Victrix Investment Advisors Buys Shares of 1,273 Marsh & McLennan Companies, Inc. (NYSE:MMC)

Victrix Investment Advisors purchased a new stake in shares of Marsh & McLennan Companies, Inc. (NYSE:MMC - Free Report) in the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the SEC. The fund purchased 1,273 shares of the financial services provider's stock, valued at approximately $270,000.

A number of other hedge funds have also added to or reduced their stakes in the stock. Louisbourg Investments Inc. raised its position in Marsh & McLennan Companies by 67.2% in the 4th quarter. Louisbourg Investments Inc. now owns 8,211 shares of the financial services provider's stock valued at $1,744,000 after buying an additional 3,300 shares during the last quarter. Handelsbanken Fonder AB boosted its holdings in Marsh & McLennan Companies by 9.4% during the fourth quarter. Handelsbanken Fonder AB now owns 191,512 shares of the financial services provider's stock worth $40,679,000 after purchasing an additional 16,464 shares during the last quarter. Brentview Investment Management LLC bought a new stake in Marsh & McLennan Companies in the 4th quarter worth about $3,635,000. Bell Asset Management Ltd lifted its position in shares of Marsh & McLennan Companies by 12.5% during the 4th quarter. Bell Asset Management Ltd now owns 32,465 shares of the financial services provider's stock worth $6,896,000 after buying an additional 3,595 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Mariner LLC boosted its stake in shares of Marsh & McLennan Companies by 1.4% in the 4th quarter. Mariner LLC now owns 448,546 shares of the financial services provider's stock worth $95,275,000 after buying an additional 6,125 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 87.99% of the company's stock.

Marsh & McLennan Companies Price Performance

Shares of Marsh & McLennan Companies stock traded down $0.54 on Thursday, reaching $228.47. The stock had a trading volume of 1,664,406 shares, compared to its average volume of 1,919,847. The business's 50 day moving average is $229.22 and its two-hundred day moving average is $225.03. The company has a current ratio of 1.13, a quick ratio of 1.13 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.44. Marsh & McLennan Companies, Inc. has a 1 year low of $201.77 and a 1 year high of $248.00. The company has a market cap of $112.57 billion, a P/E ratio of 27.90, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.70 and a beta of 0.85.

Marsh & McLennan Companies (NYSE:MMC - Get Free Report) last posted its earnings results on Thursday, April 17th. The financial services provider reported $3.06 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $3.02 by $0.04. Marsh & McLennan Companies had a net margin of 16.60% and a return on equity of 32.60%. The business had revenue of $6.70 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $7.08 billion. During the same period in the prior year, the company posted $2.89 EPS. As a group, research analysts anticipate that Marsh & McLennan Companies, Inc. will post 9.61 EPS for the current year.

Marsh & McLennan Companies Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Thursday, May 15th. Investors of record on Thursday, April 3rd were issued a dividend of $0.815 per share. This represents a $3.26 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 1.43%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Thursday, April 3rd. Marsh & McLennan Companies's dividend payout ratio is currently 39.95%.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other news, CEO Nicholas Mark Studer sold 49,390 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, March 12th. The shares were sold at an average price of $230.16, for a total transaction of $11,367,602.40. Following the completion of the sale, the chief executive officer now directly owns 28,329 shares in the company, valued at approximately $6,520,202.64. This represents a 63.55% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is accessible through this hyperlink. Also, SVP Paul Beswick sold 2,237 shares of the business's stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, April 3rd. The stock was sold at an average price of $246.00, for a total value of $550,302.00. Following the completion of the sale, the senior vice president now directly owns 13,522 shares in the company, valued at approximately $3,326,412. This represents a 14.20% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders have sold a total of 69,634 shares of company stock worth $16,244,986 in the last 90 days. 0.35% of the stock is owned by company insiders.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of research analysts have issued reports on MMC shares. Jefferies Financial Group upped their price objective on Marsh & McLennan Companies from $237.00 to $244.00 and gave the company a "hold" rating in a research note on Friday, April 11th. UBS Group raised their price objective on shares of Marsh & McLennan Companies from $259.00 to $261.00 and gave the stock a "buy" rating in a report on Wednesday, April 9th. Redburn Atlantic initiated coverage on shares of Marsh & McLennan Companies in a research note on Tuesday, March 25th. They issued a "buy" rating and a $281.00 target price on the stock. Barclays raised their price target on shares of Marsh & McLennan Companies from $246.00 to $249.00 and gave the stock an "equal weight" rating in a research note on Friday, April 11th. Finally, Wells Fargo & Company upped their price objective on Marsh & McLennan Companies from $223.00 to $232.00 and gave the company an "equal weight" rating in a research note on Thursday, April 10th. Two investment analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, seven have given a hold rating and five have issued a buy rating to the company's stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the company presently has a consensus rating of "Hold" and a consensus price target of $241.93.

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.