Treasurer of the State of North Carolina Has $47.31 Million Stock Holdings in Marsh & McLennan Companies, Inc. (NYSE:MMC)

Treasurer of the State of North Carolina grew its holdings in Marsh & McLennan Companies, Inc. (NYSE:MMC) by 0.5% in the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The fund owned 222,718 shares of the financial services provider’s stock after buying an additional 1,010 shares during the period. Treasurer of the State of North Carolina’s holdings in Marsh & McLennan Companies were worth $47,308,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Other large investors have also recently bought and sold shares of the company. Vanguard Group Inc. increased its stake 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 purchasing an additional 356,618 shares during the last quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC increased its position in Marsh & McLennan Companies by 1.2% in the 4th quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC now owns 12,050,565 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $2,554,841,000 after buying an additional 145,134 shares in the last quarter. Norges Bank bought a new stake in shares of Marsh & McLennan Companies during the fourth quarter worth about $1,236,186,000. Amundi raised its holdings in shares of Marsh & McLennan Companies by 81.1% in the fourth quarter. Amundi now owns 4,072,976 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $860,824,000 after purchasing an additional 1,823,807 shares during the last quarter. Finally, JPMorgan Chase & Co. boosted its holdings 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 buying an additional 184,239 shares during the last quarter. 87.99% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

Insider Transactions at Marsh & McLennan Companies

In related news, SVP Paul Beswick sold 2,237 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, April 3rd. The shares were sold at an average price of $246.00, for a total transaction of $550,302.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the senior vice president now owns 13,522 shares in the company, valued at approximately $3,326,412. The trade was a 14.20 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this link. Also, VP Stacy Mills sold 1,317 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction that occurred on 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 transaction, the vice president now owns 2,923 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $686,817.31. This represents a 31.06 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last quarter, insiders have sold 69,634 shares of company stock valued at $16,244,986. 0.30% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of equities research analysts recently weighed in on MMC shares. JPMorgan Chase & Co. raised 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. Wells Fargo & Company increased their price objective on shares of Marsh & McLennan Companies from $212.00 to $223.00 and gave the stock an “equal weight” rating in a research note on Friday, January 31st. Raymond James reiterated 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. UBS Group raised their target price on shares of Marsh & McLennan Companies from $259.00 to $261.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a report on Wednesday. Finally, Redburn Atlantic began coverage on shares of Marsh & McLennan Companies in a research report on Tuesday, March 25th. They set a “buy” rating and a $281.00 target price on the stock. Two analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, ten have assigned a hold rating and five have given a buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the company has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $234.12.

Marsh & McLennan Companies Price Performance

NYSE:MMC opened at $229.84 on Thursday. 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 $113.29 billion, a P/E ratio of 28.06, a PEG ratio of 2.70 and a beta of 0.85. Marsh & McLennan Companies, Inc. has a 52-week low of $196.17 and a 52-week high of $248.00. The business’s 50-day moving average price is $232.44 and its 200 day moving average price is $224.51.

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, 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%. As a group, sell-side analysts predict that Marsh & McLennan Companies, Inc. will post 9.61 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Marsh & McLennan Companies Dividend Announcement

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. This represents a $3.26 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 1.42%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Thursday, April 3rd. Marsh & McLennan Companies’s dividend payout ratio is currently 39.80%.

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.