Marsh & McLennan Companies, Inc. (NYSE:MMC) Shares Sold by Snowden Capital Advisors LLC

Snowden Capital Advisors LLC cut its holdings in Marsh & McLennan Companies, Inc. (NYSE:MMC) by 3.6% during the fourth quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the SEC. The fund owned 26,853 shares of the financial services provider’s stock after selling 1,003 shares during the period. Snowden Capital Advisors LLC’s holdings in Marsh & McLennan Companies were worth $5,704,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

A number of other large investors have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the business. Norges Bank purchased a new position in shares of Marsh & McLennan Companies during the fourth quarter worth $1,236,186,000. Stifel Financial Corp boosted its position in shares of Marsh & McLennan Companies by 551.0% during the fourth quarter. Stifel Financial Corp now owns 2,224,932 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $472,599,000 after buying an additional 1,883,146 shares during the period. Amundi boosted its holdings in Marsh & McLennan Companies by 81.1% during the 4th 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. Raymond James Financial Inc. acquired a new position in Marsh & McLennan Companies in the 4th quarter valued at about $207,278,000. Finally, Franklin Resources Inc. grew its position in Marsh & McLennan Companies by 473.2% in the 4th quarter. Franklin Resources Inc. now owns 927,525 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $197,016,000 after acquiring an additional 765,696 shares in the last quarter. 87.99% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Marsh & McLennan Companies Stock Performance

NYSE:MMC opened at $231.44 on Friday. The firm has a market capitalization of $114.04 billion, a PE ratio of 28.26, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.70 and a beta of 0.85. The business’s fifty day moving average price is $229.22 and its 200 day moving average price is $224.80. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.44, a current ratio of 1.13 and a quick ratio of 1.13. Marsh & McLennan Companies, Inc. has a 12 month low of $201.77 and a 12 month high of $248.00.

Marsh & McLennan Companies (NYSE:MMC) last posted its earnings results on Thursday, April 17th. The financial services provider reported $3.06 EPS for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $3.02 by $0.04. The firm had revenue of $6.70 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $7.08 billion. Marsh & McLennan Companies had a return on equity of 32.60% and a net margin of 16.60%. During the same quarter in the prior year, the company posted $2.89 earnings per share. On average, sell-side analysts anticipate that Marsh & McLennan Companies, Inc. will post 9.61 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Marsh & McLennan Companies Announces Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Thursday, May 15th. Shareholders of record on Thursday, April 3rd were issued a dividend of $0.815 per share. This represents a $3.26 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 1.41%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Thursday, April 3rd. Marsh & McLennan Companies’s payout ratio is 39.95%.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In related news, CEO Nicholas Mark Studer sold 49,390 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, March 12th. The stock was sold at an average price of $230.16, for a total transaction of $11,367,602.40. Following the transaction, the chief executive officer now owns 28,329 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $6,520,202.64. This trade represents a 63.55% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available through this link. Also, CEO Dean Michael Klisura sold 7,121 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated 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 directly owns 20,935 shares in the company, valued at approximately $4,919,096.95. This represents a 25.38% decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Over the last 90 days, insiders have sold 69,634 shares of company stock valued at $16,244,986. 0.35% of the stock is currently owned by insiders.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several equities analysts have weighed in on the company. Barclays lifted their target price on Marsh & McLennan Companies from $246.00 to $249.00 and gave the company an “equal weight” rating in a research report on Friday, April 11th. UBS Group increased their price objective on Marsh & McLennan Companies from $259.00 to $261.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research note on Wednesday, April 9th. Raymond James reiterated an “outperform” rating and issued a $250.00 price objective (up from $240.00) on shares of Marsh & McLennan Companies in a research note on Thursday, February 6th. Redburn Atlantic began coverage on Marsh & McLennan Companies in a research note on Tuesday, March 25th. They issued a “buy” rating and a $281.00 price objective on the stock. Finally, Wells Fargo & Company increased their price objective on Marsh & McLennan Companies from $223.00 to $232.00 and gave the company an “equal weight” rating in a research note on Thursday, April 10th. Two investment analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, seven have assigned a hold rating and five have issued a buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the stock has an average rating of “Hold” and an average target price of $241.93.

Marsh & McLennan Companies 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.