Royal Bank of Canada Raises Marsh & McLennan Companies (NYSE:MMC) Price Target to $228.00

Marsh & McLennan Companies (NYSE:MMC) had its price target increased by equities researchers at Royal Bank of Canada from $210.00 to $228.00 in a research report issued to clients and investors on Friday, Benzinga reports. The firm currently has a “sector perform” rating on the financial services provider’s stock. Royal Bank of Canada’s target price suggests a potential upside of 8.08% from the company’s previous close.

A number of other brokerages have also issued reports on MMC. Evercore ISI lifted their price target on Marsh & McLennan Companies from $212.00 to $218.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a research note on Thursday, April 11th. Jefferies Financial Group boosted their price target on shares of Marsh & McLennan Companies from $197.00 to $208.00 and gave the stock a “hold” rating in a research report on Friday, April 19th. Morgan Stanley raised their target price on shares of Marsh & McLennan Companies from $205.00 to $210.00 and gave the stock an “equal weight” rating in a research note on Monday, April 15th. Bank of America increased their price target on Marsh & McLennan Companies from $223.00 to $233.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a report on Wednesday, May 22nd. Finally, Keefe, Bruyette & Woods upped their target price on Marsh & McLennan Companies from $185.00 to $188.00 and gave the company an “underperform” rating in a report on Wednesday, April 10th. Two equities research analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, ten have assigned a hold rating and four have issued a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the stock presently has an average rating of “Hold” and an average price target of $211.47.

Marsh & McLennan Companies Trading Up 0.1 %

Shares of NYSE:MMC opened at $210.95 on Friday. The firm has a market capitalization of $103.94 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 26.77, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.99 and a beta of 0.93. The business’s 50 day moving average price is $206.52 and its 200-day moving average price is $201.05. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.97, a current ratio of 1.14 and a quick ratio of 1.14. Marsh & McLennan Companies has a 1 year low of $182.42 and a 1 year high of $216.89.

Marsh & McLennan Companies (NYSE:MMC) last released its earnings results on Thursday, April 18th. The financial services provider reported $2.89 EPS for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $2.80 by $0.09. The business had revenue of $6.50 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $6.38 billion. Marsh & McLennan Companies had a net margin of 16.84% and a return on equity of 34.14%. The company’s quarterly revenue was up 9.7% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter in the previous year, the company earned $2.53 earnings per share. On average, equities research analysts forecast that Marsh & McLennan Companies will post 8.68 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Insider Activity

In other news, Director Oscar Fanjul sold 6,000 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction on Thursday, June 13th. The shares were sold at an average price of $209.01, for a total value of $1,254,060.00. Following the sale, the director now directly owns 53,393 shares in the company, valued at approximately $11,159,670.93. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through the SEC website. In related news, SVP Paul Beswick sold 2,169 shares of the stock in a transaction on Friday, May 17th. The shares were sold at an average price of $210.13, for a total value of $455,771.97. Following the transaction, the senior vice president now directly owns 13,030 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $2,737,993.90. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this link. Also, Director Oscar Fanjul sold 6,000 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on Thursday, June 13th. The shares were sold at an average price of $209.01, for a total transaction of $1,254,060.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the director now owns 53,393 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $11,159,670.93. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Company insiders own 0.30% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Hedge funds have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. SRN Advisors LLC grew its position in shares of Marsh & McLennan Companies by 5.1% during the first quarter. SRN Advisors LLC now owns 4,205 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $866,000 after acquiring an additional 204 shares during the last quarter. American Trust grew its position in Marsh & McLennan Companies by 2.0% during the 1st quarter. American Trust now owns 27,713 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $5,708,000 after purchasing an additional 536 shares during the last quarter. EverSource Wealth Advisors LLC increased its stake in Marsh & McLennan Companies by 7.4% in the first quarter. EverSource Wealth Advisors LLC now owns 4,524 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $902,000 after purchasing an additional 312 shares during the period. Soltis Investment Advisors LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Marsh & McLennan Companies in the first quarter valued at about $205,000. Finally, Cetera Advisors LLC boosted its stake in shares of Marsh & McLennan Companies by 53.1% during the first quarter. Cetera Advisors LLC now owns 8,861 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $1,825,000 after buying an additional 3,074 shares during the period. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 87.99% of the company’s stock.

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.