Bellwether Advisors LLC Trims Holdings in Marsh & McLennan Companies, Inc. (NYSE:MMC)

Key Points

• Bellwether Advisors LLC has significantly reduced its stake in Marsh & McLennan Companies by 93.2%, now holding only 1,616 shares worth $394,000.
• Marsh & McLennan recently reported earnings of $2.72 per share for the quarter, exceeding analyst estimates and reflecting a 12.1% increase in revenue compared to the same quarter last year.
• The firm announced an increase in its quarterly dividend from $0.82 to $0.90, with an annual yield of 1.71% based on a payout ratio of 43.17%.

Bellwether Advisors LLC lessened its holdings in Marsh & McLennan Companies, Inc. (NYSE:MMC - Free Report) by 93.2% during the 1st quarter, according to its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The fund owned 1,616 shares of the financial services provider's stock after selling 22,112 shares during the quarter. Bellwether Advisors LLC's holdings in Marsh & McLennan Companies were worth $394,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission.

Several other hedge funds also recently bought and sold shares of MMC. Brighton Jones LLC grew its position in Marsh & McLennan Companies by 51.2% in the 4th quarter. Brighton Jones LLC now owns 8,738 shares of the financial services provider's stock valued at $1,856,000 after acquiring an additional 2,960 shares during the last quarter. Bank Pictet & Cie Europe AG bought a new position in shares of Marsh & McLennan Companies during the 4th quarter worth $37,178,000. WINTON GROUP Ltd bought a new position in shares of Marsh & McLennan Companies during the 4th quarter worth $369,000. Blair William & Co. IL grew its position in shares of Marsh & McLennan Companies by 4.8% during the 4th quarter. Blair William & Co. IL now owns 42,763 shares of the financial services provider's stock worth $9,083,000 after buying an additional 1,974 shares in the last quarter. Finally, New Age Alpha Advisors LLC grew its position in shares of Marsh & McLennan Companies by 1,644.1% during the 4th quarter. New Age Alpha Advisors LLC now owns 1,622 shares of the financial services provider's stock worth $345,000 after buying an additional 1,529 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors own 87.99% of the company's stock.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

MMC has been the topic of a number of recent research reports. Wells Fargo & Company dropped their price target on Marsh & McLennan Companies from $229.00 to $226.00 and set an "equal weight" rating on the stock in a research report on Friday, July 18th. Jefferies Financial Group increased their price target on Marsh & McLennan Companies from $237.00 to $244.00 and gave the stock a "hold" rating in a research report on Friday, April 11th. UBS Group dropped their price target on 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. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods decreased their price objective on Marsh & McLennan Companies from $214.00 to $210.00 and set an "underperform" rating for the company in a research note on Monday, July 21st. Finally, Barclays decreased their price objective on Marsh & McLennan Companies from $249.00 to $233.00 and set an "equal weight" rating for the company in a research note on Monday, July 7th. Two equities 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 company's stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the company has an average rating of "Hold" and an average target price of $239.79.

Marsh & McLennan Companies Stock Down 1.9%

Marsh & McLennan Companies stock traded down $4.04 during midday trading on Monday, reaching $206.36. The company's stock had a trading volume of 2,483,152 shares, compared to its average volume of 2,444,845. The stock's 50-day simple moving average is $218.98 and its 200-day simple moving average is $224.77. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.19, a current ratio of 1.20 and a quick ratio of 1.20. Marsh & McLennan Companies, Inc. has a 52-week low of $205.89 and a 52-week high of $248.00. The stock has a market capitalization of $101.45 billion, a P/E ratio of 24.74, a PEG ratio of 2.55 and a beta of 0.80.

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

Marsh & McLennan Companies Increases Dividend

The company 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 $0.90 dividend. This represents a $3.60 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 1.74%. This is a boost 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 (DPR) is presently 43.17%.

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.