Marsh & McLennan Companies, Inc. $MMC Shares Sold by Braun Bostich & Associates Inc.

Braun Bostich & Associates Inc. lessened its stake in Marsh & McLennan Companies, Inc. (NYSE:MMC) by 6.8% during the second quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the SEC. The institutional investor owned 1,194 shares of the financial services provider’s stock after selling 87 shares during the quarter. Braun Bostich & Associates Inc.’s holdings in Marsh & McLennan Companies were worth $261,000 as of its most recent filing with the SEC.

A number of other institutional investors have also modified their holdings of MMC. Brighton Jones LLC raised its stake in shares of Marsh & McLennan Companies by 51.2% in the 4th quarter. Brighton Jones LLC now owns 8,738 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $1,856,000 after purchasing an additional 2,960 shares in the last quarter. Bank Pictet & Cie Europe AG acquired a new stake in shares of Marsh & McLennan Companies in the 4th quarter valued at about $37,178,000. Bison Wealth LLC raised its stake in shares of Marsh & McLennan Companies by 39.6% in the 4th quarter. Bison Wealth LLC now owns 3,064 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $651,000 after purchasing an additional 869 shares in the last quarter. Sherbrooke Park Advisers LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Marsh & McLennan Companies in the 4th quarter valued at about $214,000. Finally, Shell Asset Management Co. raised its stake in shares of Marsh & McLennan Companies by 4.0% in the 4th quarter. Shell Asset Management Co. now owns 5,735 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $1,218,000 after purchasing an additional 223 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 87.99% of the company’s stock.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In related news, CEO John Q. Doyle sold 21,079 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, September 2nd. The shares were sold at an average price of $205.65, for a total transaction of $4,334,896.35. Following the completion of the sale, the chief executive officer directly owned 87,681 shares in the company, valued at approximately $18,031,597.65. This trade represents a 19.38% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available at the SEC website. Insiders own 0.35% of the company’s stock.

Marsh & McLennan Companies Trading Down 0.2%

Marsh & McLennan Companies stock opened at $202.97 on Monday. The firm has a 50 day simple moving average of $206.85 and a 200-day simple moving average of $220.25. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.19, a current ratio of 1.20 and a quick ratio of 1.20. The stock has a market capitalization of $99.78 billion, a PE ratio of 24.34, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.55 and a beta of 0.81. Marsh & McLennan Companies, Inc. has a 12-month low of $196.27 and a 12-month high of $248.00.

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

Marsh & McLennan Companies Increases Dividend

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, August 15th. Investors of record on Thursday, July 24th were issued a dividend of $0.90 per share. The ex-dividend date was Thursday, July 24th. This is a positive change from Marsh & McLennan Companies’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.82. This represents a $3.60 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 1.8%. Marsh & McLennan Companies’s payout ratio is 43.17%.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of equities research analysts recently weighed in on MMC shares. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods lowered their price objective on shares of Marsh & McLennan Companies from $214.00 to $210.00 and set an “underperform” rating for the company in a research report on Monday, July 21st. UBS Group dropped their price target on shares of Marsh & McLennan Companies from $261.00 to $258.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a research note on Monday, July 21st. Barclays dropped their price target on shares of Marsh & McLennan Companies from $249.00 to $233.00 and set an “equal weight” rating on the stock in a research note on Monday, July 7th. Morgan Stanley dropped their price target on shares of Marsh & McLennan Companies from $225.00 to $220.00 and set an “equal weight” rating on the stock in a research note on Monday, August 18th. Finally, Citigroup initiated coverage on shares of Marsh & McLennan Companies in a research note on Wednesday, August 13th. They issued a “neutral” rating and a $226.00 price target on the stock. Six analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, nine have issued a Hold rating and two have given a Sell rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the stock currently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and a consensus target price of $238.76.

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.