Marsh & McLennan Companies, Inc. (NYSE:MMC) Shares Purchased by NEOS Investment Management LLC

NEOS Investment Management LLC lifted its holdings in shares of Marsh & McLennan Companies, Inc. (NYSE:MMC) by 30.2% during the 4th quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the SEC. The institutional investor owned 26,822 shares of the financial services provider’s stock after acquiring an additional 6,216 shares during the period. NEOS Investment Management LLC’s holdings in Marsh & McLennan Companies were worth $5,697,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

A number of other institutional investors and hedge funds have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in MMC. Vanguard Group Inc. grew its position in shares of Marsh & McLennan Companies by 0.8% in the 4th quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 44,739,515 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $9,503,120,000 after buying an additional 356,618 shares during the last quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC grew its position in Marsh & McLennan Companies by 2.2% in the 3rd quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC now owns 11,905,431 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $2,648,304,000 after buying an additional 251,361 shares during the last quarter. Amundi increased its stake in Marsh & McLennan Companies by 81.1% in the 4th quarter. Amundi now owns 4,072,976 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $860,824,000 after buying an additional 1,823,807 shares during the period. JPMorgan Chase & Co. lifted its stake in shares of Marsh & McLennan Companies by 4.8% in the 3rd quarter. JPMorgan Chase & Co. now owns 3,999,771 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $892,309,000 after acquiring an additional 184,239 shares during the period. Finally, Bank of New York Mellon Corp increased its stake in shares of Marsh & McLennan Companies by 2.2% during the fourth quarter. Bank of New York Mellon Corp now owns 3,286,899 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $698,170,000 after acquiring an additional 71,990 shares during the period. 87.99% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Insider Activity

In other news, VP Stacy Mills sold 1,317 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated Monday, March 10th. The shares were sold at an average price of $234.97, for a total value of $309,455.49. Following the completion of the sale, the vice president now owns 2,923 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $686,817.31. The trade was a 31.06 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at the SEC website. Also, CEO Dean Michael Klisura sold 7,121 shares of Marsh & McLennan Companies stock in a transaction dated Monday, March 10th. The stock was sold at an average price of $234.97, for a total value of $1,673,221.37. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief executive officer now owns 20,935 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $4,919,096.95. This trade represents a 25.38 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders sold 57,828 shares of company stock worth $13,350,279 over the last ninety days. Corporate insiders own 0.30% of the company’s stock.

Marsh & McLennan Companies Trading Up 2.1 %

NYSE:MMC opened at $243.77 on Friday. Marsh & McLennan Companies, Inc. has a 12 month low of $196.17 and a 12 month high of $243.89. The business’s 50-day moving average is $229.10 and its two-hundred day moving average is $224.08. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.44, a current ratio of 1.13 and a quick ratio of 1.13. The firm has a market capitalization of $119.72 billion, a PE ratio of 29.76, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.70 and a beta of 0.95.

Marsh & McLennan Companies (NYSE:MMC) last released its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, January 30th. The financial services provider reported $1.87 earnings per share for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.75 by $0.12. Marsh & McLennan Companies had a return on equity of 32.60% and a net margin of 16.60%. Research analysts predict that Marsh & McLennan Companies, Inc. will post 9.61 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Marsh & McLennan Companies Announces Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, May 15th. Shareholders of record on Thursday, April 3rd will be issued a $0.815 dividend. The ex-dividend date is Thursday, April 3rd. This represents a $3.26 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 1.34%. Marsh & McLennan Companies’s dividend payout ratio is currently 39.80%.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of equities analysts have recently issued reports on MMC shares. Wells Fargo & Company increased their price target on shares of Marsh & McLennan Companies from $212.00 to $223.00 and gave the company an “equal weight” rating in a report on Friday, January 31st. JPMorgan Chase & Co. boosted their target price on shares of Marsh & McLennan Companies from $230.00 to $235.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a research note on Friday, January 3rd. Redburn Atlantic initiated coverage on shares of Marsh & McLennan Companies in a research report on Tuesday. They set a “buy” rating and a $281.00 target price on the stock. Royal Bank of Canada raised Marsh & McLennan Companies from a “sector perform” rating to an “outperform” rating and increased their price target for the stock from $242.00 to $250.00 in a research note on Thursday, December 12th. Finally, Keefe, Bruyette & Woods lowered their price objective on Marsh & McLennan Companies from $214.00 to $210.00 and set an “underperform” rating for the company in a research report on Monday, February 3rd. Two analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, ten have assigned a hold rating and five have issued a buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat, the company currently has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $233.41.

About Marsh & McLennan Companies

Marsh & McLennan Cos., Inc is a professional services firm, which engages in offering clients advice and solutions in risk, strategy, and people. It operates through the Risk and Insurance Services, and Consulting segments. The Risk and Insurance Services segment is involved in risk management activities, as well as insurance and reinsurance broking and services.