Baker Avenue Asset Management LP Increases Holdings in Marsh & McLennan Companies, Inc. (NYSE:MMC)

Baker Avenue Asset Management LP boosted its holdings in shares of Marsh & McLennan Companies, Inc. (NYSE:MMC) by 0.4% in the 3rd quarter, Holdings Channel.com reports. The institutional investor owned 68,259 shares of the financial services provider’s stock after buying an additional 298 shares during the period. Baker Avenue Asset Management LP’s holdings in Marsh & McLennan Companies were worth $15,228,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Other large investors also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Headlands Technologies LLC bought a new stake in Marsh & McLennan Companies during the first quarter worth about $27,000. Carmichael Hill & Associates Inc. lifted its stake in shares of Marsh & McLennan Companies by 85.7% in the 3rd quarter. Carmichael Hill & Associates Inc. now owns 130 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $29,000 after acquiring an additional 60 shares during the last quarter. Catalyst Capital Advisors LLC purchased a new position in Marsh & McLennan Companies during the 3rd quarter valued at about $31,000. Crewe Advisors LLC increased its holdings in Marsh & McLennan Companies by 100.0% during the 2nd quarter. Crewe Advisors LLC now owns 160 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $34,000 after purchasing an additional 80 shares during the period. Finally, Iron Horse Wealth Management LLC increased its holdings in Marsh & McLennan Companies by 712.5% during the 2nd quarter. Iron Horse Wealth Management LLC now owns 195 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $41,000 after purchasing an additional 171 shares during the period. Institutional investors own 87.99% of the company’s stock.

Insider Transactions at Marsh & McLennan Companies

In other Marsh & McLennan Companies news, Director Oscar Fanjul sold 2,500 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, October 30th. The shares were sold at an average price of $221.55, for a total value of $553,875.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the director now owns 48,549 shares in the company, valued at approximately $10,756,030.95. This represents a 0.00 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is accessible through this link. Insiders own 0.30% of the company’s stock.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of research analysts have weighed in on MMC shares. Jefferies Financial Group upped their target price on Marsh & McLennan Companies from $219.00 to $222.00 and gave the stock a “hold” rating in a report on Wednesday, October 9th. Royal Bank of Canada upped their price objective on Marsh & McLennan Companies from $232.00 to $242.00 and gave the company a “sector perform” rating in a research report on Friday, October 18th. Wells Fargo & Company lowered their price objective on Marsh & McLennan Companies from $212.00 to $211.00 and set an “equal weight” rating on the stock in a research report on Thursday, October 10th. BMO Capital Markets increased their price target on Marsh & McLennan Companies from $217.00 to $228.00 and gave the company a “market perform” rating in a report on Tuesday, October 22nd. Finally, Bank of America upped their price objective on Marsh & McLennan Companies from $248.00 to $250.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a research note on Thursday, October 10th. Two research analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, twelve have given a hold rating and two have assigned a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat, Marsh & McLennan Companies has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $225.33.

Marsh & McLennan Companies Stock Up 1.0 %

NYSE MMC traded up $2.18 on Friday, hitting $225.36. The stock had a trading volume of 2,395,777 shares, compared to its average volume of 1,808,196. The business’s fifty day moving average price is $224.83 and its 200 day moving average price is $217.07. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.89, a current ratio of 1.14 and a quick ratio of 1.14. Marsh & McLennan Companies, Inc. has a 52-week low of $184.28 and a 52-week high of $232.32. The stock has a market cap of $110.68 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 27.75, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 3.32 and a beta of 0.94.

Marsh & McLennan Companies (NYSE:MMC) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, October 17th. The financial services provider reported $1.63 EPS for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $1.61 by $0.02. Marsh & McLennan Companies had a net margin of 16.82% and a return on equity of 32.65%. The business had revenue of $5.70 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $5.71 billion. During the same period in the previous year, the firm posted $1.57 earnings per share. The business’s revenue for the quarter was up 5.9% compared to the same quarter last year. Equities research analysts anticipate that Marsh & McLennan Companies, Inc. will post 8.7 earnings per share for the current year.

Marsh & McLennan Companies Announces Dividend

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, November 15th. Stockholders of record on Friday, October 4th will be paid a dividend of $0.815 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, October 4th. This represents a $3.26 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 1.45%. Marsh & McLennan Companies’s payout ratio is currently 40.15%.

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.