Scotia Capital Inc. Acquires 13,312 Shares of Marsh & McLennan Companies, Inc. (NYSE:MMC)

Scotia Capital Inc. grew its holdings in Marsh & McLennan Companies, Inc. (NYSE:MMC) by 16.0% during the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the SEC. The fund owned 96,728 shares of the financial services provider’s stock after purchasing an additional 13,312 shares during the period. Scotia Capital Inc.’s holdings in Marsh & McLennan Companies were worth $20,546,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Several other hedge funds and other institutional investors also recently modified their holdings of MMC. Modera Wealth Management LLC grew its holdings in shares of Marsh & McLennan Companies by 2.5% in the fourth quarter. Modera Wealth Management LLC now owns 1,885 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $400,000 after acquiring an additional 46 shares in the last quarter. Geneos Wealth Management Inc. boosted its position in Marsh & McLennan Companies by 3.7% during the 4th quarter. Geneos Wealth Management Inc. now owns 1,324 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $281,000 after acquiring an additional 47 shares in the last quarter. Hemington Wealth Management lifted its position in Marsh & McLennan Companies by 6.7% in the 4th quarter. Hemington Wealth Management now owns 768 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $163,000 after acquiring an additional 48 shares in the last quarter. DF Dent & Co. Inc. lifted its holdings in shares of Marsh & McLennan Companies by 0.9% during the 4th quarter. DF Dent & Co. Inc. now owns 5,762 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $1,224,000 after buying an additional 49 shares during the period. Finally, New England Professional Planning Group Inc. increased its stake in shares of Marsh & McLennan Companies by 4.1% in the fourth quarter. New England Professional Planning Group Inc. now owns 1,261 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $268,000 after purchasing an additional 50 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors own 87.99% of the company’s stock.

Marsh & McLennan Companies Stock Performance

Shares of MMC stock opened at $229.84 on Thursday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.44, a current ratio of 1.13 and a quick ratio of 1.13. The firm has a market cap of $113.29 billion, a P/E ratio of 28.06, a PEG ratio of 2.70 and a beta of 0.85. The stock’s 50-day moving average is $232.44 and its two-hundred day moving average is $224.51. Marsh & McLennan Companies, Inc. has a fifty-two week low of $196.17 and a fifty-two week high of $248.00.

Marsh & McLennan Companies (NYSE:MMC) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, January 30th. The financial services provider reported $1.87 EPS for the quarter, topping 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%. Analysts predict that Marsh & McLennan Companies, Inc. will post 9.61 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Marsh & McLennan Companies Announces Dividend

The firm 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 of this dividend is Thursday, April 3rd. This represents a $3.26 annualized dividend and a yield of 1.42%. Marsh & McLennan Companies’s dividend payout ratio is presently 39.80%.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

MMC has been the topic of a number of research analyst reports. Raymond James restated an “outperform” rating and issued a $250.00 price target (up from $240.00) on shares of Marsh & McLennan Companies in a report on Thursday, February 6th. UBS Group increased their price objective on shares of Marsh & McLennan Companies from $259.00 to $261.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research report on Wednesday. Redburn Atlantic initiated coverage on shares of Marsh & McLennan Companies in a research report on Tuesday, March 25th. They set a “buy” rating and a $281.00 price target for the company. Royal Bank of Canada raised shares of Marsh & McLennan Companies from a “sector perform” rating to an “outperform” rating and raised their price target for the stock from $242.00 to $250.00 in a research report on Thursday, December 12th. Finally, Wells Fargo & Company raised their price target 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. Two investment analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, ten have issued a hold rating and five have issued a buy rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the stock currently has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus target price of $234.12.

Insider Activity

In other news, CEO Dean Michael Klisura sold 7,121 shares of the company’s 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 transaction, the chief executive officer now owns 20,935 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $4,919,096.95. This represents a 25.38 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this link. Also, SVP Paul Beswick sold 2,237 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, April 3rd. The shares were sold at an average price of $246.00, for a total value of $550,302.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the senior vice president now directly owns 13,522 shares in the company, valued at $3,326,412. The trade was a 14.20 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders have sold a total of 69,634 shares of company stock worth $16,244,986 over the last three months. Corporate insiders own 0.30% of the company’s stock.

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.