capitalization of $114.55 billion, a PE ratio of 28.72, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.78 and a beta of 0.94. Marsh & McLennan Companies, Inc. has a 1 year low of $184.28 and a 1 year high of $235.21. 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 business has a fifty day moving average price of $224.06 and a two-hundred day moving average price of $219.50.

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

Marsh & McLennan Companies Announces Dividend

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, November 15th. Shareholders of record on Friday, October 4th were given a $0.815 dividend. This represents a $3.26 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 1.40%. The ex-dividend date was Friday, October 4th. Marsh & McLennan Companies’s dividend payout ratio is currently 40.15%.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of analysts recently commented on MMC shares. Jefferies Financial Group boosted 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. Wells Fargo & Company cut their target price on Marsh & McLennan Companies from $212.00 to $211.00 and set an “equal weight” rating on the stock in a report on Thursday, October 10th. Bank of America upped their price objective on shares of Marsh & McLennan Companies from $248.00 to $250.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a report on Thursday, October 10th. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods lifted their price objective on shares of Marsh & McLennan Companies from $209.00 to $212.00 and gave the company an “underperform” rating in a report on Tuesday, October 22nd. Finally, Royal Bank of Canada raised their price target on shares of Marsh & McLennan Companies from $232.00 to $242.00 and gave the company a “sector perform” rating in a research report on Friday, October 18th. Two research analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, twelve have given a hold rating and two have issued a buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat, the stock currently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and an average price target of $227.60.

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.