Marsh & McLennan Companies (NYSE:MMC) Sets New 12-Month High – Time to Buy?

Shares of Marsh & McLennan Companies, Inc. (NYSE:MMC) hit a new 52-week high during mid-day trading on Thursday . The stock traded as high as $242.40 and last traded at $241.87, with a volume of 604240 shares. The stock had previously closed at $238.80.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several analysts have recently issued reports on the company. Raymond James restated an “outperform” rating and issued a $250.00 price objective (up from $240.00) on shares of Marsh & McLennan Companies in a research report on Thursday, February 6th. Royal Bank of Canada raised shares of Marsh & McLennan Companies from a “sector perform” rating to an “outperform” rating and raised their target price for the stock from $242.00 to $250.00 in a research report on Thursday, December 12th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. boosted their price target on Marsh & McLennan Companies from $230.00 to $235.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a research report on Friday, January 3rd. Wells Fargo & Company increased their price objective on shares of Marsh & McLennan Companies from $212.00 to $223.00 and gave the stock an “equal weight” rating in a research report on Friday, January 31st. Finally, Keefe, Bruyette & Woods reduced their price objective on Marsh & McLennan Companies from $214.00 to $210.00 and set an “underperform” rating on the stock in a research note on Monday, February 3rd. Two investment analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, ten have assigned a hold rating and five have assigned a buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat.com, Marsh & McLennan Companies has an average rating of “Hold” and an average target price of $233.41.

Marsh & McLennan Companies Stock Down 0.4 %

The company has a quick ratio of 1.13, a current ratio of 1.13 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.44. The firm has a market capitalization of $119.04 billion, a PE ratio of 29.60, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.70 and a beta of 0.95. The business’s 50-day moving average price is $229.65 and its 200-day moving average price is $224.17.

Marsh & McLennan Companies (NYSE:MMC) last released its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, January 30th. The financial services provider reported $1.87 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.75 by $0.12. Marsh & McLennan Companies had a return on equity of 32.60% and a net margin of 16.60%. As a group, equities research analysts predict that Marsh & McLennan Companies, Inc. will post 9.61 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Marsh & McLennan Companies Dividend Announcement

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, May 15th. Shareholders of record on Thursday, April 3rd will be issued a dividend of $0.815 per share. The ex-dividend date is Thursday, April 3rd. This represents a $3.26 annualized dividend and a yield of 1.34%. Marsh & McLennan Companies’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 39.80%.

Insider Activity at Marsh & McLennan Companies

In other Marsh & McLennan Companies news, CEO Nicholas Mark Studer sold 49,390 shares of the stock in a transaction on Wednesday, March 12th. The shares were sold at an average price of $230.16, for a total value of $11,367,602.40. Following the completion of the sale, the chief executive officer now directly owns 28,329 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $6,520,202.64. This represents a 63.55 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this link. Also, CEO Dean Michael Klisura sold 7,121 shares of Marsh & McLennan Companies stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, March 10th. The stock was sold at an average price of $234.97, for a total value of $1,673,221.37. Following the sale, the chief executive officer now directly owns 20,935 shares in the company, valued at $4,919,096.95. The trade was a 25.38 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last ninety days, insiders have sold 57,828 shares of company stock valued at $13,350,279. Corporate insiders own 0.30% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Marsh & McLennan Companies

Large investors have recently bought and sold shares of the business. Norges Bank acquired a new position in Marsh & McLennan Companies in the fourth quarter worth $1,236,186,000. Stifel Financial Corp raised its position in Marsh & McLennan Companies by 551.0% in the 4th quarter. Stifel Financial Corp now owns 2,224,932 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $472,599,000 after purchasing an additional 1,883,146 shares during the last quarter. Amundi lifted its stake in shares of Marsh & McLennan Companies by 81.1% during the fourth quarter. Amundi now owns 4,072,976 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $860,824,000 after acquiring an additional 1,823,807 shares during the period. Assenagon Asset Management S.A. lifted its position 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 valued at $235,511,000 after purchasing an additional 1,093,817 shares during the period. Finally, Raymond James Financial Inc. acquired a new stake in shares of Marsh & McLennan Companies during the 4th quarter worth approximately $207,278,000. 87.99% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Marsh & McLennan Companies Company Profile

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.