Lee Danner & Bass Inc. Makes New Investment in Marsh & McLennan Companies, Inc. (NYSE:MMC)

Lee Danner & Bass Inc. acquired a new position in Marsh & McLennan Companies, Inc. (NYSE:MMC) in the fourth quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The firm acquired 231 shares of the financial services provider’s stock, valued at approximately $49,000.

A number of other large investors have also recently made changes to their positions in the company. Modera Wealth Management LLC boosted its stake in shares of Marsh & McLennan Companies by 2.5% during the 4th quarter. Modera Wealth Management LLC now owns 1,885 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $400,000 after purchasing an additional 46 shares during the period. Geneos Wealth Management Inc. boosted its stake in shares of Marsh & McLennan Companies by 3.7% during the 4th quarter. Geneos Wealth Management Inc. now owns 1,324 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $281,000 after purchasing an additional 47 shares during the period. Hemington Wealth Management lifted its holdings in Marsh & McLennan Companies by 6.7% during the 4th quarter. Hemington Wealth Management now owns 768 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $163,000 after buying an additional 48 shares in the last quarter. New England Professional Planning Group Inc. lifted its holdings in Marsh & McLennan Companies by 4.1% during the 4th quarter. New England Professional Planning Group Inc. now owns 1,261 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $268,000 after buying an additional 50 shares in the last quarter. Finally, TFB Advisors LLC lifted its holdings in Marsh & McLennan Companies by 2.0% during the 4th quarter. TFB Advisors LLC now owns 2,576 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $547,000 after buying an additional 51 shares in the last quarter. 87.99% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other news, CEO Nicholas Mark Studer sold 49,390 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on Wednesday, March 12th. The shares were sold at an average price of $230.16, for a total value of $11,367,602.40. Following the sale, the chief executive officer now directly owns 28,329 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $6,520,202.64. This represents a 63.55 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through the SEC website. Also, CEO Dean Michael Klisura sold 7,121 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on Monday, March 10th. The shares were sold at an average price of $234.97, for a total transaction of $1,673,221.37. Following the completion of the sale, the chief executive officer now directly owns 20,935 shares in the company, 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. In the last quarter, insiders have sold 57,828 shares of company stock valued at $13,350,279. Insiders own 0.30% of the company’s stock.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

MMC has been the subject of a number of research analyst reports. Evercore ISI reiterated an “outperform” rating and set a $242.00 price objective on shares of Marsh & McLennan Companies in a report on Monday, November 25th. Royal Bank of Canada upgraded shares of Marsh & McLennan Companies from a “sector perform” rating to an “outperform” rating and lifted their price objective for the company from $242.00 to $250.00 in a report on Thursday, December 12th. Wells Fargo & Company lifted their price objective 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. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods reduced their price target on shares of Marsh & McLennan Companies from $214.00 to $210.00 and set an “underperform” rating for the company in a report on Monday, February 3rd. Finally, JPMorgan Chase & Co. boosted their price target on shares of Marsh & McLennan Companies from $230.00 to $235.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a report on Friday, January 3rd. Two analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, ten have given a hold rating and four have assigned a buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat, Marsh & McLennan Companies presently has an average rating of “Hold” and an average target price of $230.44.

Marsh & McLennan Companies Trading Down 0.6 %

NYSE MMC opened at $232.05 on Friday. The company has a quick ratio of 1.13, a current ratio of 1.13 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.44. The firm has a market cap of $113.97 billion, a PE ratio of 28.33, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.70 and a beta of 0.95. The company has a 50 day moving average price of $227.10 and a 200 day moving average price of $223.79. Marsh & McLennan Companies, Inc. has a 52 week low of $196.17 and a 52 week high of $241.84.

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

Marsh & McLennan Companies Dividend Announcement

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, May 15th. Shareholders of record on Thursday, April 3rd will be given a dividend of $0.815 per share. This represents a $3.26 annualized dividend and a yield of 1.40%. The ex-dividend date is Thursday, April 3rd. Marsh & McLennan Companies’s dividend payout ratio is presently 39.80%.

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.