Clearbridge Investments LLC Acquires 58,461 Shares of Marsh & McLennan Companies, Inc. (NYSE:MMC)

Clearbridge Investments LLC boosted its stake in shares of Marsh & McLennan Companies, Inc. (NYSE:MMC) by 1.7% in the 2nd quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the SEC. The firm owned 3,409,110 shares of the financial services provider’s stock after buying an additional 58,461 shares during the quarter. Clearbridge Investments LLC owned approximately 0.69% of Marsh & McLennan Companies worth $718,368,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

A number of other large investors have also added to or reduced their stakes in the stock. Indiana Trust & Investment Management CO bought a new stake in shares of Marsh & McLennan Companies in the 1st quarter worth approximately $25,000. Headlands Technologies LLC bought a new stake in shares of Marsh & McLennan Companies in the first quarter valued at $27,000. Crewe Advisors LLC grew its stake in shares of Marsh & McLennan Companies by 100.0% during the 2nd quarter. Crewe Advisors LLC now owns 160 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $34,000 after acquiring an additional 80 shares during the period. Dixon Mitchell Investment Counsel Inc. purchased a new stake in Marsh & McLennan Companies in the 1st quarter worth about $35,000. Finally, Iron Horse Wealth Management LLC raised its stake in Marsh & McLennan Companies by 712.5% in the 2nd quarter. Iron Horse Wealth Management LLC now owns 195 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $41,000 after acquiring an additional 171 shares during the period. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 87.99% of the company’s stock.

Marsh & McLennan Companies Stock Performance

Shares of MMC stock opened at $223.09 on Tuesday. The company has a market capitalization of $109.92 billion, a P/E ratio of 28.31, a PEG ratio of 3.13 and a beta of 0.94. Marsh & McLennan Companies, Inc. has a fifty-two week low of $184.02 and a fifty-two week high of $232.32. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.91, a quick ratio of 1.17 and a current ratio of 1.17. The stock has a 50 day moving average price of $223.93 and a two-hundred day moving average price of $213.16.

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 analysts’ consensus estimates of $2.40 by $0.01. The business had revenue of $6.22 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $6.31 billion. Marsh & McLennan Companies had a net margin of 16.97% and a return on equity of 33.92%. The company’s revenue was up 5.9% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter last year, the firm earned $2.20 EPS. Analysts expect that Marsh & McLennan Companies, Inc. will post 8.74 earnings per share for the current year.

Marsh & McLennan Companies Announces Dividend

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, November 15th. Stockholders of record on Friday, October 4th will be given a $0.815 dividend. The ex-dividend date is Friday, October 4th. This represents a $3.26 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 1.46%. Marsh & McLennan Companies’s dividend payout ratio is currently 41.37%.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several analysts have recently issued reports on MMC shares. Barclays initiated coverage on shares of Marsh & McLennan Companies in a research report on Wednesday, September 4th. They issued an “equal weight” rating and a $236.00 price target on the stock. Royal Bank of Canada raised their price target 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. Roth Mkm increased their price objective on Marsh & McLennan Companies from $200.00 to $220.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a report on Friday, July 19th. Finally, JPMorgan Chase & Co. lifted their target price on Marsh & McLennan Companies from $210.00 to $230.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a report on Thursday, July 11th. Two investment analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, twelve have given a hold rating and four have assigned a buy rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the stock currently has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus target price of $215.53.

Insider Activity

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