Marsh & McLennan Companies, Inc. (NYSE:MMC) Shares Purchased by Argent Trust Co

Argent Trust Co lifted its holdings in shares of Marsh & McLennan Companies, Inc. (NYSE:MMC) by 1.6% in the second quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The institutional investor owned 19,402 shares of the financial services provider’s stock after purchasing an additional 313 shares during the period. Argent Trust Co’s holdings in Marsh & McLennan Companies were worth $4,088,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

A number of other large investors have also recently bought and sold shares of MMC. Price T Rowe Associates Inc. MD raised its stake in Marsh & McLennan Companies by 32.7% in the 4th quarter. Price T Rowe Associates Inc. MD now owns 10,243,245 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $1,940,789,000 after purchasing an additional 2,526,701 shares during the last quarter. Assenagon Asset Management S.A. raised its position in shares of Marsh & McLennan Companies by 4,991.4% in the second quarter. Assenagon Asset Management S.A. now owns 693,087 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $146,047,000 after buying an additional 679,474 shares during the last quarter. Jennison Associates LLC grew its stake in Marsh & McLennan Companies by 229.6% in the 1st quarter. Jennison Associates LLC now owns 932,452 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $192,066,000 after acquiring an additional 649,505 shares during the period. M&G Plc purchased a new position in shares of Marsh & McLennan Companies during the 1st quarter worth $118,353,000. Finally, Bristol Gate Capital Partners Inc. acquired a new stake in shares of Marsh & McLennan Companies during the first quarter worth $95,139,000. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 87.99% of the company’s stock.

Marsh & McLennan Companies Price Performance

MMC opened at $228.07 on Wednesday. The company has a quick ratio of 1.17, a current ratio of 1.17 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.91. The company’s 50-day moving average price is $222.83 and its 200 day moving average price is $211.96. Marsh & McLennan Companies, Inc. has a fifty-two week low of $184.02 and a fifty-two week high of $232.32. The firm has a market cap of $112.38 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 28.94, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 3.20 and a beta of 0.94.

Marsh & McLennan Companies (NYSE:MMC) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, July 18th. The financial services provider reported $2.41 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $2.40 by $0.01. Marsh & McLennan Companies had a return on equity of 33.92% and a net margin of 16.97%. The business had revenue of $6.22 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $6.31 billion. During the same quarter last year, the business posted $2.20 EPS. The business’s revenue was up 5.9% on a year-over-year basis. As a group, sell-side analysts expect that Marsh & McLennan Companies, Inc. will post 8.74 earnings per share for the current year.

Marsh & McLennan Companies Increases Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Thursday, August 15th. Investors of record on Monday, July 15th were given a $0.815 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Thursday, July 25th. This is an increase from Marsh & McLennan Companies’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.71. This represents a $3.26 annualized dividend and a yield of 1.43%. Marsh & McLennan Companies’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 41.37%.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several research firms recently weighed in on MMC. Barclays assumed coverage on Marsh & McLennan Companies in a research report on Wednesday, September 4th. They set an “equal weight” rating and a $236.00 target price on the stock. Bank of America upped their price target on shares of Marsh & McLennan Companies from $223.00 to $233.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a research report on Wednesday, May 22nd. Royal Bank of Canada upped their price objective on Marsh & McLennan Companies from $228.00 to $232.00 and gave the stock a “sector perform” rating in a report on Friday, July 19th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. boosted their target price on Marsh & McLennan Companies from $210.00 to $230.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a report on Thursday, July 11th. Finally, Roth Mkm lifted their price target on shares of Marsh & McLennan Companies from $200.00 to $220.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a research report on Friday, July 19th. Two investment analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, twelve have issued a hold rating and four have assigned a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat, Marsh & McLennan Companies presently has an average rating of “Hold” and an average price target of $215.53.

Insider Buying and Selling at Marsh & McLennan Companies

In other news, CFO Mark C. Mcgivney sold 10,265 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, August 2nd. The stock was sold at an average price of $226.41, for a total transaction of $2,324,098.65. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief financial officer now directly owns 33,678 shares in the company, valued at $7,625,035.98. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is accessible through this link. In other news, CFO Mark C. Mcgivney sold 10,265 shares of the stock in a transaction on Friday, August 2nd. The stock was sold at an average price of $226.41, for a total value of $2,324,098.65. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief financial officer now owns 33,678 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $7,625,035.98. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available at the SEC website. Also, CFO Mark C. Mcgivney sold 5,200 shares of Marsh & McLennan Companies stock in a transaction dated Monday, August 5th. The shares were sold at an average price of $225.03, for a total transaction of $1,170,156.00. Following the sale, the chief financial officer now owns 33,678 shares in the company, valued at $7,578,560.34. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders sold 21,735 shares of company stock valued at $4,897,317 in the last ninety days. Company insiders own 0.30% of the company’s stock.

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.