Marsh & McLennan Companies (NYSE:MRSH) Price Target Raised to $218.00

Key Points

• JPMorgan raised Marsh & McLennan’s price target from $215 to $218 and maintained an “overweight” rating, implying 14.42% potential upside from the prior close.
• Analyst sentiment remains mixed: the stock carries a consensus “Hold” rating with an average target of $204.42, while recent targets ranged from $178 to $203.
• Marsh & McLennan beat quarterly earnings expectations, reporting $2.03 in EPS versus $1.96 expected, while revenue rose 8.1% year over year to $6.86 billion.

Marsh & McLennan Companies (NYSE:MRSH - Get Free Report) had its price objective raised by equities research analysts at JPMorgan Chase & Co. from $215.00 to $218.00 in a report released on Tuesday, Benzinga reports. The firm currently has an "overweight" rating on the financial services provider's stock. JPMorgan Chase & Co.'s price target indicates a potential upside of 14.42% from the company's previous close.

MRSH has been the subject of several other research reports. Bank of America reduced their price objective on Marsh & McLennan Companies from $179.00 to $178.00 and set an "underperform" rating on the stock in a report on Wednesday, July 15th. Wells Fargo & Company increased their price objective on Marsh & McLennan Companies from $183.00 to $197.00 and gave the company an "equal weight" rating in a research report on Friday. Morgan Stanley lowered their target price on Marsh & McLennan Companies from $200.00 to $180.00 and set an "equal weight" rating for the company in a research note on Tuesday, October 6th. Citigroup boosted their target price on Marsh & McLennan Companies from $200.00 to $203.00 and gave the stock a "neutral" rating in a research report on Friday. Finally, Keefe, Bruyette & Woods upped their price target on Marsh & McLennan Companies from $186.00 to $201.00 and gave the company a "market perform" rating in a research note on Monday. Two analysts have rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, six have given a Buy rating, eleven have given a Hold rating and two have issued a Sell rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat.com, Marsh & McLennan Companies has an average rating of "Hold" and a consensus target price of $204.42.

Marsh & McLennan Companies Stock Performance

Shares of NYSE:MRSH traded up $2.02 on Tuesday, hitting $190.52. The stock had a trading volume of 332,369 shares, compared to its average volume of 2,803,147. Marsh & McLennan Companies has a twelve month low of $156.60 and a twelve month high of $198.49. The company has a quick ratio of 1.09, a current ratio of 1.09 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.27. The company has a 50 day moving average of $181.14. The company has a market cap of $90.59 billion, a P/E ratio of 22.79, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.61 and a beta of 0.59.

Marsh & McLennan Companies (NYSE:MRSH - Get Free Report) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, October 15th. The financial services provider reported $2.03 earnings per share for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $1.96 by $0.07. Marsh & McLennan Companies had a net margin of 14.20% and a return on equity of 33.32%. The firm had revenue of $6.86 billion for the quarter. The firm's revenue for the quarter was up 8.1% compared to the same quarter last year. As a group, sell-side analysts predict that Marsh & McLennan Companies will post 10.45 EPS for the current year.

Insider Transactions at Marsh & McLennan Companies

In other news, SVP Paul Beswick sold 713 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, July 29th. The shares were sold at an average price of $198.00, for a total transaction of $141,174.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the senior vice president directly owned 16,376 shares in the company, valued at $3,242,448. This represents a 4.17% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available at the SEC website. The transaction was executed under a pre-arranged Rule 10b5-1 trading plan. Also, insider Martin South sold 7,100 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, July 28th. The shares were sold at an average price of $189.99, for a total value of $1,348,929.00. Following the transaction, the insider directly owned 16,632 shares of the company's stock, valued at $3,159,913.68. This trade represents a 29.92% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale is available in the SEC filing. Insiders sold 19,813 shares of company stock valued at $3,597,903 over the last three months. Company insiders own 0.38% of the company's stock.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Marsh & McLennan Companies

A number of institutional investors have recently bought and sold shares of MRSH. Continuum Advisory LLC grew its position in shares of Marsh & McLennan Companies by 5.3% in the first quarter. Continuum Advisory LLC now owns 1,452 shares of the financial services provider's stock valued at $252,000 after purchasing an additional 73 shares during the last quarter. Clearstead Trust LLC boosted its stake in shares of Marsh & McLennan Companies by 12.6% in the first quarter. Clearstead Trust LLC now owns 668 shares of the financial services provider's stock valued at $116,000 after buying an additional 75 shares during the period. Kintegral Advisory LLC lifted its position in shares of Marsh & McLennan Companies by 0.6% during the 3rd quarter. Kintegral Advisory LLC now owns 14,387 shares of the financial services provider's stock valued at $2,456,000 after acquiring an additional 81 shares during the period. Columbia Bank lifted its position in Marsh & McLennan Companies by 5.1% during the first quarter. Columbia Bank now owns 1,736 shares of the financial services provider's stock worth $301,000 after purchasing an additional 85 shares during the period. Finally, Capital Analysts LLC boosted its position in shares of Marsh & McLennan Companies by 37.4% during the 2nd quarter. Capital Analysts LLC now owns 312 shares of the financial services provider's stock worth $52,000 after acquiring an additional 85 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 87.99% of the company's stock.

About Marsh & McLennan Companies

Marsh & McLennan Companies is a global professional services firm that provides advice and solutions in risk, strategy and people. The company serves businesses, governments and institutions through a portfolio of specialized businesses focused on insurance brokerage, reinsurance, consulting and talent management.

Its principal businesses include Marsh, an insurance brokerage and risk advisory firm; Guy Carpenter, a provider of reinsurance brokerage and related risk-management services; Mercer, which offers consulting in investment, retirement, health and workforce strategy; and Oliver Wyman, a management consulting firm serving clients across industries and regions.

Founded in 1905, Marsh & McLennan serves clients in countries and markets around the world.

This instant news alert was generated by narrative science technology and financial data from MarketBeat in order to provide readers with the fastest reporting and unbiased coverage. Please send any questions or comments about this story to contact@marketbeat.com.