Wesleyan Assurance Society Sells 4,500 Shares of Marsh & McLennan Companies, Inc. (NYSE:MMC)

Wesleyan Assurance Society decreased its position in shares of Marsh & McLennan Companies, Inc. (NYSE:MMC) by 5.2% during the fourth quarter, according to its most recent filing with the SEC. The firm owned 81,926 shares of the financial services provider’s stock after selling 4,500 shares during the period. Marsh & McLennan Companies comprises about 1.3% of Wesleyan Assurance Society’s holdings, making the stock its 22nd largest holding. Wesleyan Assurance Society’s holdings in Marsh & McLennan Companies were worth $17,404,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

A number of other institutional investors have also added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Vanguard Group Inc. raised its stake in Marsh & McLennan Companies by 0.8% during the fourth quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 44,739,515 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $9,503,120,000 after buying an additional 356,618 shares during the last quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC lifted its holdings in shares of Marsh & McLennan Companies by 1.2% during the 4th quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC now owns 12,050,565 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $2,554,841,000 after buying an additional 145,134 shares during the period. Price T Rowe Associates Inc. MD boosted its position in Marsh & McLennan Companies by 1.0% in the fourth quarter. Price T Rowe Associates Inc. MD now owns 10,151,020 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $2,156,179,000 after purchasing an additional 96,750 shares during the last quarter. Northern Trust Corp boosted its holdings in shares of Marsh & McLennan Companies by 14.0% in the fourth quarter. Northern Trust Corp now owns 5,934,340 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $1,260,513,000 after buying an additional 726,713 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Norges Bank bought a new stake in shares of Marsh & McLennan Companies during the 4th quarter valued at $1,236,186,000. Institutional investors own 87.99% of the company’s stock.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several equities research analysts recently issued reports on MMC shares. UBS Group increased their target price on shares of Marsh & McLennan Companies from $259.00 to $261.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a report on Wednesday, April 9th. Raymond James reaffirmed an “outperform” rating and issued a $250.00 target price (up from $240.00) on shares of Marsh & McLennan Companies in a report on Thursday, February 6th. Redburn Atlantic assumed coverage on shares of Marsh & McLennan Companies in a research note on Tuesday, March 25th. They set a “buy” rating and a $281.00 price target on the stock. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods lowered their price objective on Marsh & McLennan Companies from $220.00 to $215.00 and set an “underperform” rating for the company in a research note on Monday, April 21st. Finally, Jefferies Financial Group lifted their price target on shares of Marsh & McLennan Companies from $237.00 to $244.00 and gave the stock a “hold” rating in a research note on Friday, April 11th. Two equities research 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’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the company has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $241.93.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In related 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 sale, the chief executive officer now owns 20,935 shares in the company, valued at $4,919,096.95. This represents a 25.38% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this hyperlink. Also, CEO Nicholas Mark Studer sold 49,390 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction on 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 directly owns 28,329 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $6,520,202.64. This trade represents a 63.55% decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Over the last 90 days, insiders sold 69,634 shares of company stock valued at $16,244,986. 0.35% of the stock is currently owned by corporate insiders.

Marsh & McLennan Companies Stock Performance

Shares of Marsh & McLennan Companies stock opened at $231.74 on Tuesday. The company has a current ratio of 1.13, a quick ratio of 1.13 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.44. The firm has a market cap of $114.18 billion, a P/E ratio of 28.30, a P/E/G ratio of 2.70 and a beta of 0.85. The stock’s fifty day moving average price is $229.26 and its 200-day moving average price is $224.96. 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 announced its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, April 17th. The financial services provider reported $3.06 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $3.02 by $0.04. The business had revenue of $6.70 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate 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 period last year, the business posted $2.89 EPS. On average, equities research analysts expect that Marsh & McLennan Companies, Inc. will post 9.61 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Marsh & McLennan Companies Dividend Announcement

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

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.