Marsh & McLennan Companies, Inc. (NYSE:MMC) Stake Boosted by Versant Capital Management Inc

Versant Capital Management Inc raised its holdings in shares of Marsh & McLennan Companies, Inc. (NYSE:MMC) by 37.3% in the 4th quarter, Holdings Channel reports. The firm owned 743 shares of the financial services provider’s stock after purchasing an additional 202 shares during the quarter. Versant Capital Management Inc’s holdings in Marsh & McLennan Companies were worth $158,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC).

Other large investors also recently modified their holdings of the company. Carmichael Hill & Associates Inc. grew its position in shares of Marsh & McLennan Companies by 85.7% during the 3rd quarter. Carmichael Hill & Associates Inc. now owns 130 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $29,000 after buying an additional 60 shares during the last quarter. Catalyst Capital Advisors LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Marsh & McLennan Companies during the 3rd quarter worth approximately $31,000. Capital Performance Advisors LLP acquired a new position in Marsh & McLennan Companies during the 3rd quarter valued at approximately $41,000. Bangor Savings Bank acquired a new stake in Marsh & McLennan Companies in the third quarter worth $46,000. Finally, Sachetta LLC lifted its stake in Marsh & McLennan Companies by 36.4% in the second quarter. Sachetta LLC now owns 210 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $47,000 after buying an additional 56 shares during the last quarter. 87.99% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Marsh & McLennan Companies Stock Down 0.0 %

Shares of Marsh & McLennan Companies stock opened at $211.27 on Friday. The company has a quick ratio of 1.14, a current ratio of 1.14 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.89. Marsh & McLennan Companies, Inc. has a 12-month low of $188.31 and a 12-month high of $235.50. The firm has a market capitalization of $103.76 billion, a PE ratio of 26.02, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.59 and a beta of 0.94. The stock’s fifty day moving average is $220.77 and its 200-day moving average is $221.13.

Marsh & McLennan Companies (NYSE:MMC) last announced its earnings results on Thursday, October 17th. The financial services provider reported $1.63 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $1.61 by $0.02. The company had revenue of $5.70 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $5.71 billion. Marsh & McLennan Companies had a net margin of 16.82% and a return on equity of 32.65%. The company’s revenue was up 5.9% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period in the previous year, the business earned $1.57 EPS. Equities analysts anticipate that Marsh & McLennan Companies, Inc. will post 8.68 earnings per share for the current year.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other news, Director Oscar Fanjul sold 2,500 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on Wednesday, October 30th. The shares were sold at an average price of $221.55, for a total value of $553,875.00. Following the transaction, the director now directly owns 48,549 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $10,756,030.95. This represents a 4.90 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through this link. Company insiders own 0.30% of the company’s stock.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of research firms recently weighed in on MMC. JPMorgan Chase & Co. increased their price objective on shares of Marsh & McLennan Companies from $230.00 to $235.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a report on Friday. Evercore ISI reiterated an “outperform” rating and set a $242.00 price objective on shares of Marsh & McLennan Companies in a research report on Monday, November 25th. Royal Bank of Canada upgraded Marsh & McLennan Companies from a “sector perform” rating to an “outperform” rating and raised their target price for the company from $242.00 to $250.00 in a research report on Thursday, December 12th. UBS Group increased their price target on Marsh & McLennan Companies from $255.00 to $259.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research note on Tuesday, October 22nd. Finally, Jefferies Financial Group lifted their price objective on shares of Marsh & McLennan Companies from $219.00 to $222.00 and gave the company a “hold” rating in a research note on Wednesday, October 9th. Two analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, ten have assigned a hold rating and three have assigned a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the stock has an average rating of “Hold” and an average price target of $228.47.

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.