T. Rowe Price Investment Management Inc. Raises Holdings in Marsh & McLennan Companies, Inc. $MMC

T. Rowe Price Investment Management Inc. lifted its stake in Marsh & McLennan Companies, Inc. (NYSE:MMC) by 670.2% during the first quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The fund owned 300,477 shares of the financial services provider’s stock after buying an additional 261,464 shares during the quarter. T. Rowe Price Investment Management Inc. owned approximately 0.06% of Marsh & McLennan Companies worth $73,326,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

A number of other hedge funds have also recently modified their holdings of the stock. Vanguard Group Inc. boosted its stake in shares of Marsh & McLennan Companies by 1.3% in the first quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 45,321,445 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $11,059,792,000 after buying an additional 581,930 shares during the last quarter. Wellington Management Group LLP boosted its position in Marsh & McLennan Companies by 54.2% during the first quarter. Wellington Management Group LLP now owns 12,814,788 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $3,127,193,000 after purchasing an additional 4,505,548 shares in the last quarter. Northern Trust Corp boosted its position in Marsh & McLennan Companies by 14.0% during 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 purchasing an additional 726,713 shares in the last quarter. UBS AM a distinct business unit of UBS ASSET MANAGEMENT AMERICAS LLC boosted its position in Marsh & McLennan Companies by 13.2% during the fourth quarter. UBS AM a distinct business unit of UBS ASSET MANAGEMENT AMERICAS LLC now owns 5,218,488 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $1,108,459,000 after purchasing an additional 609,602 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Nuveen Asset Management LLC boosted its position in Marsh & McLennan Companies by 7.2% during the fourth quarter. Nuveen Asset Management LLC now owns 4,581,773 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $973,214,000 after purchasing an additional 308,759 shares in the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 87.99% of the company’s stock.

Marsh & McLennan Companies Price Performance

Shares of Marsh & McLennan Companies stock opened at $210.3830 on Friday. The business has a 50 day simple moving average of $210.28 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $223.00. Marsh & McLennan Companies, Inc. has a 12 month low of $196.27 and a 12 month high of $248.00. The stock has a market capitalization of $103.43 billion, a P/E ratio of 25.23, a PEG ratio of 2.63 and a beta of 0.77. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.19, a current ratio of 1.20 and a quick ratio of 1.20.

Marsh & McLennan Companies (NYSE:MMC) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, July 17th. The financial services provider reported $2.72 EPS for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $2.66 by $0.06. Marsh & McLennan Companies had a return on equity of 31.90% and a net margin of 16.00%.The firm had revenue of $6.97 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $6.92 billion. During the same quarter last year, the firm earned $2.41 earnings per share. The business’s revenue for the quarter was up 12.1% on a year-over-year basis. As a group, analysts predict that Marsh & McLennan Companies, Inc. will post 9.61 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Marsh & McLennan Companies Increases Dividend

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, August 15th. Investors of record on Thursday, July 24th were issued a $0.90 dividend. This is a boost from Marsh & McLennan Companies’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.82. This represents a $3.60 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 1.7%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Thursday, July 24th. Marsh & McLennan Companies’s payout ratio is 43.17%.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of equities analysts have issued reports on MMC shares. Morgan Stanley lowered their price target on Marsh & McLennan Companies from $225.00 to $220.00 and set an “equal weight” rating on the stock in a research report on Monday, August 18th. Citigroup started coverage on Marsh & McLennan Companies in a research report on Wednesday, August 13th. They set a “neutral” rating and a $226.00 price target on the stock. Wells Fargo & Company lowered their price target on Marsh & McLennan Companies from $229.00 to $226.00 and set an “equal weight” rating on the stock in a research report on Friday, July 18th. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods reduced their target price on Marsh & McLennan Companies from $214.00 to $210.00 and set an “underperform” rating for the company in a report on Monday, July 21st. Finally, Cantor Fitzgerald started coverage on Marsh & McLennan Companies in a report on Wednesday, August 13th. They set an “overweight” rating and a $256.00 target price for the company. Six research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, nine have issued a Hold rating and two have issued a Sell rating to the company. According to MarketBeat, the stock currently has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $238.76.

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.