Arizona State Retirement System Has $35.64 Million Stock Holdings in Marsh & McLennan Companies, Inc. (NYSE:MMC)

Arizona State Retirement System increased its position in shares of Marsh & McLennan Companies, Inc. (NYSE:MMC - Free Report) by 2.8% in the 1st quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 146,034 shares of the financial services provider's stock after acquiring an additional 3,946 shares during the period. Arizona State Retirement System's holdings in Marsh & McLennan Companies were worth $35,637,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission.

Several other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also modified their holdings of the company. City Holding Co. bought a new position in shares of Marsh & McLennan Companies in the first quarter worth about $37,000. Ameriflex Group Inc. acquired a new stake in shares of Marsh & McLennan Companies during the 4th quarter worth about $37,000. Garde Capital Inc. bought a new position in shares of Marsh & McLennan Companies in the first quarter valued at approximately $42,000. Transce3nd LLC bought a new position in shares of Marsh & McLennan Companies in the fourth quarter valued at approximately $39,000. Finally, First Pacific Financial raised its position in Marsh & McLennan Companies by 133.8% in the 1st quarter. First Pacific Financial now owns 187 shares of the financial services provider's stock worth $46,000 after purchasing an additional 107 shares during the last quarter. 87.99% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several analysts have commented on the stock. Barclays dropped their target price on shares of Marsh & McLennan Companies from $249.00 to $233.00 and set an "equal weight" rating for the company in a research report on Monday, July 7th. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods dropped their target price on shares of Marsh & McLennan Companies from $215.00 to $214.00 and set an "underperform" rating for the company in a research report on Wednesday. Redburn Atlantic assumed 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 for the company. Jefferies Financial Group upped their target price on shares of Marsh & McLennan Companies from $237.00 to $244.00 and gave the company a "hold" rating in a research report on Friday, April 11th. Finally, UBS Group upped their target price on shares of Marsh & McLennan Companies from $259.00 to $261.00 and gave the company a "buy" rating in a research report on Wednesday, April 9th. Two research analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, seven have given a hold rating and five have given a buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the stock presently has an average rating of "Hold" and an average target price of $240.50.

Marsh & McLennan Companies Price Performance

Shares of NYSE MMC opened at $211.62 on Friday. The company has a fifty day moving average price of $222.70 and a 200 day moving average price of $224.68. Marsh & McLennan Companies, Inc. has a 1-year low of $207.21 and a 1-year high of $248.00. The company has a current ratio of 1.14, a quick ratio of 1.14 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.32. The firm has a market cap of $104.27 billion, a PE ratio of 25.93, a PEG ratio of 2.63 and a beta of 0.80.

Marsh & McLennan Companies (NYSE:MMC - Get Free Report) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, April 17th. The financial services provider reported $3.06 EPS for the quarter, topping analysts' consensus estimates of $3.02 by $0.04. Marsh & McLennan Companies had a net margin of 16.13% and a return on equity of 32.19%. The company had revenue of $6.70 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $7.08 billion. During the same period in the prior year, the business posted $2.89 EPS. Research analysts predict that Marsh & McLennan Companies, Inc. will post 9.61 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Marsh & McLennan Companies Increases Dividend

The firm 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. This represents a $3.60 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 1.70%. This is an increase from Marsh & McLennan Companies's previous quarterly dividend of $0.82. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Thursday, July 24th. Marsh & McLennan Companies's dividend payout ratio is currently 39.95%.

Marsh & McLennan Companies 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.

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