PGGM Investments Raises Holdings in Marsh & McLennan Companies, Inc. (NYSE:MMC)

PGGM Investments grew its position in shares of Marsh & McLennan Companies, Inc. (NYSE:MMC) by 2.2% in the fourth quarter, HoldingsChannel reports. The firm owned 94,750 shares of the financial services provider’s stock after buying an additional 2,079 shares during the quarter. PGGM Investments’ holdings in Marsh & McLennan Companies were worth $17,952,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

A number of other institutional investors have also recently made changes to their positions in MMC. Impax Asset Management Group plc purchased a new position in shares of Marsh & McLennan Companies during the fourth quarter valued at about $261,787,000. Assenagon Asset Management S.A. lifted its holdings in shares of Marsh & McLennan Companies by 3,413.7% in the 4th quarter. Assenagon Asset Management S.A. now owns 532,670 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $100,925,000 after acquiring an additional 517,510 shares during the last quarter. Healthcare of Ontario Pension Plan Trust Fund lifted its holdings in shares of Marsh & McLennan Companies by 1,496.4% in the 3rd quarter. Healthcare of Ontario Pension Plan Trust Fund now owns 447,000 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $85,064,000 after acquiring an additional 419,000 shares during the last quarter. Adage Capital Partners GP L.L.C. lifted its holdings in shares of Marsh & McLennan Companies by 60.5% in the 3rd quarter. Adage Capital Partners GP L.L.C. now owns 791,161 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $150,558,000 after acquiring an additional 298,300 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Northern Trust Corp lifted its holdings in shares of Marsh & McLennan Companies by 4.8% in the 3rd quarter. Northern Trust Corp now owns 5,979,821 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $1,137,960,000 after acquiring an additional 271,408 shares during the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 87.99% of the company’s stock.

Marsh & McLennan Companies Stock Down 1.7 %

NYSE:MMC traded down $3.52 during trading hours on Friday, reaching $197.95. The company’s stock had a trading volume of 1,783,604 shares, compared to its average volume of 1,810,961. The company has a market capitalization of $97.53 billion, a P/E ratio of 25.12, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 3.36 and a beta of 0.90. Marsh & McLennan Companies, Inc. has a 12 month low of $171.47 and a 12 month high of $209.20. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.97, a quick ratio of 1.14 and a current ratio of 1.14. The stock has a 50 day moving average price of $203.10 and a two-hundred day moving average price of $197.13.

Marsh & McLennan Companies (NYSE:MMC) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, April 18th. The financial services provider reported $2.89 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $2.80 by $0.09. The business had revenue of $6.50 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $6.38 billion. Marsh & McLennan Companies had a return on equity of 34.14% and a net margin of 16.84%. The business’s quarterly revenue was up 9.7% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period in the prior year, the firm posted $2.53 earnings per share. Equities analysts predict that Marsh & McLennan Companies, Inc. will post 8.69 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Marsh & McLennan Companies Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, May 15th. Stockholders of record on Thursday, April 4th will be given a dividend of $0.71 per share. This represents a $2.84 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 1.43%. The ex-dividend date is Wednesday, April 3rd. Marsh & McLennan Companies’s payout ratio is presently 36.04%.

Insider Transactions at Marsh & McLennan Companies

In other news, CFO Mark C. Mcgivney sold 12,494 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on Monday, March 4th. The stock was sold at an average price of $200.79, for a total transaction 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 legal filing with the SEC, which is accessible through the SEC website. In related news, VP Stacy Mills sold 1,461 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on Thursday, March 14th. The stock was sold at an average price of $209.16, for a total value of $305,582.76. Following the transaction, the vice president now directly owns 2,923 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $611,374.68. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available through this hyperlink. Also, CFO Mark C. Mcgivney sold 12,494 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on 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 completion of the transaction, the chief financial officer now directly owns 33,678 shares in the company, valued at $6,762,205.62. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Over the last three months, insiders have sold 36,751 shares of company stock valued at $7,448,163. Corporate insiders own 0.30% of the company’s stock.

Analyst Ratings Changes

MMC has been the subject of a number of analyst reports. Morgan Stanley increased their price target on shares of Marsh & McLennan Companies from $205.00 to $210.00 and gave the company an “equal weight” rating in a report on Monday, April 15th. Jefferies Financial Group increased their price target on shares of Marsh & McLennan Companies from $197.00 to $208.00 and gave the company a “hold” rating in a report on Friday, April 19th. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods raised their price objective on shares of Marsh & McLennan Companies from $185.00 to $188.00 and gave the stock an “underperform” rating in a research note on Wednesday, April 10th. UBS Group raised their price objective on shares of Marsh & McLennan Companies from $236.00 to $238.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research note on Monday, April 22nd. Finally, JPMorgan Chase & Co. raised their price objective on shares of Marsh & McLennan Companies from $190.00 to $198.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a research note on Monday, April 8th. Two analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, ten have issued a hold rating and four have given a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat, the stock currently has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus target price of $207.69.

Marsh & McLennan Companies Company Profile

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.