Primecap Management Co. CA Sells 136,415 Shares of Marsh & McLennan Companies, Inc. (NYSE:MMC)

Primecap Management Co. CA decreased its stake in Marsh & McLennan Companies, Inc. (NYSE:MMC) by 4.8% in the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the SEC. The firm owned 2,732,326 shares of the financial services provider’s stock after selling 136,415 shares during the quarter. Primecap Management Co. CA’s holdings in Marsh & McLennan Companies were worth $580,373,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

A number of other institutional investors and hedge funds have also recently modified their holdings of MMC. Oppenheimer & Co. Inc. boosted its holdings in shares of Marsh & McLennan Companies by 2.3% in the 3rd quarter. Oppenheimer & Co. Inc. now owns 5,526 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $1,233,000 after purchasing an additional 122 shares during the period. Empowered Funds LLC boosted its holdings in shares of Marsh & McLennan Companies by 5.4% in the 3rd quarter. Empowered Funds LLC now owns 13,937 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $3,109,000 after purchasing an additional 717 shares during the period. Tower Bridge Advisors boosted its holdings in shares of Marsh & McLennan Companies by 4.2% in the 3rd quarter. Tower Bridge Advisors now owns 2,218 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $495,000 after purchasing an additional 89 shares during the period. Claro Advisors LLC purchased a new position in shares of Marsh & McLennan Companies in the 3rd quarter worth approximately $292,000. Finally, Thrivent Financial for Lutherans boosted its holdings in Marsh & McLennan Companies by 102.3% during the 3rd quarter. Thrivent Financial for Lutherans now owns 342,190 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $76,339,000 after acquiring an additional 173,039 shares during the period. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 87.99% of the company’s stock.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of research firms recently issued reports on MMC. Barclays boosted their price objective on Marsh & McLennan Companies from $236.00 to $246.00 and gave the company an “equal weight” rating in a report on Thursday, November 21st. Evercore ISI restated an “outperform” rating and set a $242.00 price objective on shares of Marsh & McLennan Companies in a report on Monday, November 25th. 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 report on Thursday, February 6th. Wells Fargo & Company boosted their price objective on Marsh & McLennan Companies from $212.00 to $223.00 and gave the company an “equal weight” rating in a report on Friday, January 31st. Finally, JPMorgan Chase & Co. upped their target price on Marsh & McLennan Companies from $230.00 to $235.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a report on Friday, January 3rd. Two investment analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, ten have issued a hold rating and four have given a buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat, Marsh & McLennan Companies presently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $230.44.

Marsh & McLennan Companies Trading Up 0.6 %

Shares of NYSE:MMC opened at $232.97 on Tuesday. The business’s 50-day moving average is $225.34 and its 200 day moving average is $223.63. Marsh & McLennan Companies, Inc. has a 1 year low of $196.17 and a 1 year high of $241.84. The firm has a market capitalization of $114.42 billion, a P/E ratio of 28.45, a P/E/G ratio of 2.70 and a beta of 0.95. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.44, a current ratio of 1.13 and a quick ratio of 1.13.

Marsh & McLennan Companies (NYSE:MMC) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, January 30th. The financial services provider reported $1.87 earnings per share for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $1.75 by $0.12. Marsh & McLennan Companies had a return on equity of 32.60% and a net margin of 16.60%. On average, 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 declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, May 15th. Shareholders of record on Thursday, April 3rd will be paid a dividend of $0.815 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Thursday, April 3rd. This represents a $3.26 annualized dividend and a yield of 1.40%. Marsh & McLennan Companies’s payout ratio is presently 39.80%.

Insider Transactions at Marsh & McLennan Companies

In other news, CEO Nicholas Mark Studer sold 49,390 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, March 12th. The stock was 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 owns 28,329 shares in the company, valued at $6,520,202.64. This represents a 63.55 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through the SEC website. Also, CEO Dean Michael Klisura sold 7,121 shares of the company’s 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 sale, the chief executive officer now owns 20,935 shares in the company, valued at $4,919,096.95. The trade was a 25.38 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders have sold 57,828 shares of company stock worth $13,350,279 over the last quarter. 0.30% of the stock is currently owned by insiders.

Marsh & McLennan Companies Profile

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.