Fjarde AP Fonden Fourth Swedish National Pension Fund Purchases 29,800 Shares of Marsh & McLennan Companies, Inc. (NYSE:MMC)

Key Points

• Fjarde AP Fonden Fourth Swedish National Pension Fund increased its holdings in Marsh & McLennan Companies by 19.4%, acquiring an additional 29,800 shares, resulting in a total of 183,731 shares worth approximately $44.8 million.
• Several institutional investors have recently made new purchases in Marsh & McLennan, contributing to the institutional ownership of the company now standing at 87.99%.
• Marsh & McLennan announced a dividend increase to $0.90 per share, effective for payments on August 15, which represents an annual yield of 1.7%, up from the previous $0.82 per share.

Fjarde AP Fonden Fourth Swedish National Pension Fund increased its position in Marsh & McLennan Companies, Inc. (NYSE:MMC - Free Report) by 19.4% in the 1st quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the SEC. The firm owned 183,731 shares of the financial services provider's stock after buying an additional 29,800 shares during the period. Fjarde AP Fonden Fourth Swedish National Pension Fund's holdings in Marsh & McLennan Companies were worth $44,836,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Several other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also made changes to their positions in MMC. Accent Capital Management LLC bought a new position in shares of Marsh & McLennan Companies during the 1st quarter valued at about $25,000. Ameriflex Group Inc. purchased a new stake in shares of Marsh & McLennan Companies during the 4th quarter valued at about $37,000. City Holding Co. purchased a new stake in shares of Marsh & McLennan Companies during the 1st quarter valued at about $37,000. Transce3nd LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Marsh & McLennan Companies during the 4th quarter valued at about $39,000. Finally, Garde Capital Inc. purchased a new stake in Marsh & McLennan Companies in the 1st quarter worth about $42,000. Institutional investors own 87.99% of the company's stock.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

MMC has been the topic of a number of recent analyst reports. UBS Group reduced 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 reduced their target price on shares of 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. Cantor Fitzgerald started coverage on shares of Marsh & McLennan Companies in a research report on Wednesday. They set an "overweight" rating and a $256.00 target price on the stock. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods reduced 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 research report on Monday, July 21st. Finally, Citigroup started coverage on shares of Marsh & McLennan Companies in a research note on Wednesday. They set a "neutral" rating and a $226.00 price objective on the stock. Two investment analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, eight have given a hold rating and six have assigned a buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat.com, Marsh & McLennan Companies has a consensus rating of "Hold" and a consensus target price of $239.94.

Marsh & McLennan Companies Trading Up 2.4%

NYSE:MMC opened at $209.38 on Thursday. Marsh & McLennan Companies, Inc. has a 12 month low of $196.27 and a 12 month high of $248.00. The firm has a fifty day simple moving average of $212.03 and a 200-day simple moving average of $223.54. The company has a current ratio of 1.20, a quick ratio of 1.20 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.19. The company has a market capitalization of $102.94 billion, a P/E ratio of 25.11, a PEG ratio of 2.55 and a beta of 0.77.

Marsh & McLennan Companies (NYSE:MMC - Get Free Report) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, July 17th. The financial services provider reported $2.72 EPS for the quarter, topping 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 business had revenue of $6.97 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $6.92 billion. During the same period in the previous year, the firm posted $2.41 earnings per share. The business's revenue for the quarter was up 12.1% compared to the same quarter last year. On average, equities research analysts anticipate that Marsh & McLennan Companies, Inc. will post 9.61 earnings per share for the current year.

Marsh & McLennan Companies Increases Dividend

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, August 15th. Investors of record on Thursday, July 24th will be given a dividend of $0.90 per share. The ex-dividend date is Thursday, July 24th. This is a boost from Marsh & McLennan Companies's previous quarterly dividend of $0.82. This represents a $3.60 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 1.7%. Marsh & McLennan Companies's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 43.17%.

About Marsh & McLennan Companies

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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