AlphaCore Capital LLC Takes Position in Marsh & McLennan Companies, Inc. (NYSE:MMC)

Key Points

• AlphaCore Capital LLC purchased 5,037 shares of Marsh & McLennan Companies, Inc. for approximately $1,229,000 in the first quarter, contributing to a growing interest from institutional investors who now own 87.99% of the company’s stock.
• Marsh & McLennan reported earnings of $2.72 per share, surpassing consensus estimates, with a 12.1% year-over-year increase in quarterly revenue to $6.97 billion.
• The company declared a dividend increase, raising its quarterly payout from $0.82 to $0.90, yielding 1.8% annually, with payment scheduled for August 15th.

AlphaCore Capital LLC purchased a new position in shares of Marsh & McLennan Companies, Inc. (NYSE:MMC - Free Report) during the 1st quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The institutional investor purchased 5,037 shares of the financial services provider's stock, valued at approximately $1,229,000.

Other hedge funds have also made changes to their positions in the company. Vanguard Group Inc. raised its holdings in Marsh & McLennan Companies by 1.3% during the first quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 45,321,445 shares of the financial services provider's stock worth $11,059,792,000 after purchasing an additional 581,930 shares in the last quarter. Price T Rowe Associates Inc. MD increased its holdings in shares of Marsh & McLennan Companies by 1.0% in the 4th quarter. Price T Rowe Associates Inc. MD now owns 10,151,020 shares of the financial services provider's stock valued at $2,156,179,000 after acquiring an additional 96,750 shares during the period. Northern Trust Corp increased its holdings in shares of Marsh & McLennan Companies by 14.0% in the 4th quarter. Northern Trust Corp now owns 5,934,340 shares of the financial services provider's stock valued at $1,260,513,000 after acquiring an additional 726,713 shares during the period. UBS AM a distinct business unit of UBS ASSET MANAGEMENT AMERICAS LLC increased its holdings in shares of Marsh & McLennan Companies by 13.2% in the 4th quarter. UBS AM a distinct business unit of UBS ASSET MANAGEMENT AMERICAS LLC now owns 5,218,488 shares of the financial services provider's stock valued at $1,108,459,000 after acquiring an additional 609,602 shares during the period. Finally, Nuveen Asset Management LLC increased its holdings in shares of Marsh & McLennan Companies by 7.2% in the 4th quarter. Nuveen Asset Management LLC now owns 4,581,773 shares of the financial services provider's stock valued at $973,214,000 after acquiring an additional 308,759 shares during the period. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 87.99% of the company's stock.

Marsh & McLennan Companies Price Performance

Shares of NYSE:MMC traded down $0.30 during midday trading on Monday, hitting $203.37. 2,715,884 shares of the stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 2,900,250. The stock has a market cap of $99.98 billion, a P/E ratio of 21.95, a PEG ratio of 2.54 and a beta of 0.77. The company has a current ratio of 1.20, a quick ratio of 1.20 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.19. Marsh & McLennan Companies, Inc. has a twelve month low of $196.27 and a twelve month high of $248.00. The company has a 50 day moving average price of $213.73 and a 200-day moving average price of $223.88.

Marsh & McLennan Companies (NYSE:MMC - Get Free Report) last announced its earnings results on Thursday, July 17th. The financial services provider reported $2.72 earnings per share for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $2.66 by $0.06. Marsh & McLennan Companies had a net margin of 16.00% and a return on equity of 31.90%. The firm had revenue of $6.97 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $6.92 billion. During the same quarter in the previous year, the company posted $2.41 EPS. The firm's revenue for the quarter was up 12.1% on a year-over-year basis. On average, research analysts forecast that Marsh & McLennan Companies, Inc. will post 9.61 earnings per share for the current year.

Marsh & McLennan Companies Increases Dividend

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, August 15th. Stockholders of record on Thursday, July 24th will be paid a dividend of $0.90 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Thursday, July 24th. This represents a $3.60 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 1.8%. This is an increase from Marsh & McLennan Companies's previous quarterly dividend of $0.82. Marsh & McLennan Companies's dividend payout ratio is currently 43.17%.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of equities analysts have recently commented on the stock. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods cut their target price on shares of Marsh & McLennan Companies from $214.00 to $210.00 and set an "underperform" rating on the stock in a report on Monday, July 21st. UBS Group lowered their price objective on shares of Marsh & McLennan Companies from $261.00 to $258.00 and set a "buy" rating on the stock in a research report on Monday, July 21st. Wells Fargo & Company cut their price objective on Marsh & McLennan Companies from $229.00 to $226.00 and set an "equal weight" rating for the company in a research report on Friday, July 18th. Finally, Barclays lowered their price target on shares of Marsh & McLennan Companies from $249.00 to $233.00 and set an "equal weight" rating on the stock in a research note on Monday, July 7th. Two investment analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, seven have assigned a hold rating and five have assigned a buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the stock has an average rating of "Hold" and a consensus price target of $239.79.

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.