Marsh & McLennan Companies, Inc. (NYSE:MMC) Receives $204.64 Consensus PT from Analysts

Marsh & McLennan Companies, Inc. (NYSE:MMC) has earned a consensus recommendation of “Hold” from the fifteen ratings firms that are covering the firm, Marketbeat reports. Two equities research analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, ten have assigned a hold rating and three have assigned a buy rating to the company. The average 1 year price objective among analysts that have covered the stock in the last year is $204.73.

Several equities research analysts have recently weighed in on MMC shares. The Goldman Sachs Group cut shares of Marsh & McLennan Companies from a “buy” rating to a “sell” rating and lowered their price target for the stock from $215.00 to $185.00 in a research report on Monday, January 8th. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods boosted their price target on Marsh & McLennan Companies from $185.00 to $188.00 and gave the stock an “underperform” rating in a research report on Wednesday, April 10th. TD Cowen began coverage on Marsh & McLennan Companies in a research report on Wednesday, January 10th. They set a “market perform” rating and a $189.00 price objective on the stock. JPMorgan Chase & Co. boosted their target price on shares of Marsh & McLennan Companies from $190.00 to $198.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a report on Monday, April 8th. Finally, Royal Bank of Canada lifted their price objective on shares of Marsh & McLennan Companies from $200.00 to $208.00 and gave the stock a “sector perform” rating in a research report on Friday, January 26th.

Marsh & McLennan Companies Stock Up 0.7 %

Shares of NYSE:MMC opened at $197.62 on Friday. The business’s 50 day moving average is $202.67 and its 200 day moving average is $196.69. The stock has a market cap of $97.53 billion, a P/E ratio of 26.24, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 3.59 and a beta of 0.90. Marsh & McLennan Companies has a 52-week low of $171.47 and a 52-week high of $209.20. The company has a quick ratio of 1.10, a current ratio of 1.10 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.96.

Marsh & McLennan Companies (NYSE:MMC) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, January 25th. The financial services provider reported $1.68 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.63 by $0.05. Marsh & McLennan Companies had a return on equity of 33.72% and a net margin of 16.52%. The business had revenue of $5.55 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $5.54 billion. During the same quarter in the prior year, the company earned $1.47 EPS. The business’s revenue was up 10.6% compared to the same quarter last year. Sell-side analysts predict that Marsh & McLennan Companies will post 8.56 EPS for the current year.

Marsh & McLennan Companies Announces Dividend

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, May 15th. Stockholders of record on Thursday, April 4th will be issued a dividend of $0.71 per share. This represents a $2.84 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 1.44%. The ex-dividend date is Wednesday, April 3rd. Marsh & McLennan Companies’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 37.72%.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other news, CFO Mark C. Mcgivney sold 12,494 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Monday, March 4th. The stock was sold at an average price of $200.79, for a total value of $2,508,670.26. Following the transaction, the chief financial officer now directly owns 33,678 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $6,762,205.62. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through the SEC website. In other Marsh & McLennan Companies news, VP Stacy Mills sold 1,461 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on Thursday, March 14th. The shares were sold at an average price of $209.16, for a total value of $305,582.76. Following the sale, the vice president now directly owns 2,923 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $611,374.68. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available through the SEC website. Also, CFO Mark C. Mcgivney sold 12,494 shares of Marsh & McLennan Companies stock in a transaction dated Monday, March 4th. The shares were sold at an average price of $200.79, for a total value of $2,508,670.26. Following the transaction, the chief financial officer now owns 33,678 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $6,762,205.62. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders sold 36,751 shares of company stock worth $7,448,163 in the last 90 days. Insiders own 0.35% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Trading of Marsh & McLennan Companies

Several hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently bought and sold shares of MMC. Valley National Advisers Inc. increased its holdings in shares of Marsh & McLennan Companies by 343.3% during the 4th quarter. Valley National Advisers Inc. now owns 133 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $25,000 after purchasing an additional 103 shares in the last quarter. Indiana Trust & Investment Management CO purchased a new position in Marsh & McLennan Companies in the first quarter valued at $25,000. Private Wealth Management Group LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Marsh & McLennan Companies during the 4th quarter worth about $26,000. Altshuler Shaham Ltd acquired a new stake in shares of Marsh & McLennan Companies during the 3rd quarter valued at about $27,000. Finally, OFI Invest Asset Management acquired a new position in Marsh & McLennan Companies in the 3rd quarter worth about $28,000. 87.99% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

About Marsh & McLennan Companies

Marsh & McLennan Companies, Inc, a professional services company, provides advice and solutions to clients in the areas of risk, strategy, and people worldwide. It operates through Risk and Insurance Services, and Consulting segments. The Risk and Insurance Services segment offers risk management services, such as risk advice, risk transfer, and risk control and mitigation solutions, as well as insurance and reinsurance broking, strategic advisory services, and analytics solutions, and insurance program management services.