Bank of America Corp DE Acquires Shares of 3,455,003 Marsh & McLennan Companies, Inc. $MRSH

Key Points

• Bank of America acquired 3.46 million shares of Marsh & McLennan Companies during the second quarter, valued at approximately $575.8 million and representing about 0.72% of the company. Institutional investors collectively own 87.99% of the stock.
• Insiders sold 19,813 shares worth roughly $3.6 million over the past quarter. Analyst sentiment remains mixed, with the stock carrying a consensus “Hold” rating and an average price target of $203.50.
• Marsh & McLennan beat quarterly earnings expectations, reporting $2.96 in EPS and $7.28 billion in revenue, up 6.2% year over year. The company also raised its quarterly dividend to $0.99, or $3.96 annually, yielding about 2.2%.

Bank of America Corp DE bought a new stake in Marsh & McLennan Companies, Inc. (NYSE:MRSH - Free Report) during the 2nd quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the SEC. The fund bought 3,455,003 shares of the financial services provider's stock, valued at approximately $575,845,000. Bank of America Corp DE owned approximately 0.72% of Marsh & McLennan Companies as of its most recent filing with the SEC.

Other hedge funds have also made changes to their positions in the company. BlackRock Inc. bought a new position in shares of Marsh & McLennan Companies in the second quarter valued at approximately $6,583,806,000. State Street Corp acquired a new stake in shares of Marsh & McLennan Companies in the fourth quarter valued at $4,057,682,000. Capital International Investors bought a new position in shares of Marsh & McLennan Companies in the fourth quarter valued at about $3,482,557,000. Capital World Investors acquired a new position in Marsh & McLennan Companies during the 4th quarter worth about $3,140,284,000. Finally, Norges Bank bought a new stake in Marsh & McLennan Companies during the 4th quarter worth about $1,555,869,000. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 87.99% of the company's stock.

Insider Activity

In other news, Director Lloyd Yates sold 12,000 shares of the company's stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, July 23rd. The shares were sold at an average price of $175.65, for a total value of $2,107,800.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the director owned 12,001 shares in the company, valued at $2,107,975.65. This represents a 50.00% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through the SEC website. Also, insider Martin South sold 7,100 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction on Tuesday, July 28th. The stock was sold at an average price of $189.99, for a total transaction of $1,348,929.00. Following the sale, the insider owned 16,632 shares in the company, valued at approximately $3,159,913.68. The trade was 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 worth $3,597,903 over the last quarter. 0.38% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of brokerages have weighed in on MRSH. Citigroup downgraded shares of Marsh & McLennan Companies from a "buy" rating to a "neutral" rating and set a $200.00 target price for the company. in a research note on Wednesday, July 22nd. Mizuho raised their price target on shares of Marsh & McLennan Companies from $197.00 to $201.00 and gave the company a "neutral" rating in a report on Wednesday, July 22nd. Weiss Ratings upgraded shares of Marsh & McLennan Companies from a "hold (c-)" rating to a "hold (c)" rating in a research report on Friday, August 7th. Wells Fargo & Company upped their price objective on Marsh & McLennan Companies from $186.00 to $188.00 and gave the stock an "equal weight" rating in a report on Wednesday, July 22nd. Finally, Erste Group Bank raised Marsh & McLennan Companies to a "strong-buy" rating in a research note on Tuesday, September 8th. Two analysts have rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, five have given a Buy rating, ten have given a Hold rating and one has given a Sell rating to the company. According to MarketBeat.com, the stock currently has an average rating of "Hold" and a consensus price target of $203.50.

Marsh & McLennan Companies Trading Down 0.4%

NYSE:MRSH opened at $179.70 on Wednesday. The company has a quick ratio of 1.14, a current ratio of 1.14 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.22. Marsh & McLennan Companies, Inc. has a 1-year low of $156.60 and a 1-year high of $207.82. The firm has a market capitalization of $85.76 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 21.97, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.50 and a beta of 0.58. The firm has a 50-day moving average of $185.98.

Marsh & McLennan Companies (NYSE:MRSH - Get Free Report) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, July 21st. The financial services provider reported $2.96 EPS for the quarter, beating analysts' consensus estimates of $2.89 by $0.07. Marsh & McLennan Companies had a return on equity of 32.67% and a net margin of 14.24%.The company had revenue of $7.28 billion during the quarter. The firm's revenue was up 6.2% on a year-over-year basis. Sell-side analysts predict that Marsh & McLennan Companies, Inc. will post 10.44 earnings per share for the current year.

Marsh & McLennan Companies Increases Dividend

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, August 14th. Shareholders of record on Thursday, July 23rd were issued a $0.99 dividend. This represents a $3.96 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 2.2%. This is an increase from Marsh & McLennan Companies's previous quarterly dividend of $0.90. The ex-dividend date was Thursday, July 23rd. Marsh & McLennan Companies's dividend payout ratio is currently 48.41%.

Marsh & McLennan Companies Profile

Marsh & McLennan Companies, now operating under the name Marsh McLennan, is a global professional services firm that helps organizations manage risk, strategy and people-related challenges. Its businesses serve corporations, governments, institutional investors and other organizations across a broad range of industries and geographies.

The company's principal businesses include Marsh, an insurance brokerage and risk advisory firm; Guy Carpenter, which provides reinsurance brokerage and related risk management services; Mercer, which offers consulting in areas such as talent, health, retirement and investments; and Oliver Wyman, a management consulting firm.

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