USS Investment Management Ltd Trims Stake in Marsh & McLennan Companies, Inc. (NYSE:MMC)

USS Investment Management Ltd lowered its stake in Marsh & McLennan Companies, Inc. (NYSE:MMC) by 2.7% during the 4th quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The firm owned 95,145 shares of the financial services provider’s stock after selling 2,616 shares during the quarter. USS Investment Management Ltd’s holdings in Marsh & McLennan Companies were worth $20,212,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission.

Several other hedge funds also recently bought and sold shares of MMC. Financial Life Planners purchased a new stake in shares of Marsh & McLennan Companies in the fourth quarter worth about $33,000. Sierra Ocean LLC bought a new position in Marsh & McLennan Companies during the fourth quarter valued at $36,000. Albion Financial Group UT purchased a new stake in shares of Marsh & McLennan Companies in the fourth quarter valued at $38,000. Transce3nd LLC purchased a new position in shares of Marsh & McLennan Companies during the 4th quarter worth about $39,000. Finally, Golden State Wealth Management LLC bought a new position in Marsh & McLennan Companies during the 4th quarter valued at about $41,000. Institutional investors own 87.99% of the company’s stock.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several research analysts have issued reports on the company. Redburn Atlantic started coverage on Marsh & McLennan Companies in a research report on Tuesday, March 25th. They set a “buy” rating and a $281.00 target price for the company. Raymond James reaffirmed 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. Jefferies Financial Group upped 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 report on Friday, April 11th. Wells Fargo & Company lifted their price objective on shares of Marsh & McLennan Companies from $223.00 to $232.00 and gave the company an “equal weight” rating in a report on Thursday, April 10th. Finally, Keefe, Bruyette & Woods dropped their target price on Marsh & McLennan Companies from $220.00 to $215.00 and set an “underperform” rating on the stock in a research report on Monday, April 21st. Two research analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, seven have given a hold rating and five have given a buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat, Marsh & McLennan Companies has an average rating of “Hold” and an average target price of $241.93.

Marsh & McLennan Companies Price Performance

Shares of MMC opened at $230.80 on Wednesday. The business’s 50-day moving average is $229.28 and its two-hundred day moving average is $225.00. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.44, a quick ratio of 1.13 and a current ratio of 1.13. The company has a market capitalization of $113.72 billion, a P/E ratio of 28.18, a P/E/G ratio of 2.70 and a beta of 0.85. Marsh & McLennan Companies, Inc. has a fifty-two week low of $201.77 and a fifty-two week high of $248.00.

Marsh & McLennan Companies (NYSE:MMC) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, April 17th. The financial services provider reported $3.06 EPS for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $3.02 by $0.04. Marsh & McLennan Companies had a net margin of 16.60% and a return on equity of 32.60%. The business had revenue of $6.70 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $7.08 billion. During the same quarter last year, the company earned $2.89 EPS. Research analysts predict that Marsh & McLennan Companies, Inc. will post 9.61 earnings per share for the current year.

Marsh & McLennan Companies Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Thursday, May 15th. Investors of record on Thursday, April 3rd were paid a $0.815 dividend. 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%.

Insider Buying and Selling at Marsh & McLennan Companies

In other news, VP Stacy Mills sold 1,317 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on Monday, March 10th. The shares were sold at an average price of $234.97, for a total transaction of $309,455.49. Following the completion of the sale, the vice president now owns 2,923 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $686,817.31. This represents a 31.06% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this hyperlink. Also, CEO Nicholas Mark Studer sold 49,390 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, March 12th. The stock was sold at an average price of $230.16, for a total value of $11,367,602.40. Following the transaction, the chief executive officer now owns 28,329 shares in the company, valued at approximately $6,520,202.64. This represents a 63.55% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Over the last three months, insiders have sold 69,634 shares of company stock valued at $16,244,986. Company insiders own 0.35% 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.