Cerity Partners LLC Sells 5,029 Shares of Marsh & McLennan Companies, Inc. (NYSE:MMC)

Cerity Partners LLC cut its holdings in Marsh & McLennan Companies, Inc. (NYSE:MMC) by 3.8% during the 4th quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 125,657 shares of the financial services provider’s stock after selling 5,029 shares during the quarter. Cerity Partners LLC’s holdings in Marsh & McLennan Companies were worth $26,979,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also recently bought and sold shares of the company. Vanguard Group Inc. grew its holdings in shares of Marsh & McLennan Companies by 0.8% during 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 purchasing an additional 356,618 shares during the last quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC grew its stake in shares of Marsh & McLennan Companies by 1.2% during the fourth quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC now owns 12,050,565 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $2,554,841,000 after buying an additional 145,134 shares during the last quarter. Norges Bank acquired a new position in shares of Marsh & McLennan Companies during the fourth quarter worth $1,236,186,000. Amundi lifted its stake in shares of 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 acquiring an additional 1,823,807 shares during the last quarter. Finally, JPMorgan Chase & Co. grew its position in Marsh & McLennan Companies by 4.8% during 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 last quarter. Institutional investors own 87.99% of the company’s stock.

Marsh & McLennan Companies Trading Down 1.8 %

NYSE MMC opened at $219.81 on Wednesday. The stock has a market capitalization of $108.35 billion, a P/E ratio of 26.84, a P/E/G ratio of 2.70 and a beta of 0.85. The business has a 50 day simple moving average of $232.00 and a 200 day simple moving average of $224.44. 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, Inc. has a one year low of $196.17 and a one year high of $248.00.

Marsh & McLennan Companies (NYSE:MMC) last released its quarterly earnings data 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 net margin of 16.60% and a return on equity of 32.60%. Research analysts expect that Marsh & McLennan Companies, Inc. will post 9.61 earnings per share for the current year.

Marsh & McLennan Companies Announces Dividend

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, May 15th. Stockholders of record on Thursday, April 3rd will be given a dividend of $0.815 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Thursday, April 3rd. This represents a $3.26 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 1.48%. Marsh & McLennan Companies’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 39.80%.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several equities analysts have commented on the company. Redburn Atlantic assumed coverage on Marsh & McLennan Companies in a research report on Tuesday, March 25th. They issued a “buy” rating and a $281.00 target price for the company. Royal Bank of Canada upgraded shares of Marsh & McLennan Companies from a “sector perform” rating to an “outperform” rating and lifted their target price for the stock from $242.00 to $250.00 in a research report on Thursday, December 12th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. upped their price target on shares of Marsh & McLennan Companies from $230.00 to $235.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a research report on Friday, January 3rd. Wells Fargo & Company lifted their price target on shares of Marsh & McLennan Companies from $212.00 to $223.00 and gave the stock an “equal weight” rating in a report on Friday, January 31st. Finally, Keefe, Bruyette & Woods decreased their price objective on Marsh & McLennan Companies from $214.00 to $210.00 and set an “underperform” rating for the company in a 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 stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the stock has a consensus rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $233.41.

Insider Activity

In other news, VP Stacy Mills sold 1,317 shares of Marsh & McLennan Companies stock in a transaction dated Monday, March 10th. The shares were sold at an average price of $234.97, for a total transaction of $309,455.49. Following the completion of the transaction, the vice president now directly owns 2,923 shares in the company, valued at $686,817.31. This trade represents a 31.06 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this hyperlink. Also, CEO Dean Michael Klisura sold 7,121 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated Monday, March 10th. The stock was sold at an average price of $234.97, for a total transaction of $1,673,221.37. Following the sale, the chief executive officer now directly owns 20,935 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $4,919,096.95. The trade was a 25.38 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders sold a total of 69,634 shares of company stock worth $16,244,986 in the last three months. Company insiders own 0.30% of the company’s stock.

Marsh & McLennan Companies Company 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.