Marsh & McLennan Companies (NYSE:MMC) Reaches New 12-Month High – Time to Buy?

Marsh & McLennan Companies, Inc. (NYSE:MMC) reached a new 52-week high during trading on Thursday . The stock traded as high as $235.50 and last traded at $234.66, with a volume of 330391 shares trading hands. The stock had previously closed at $231.56.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several research analysts have recently commented on the stock. Barclays raised their price objective on shares of Marsh & McLennan Companies from $236.00 to $246.00 and gave the company an “equal weight” rating in a research note on Thursday, November 21st. Raymond James restated an “outperform” rating and set a $250.00 price objective (up previously from $240.00) on shares of Marsh & McLennan Companies in a research report on Thursday, February 6th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. lifted their target price 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. Royal Bank of Canada raised shares of Marsh & McLennan Companies from a “sector perform” rating to an “outperform” rating and lifted their target price for the company from $242.00 to $250.00 in a report on Thursday, December 12th. Finally, Keefe, Bruyette & Woods dropped their price objective on shares of Marsh & McLennan Companies from $214.00 to $210.00 and set an “underperform” rating on the stock in a research note on Monday, February 3rd. Two 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 stock. According to data from MarketBeat, Marsh & McLennan Companies currently has an average rating of “Hold” and an average price target of $230.44.

Marsh & McLennan Companies Stock Up 1.4 %

The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.44, a quick ratio of 1.13 and a current ratio of 1.13. The firm’s 50-day moving average is $220.47 and its 200 day moving average is $222.79. The firm has a market capitalization of $116.78 billion, a PE ratio of 29.03, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.70 and a beta of 0.96.

Marsh & McLennan Companies (NYSE:MMC) last released its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, January 30th. The financial services provider reported $1.87 EPS 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, research analysts forecast that Marsh & McLennan Companies, Inc. will post 9.61 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Marsh & McLennan Companies Dividend Announcement

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, February 14th. Shareholders of record on Thursday, January 30th were issued a $0.815 dividend. The ex-dividend date was Thursday, January 30th. This represents a $3.26 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 1.37%. Marsh & McLennan Companies’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 39.80%.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

A number of institutional investors and hedge funds have recently modified their holdings of MMC. Carmichael Hill & Associates Inc. increased its stake 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 acquiring an additional 60 shares during the last quarter. Catalyst Capital Advisors LLC purchased a new position in shares of Marsh & McLennan Companies during the 3rd quarter valued at approximately $31,000. Financial Life Planners purchased a new position in shares of Marsh & McLennan Companies during the 4th quarter valued at approximately $33,000. Sierra Ocean LLC purchased a new position in shares of Marsh & McLennan Companies during the 4th quarter valued at approximately $36,000. Finally, Ameriflex Group Inc. bought a new position in Marsh & McLennan Companies during the fourth quarter worth $37,000. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 87.99% of the company’s stock.

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.