Gotham Asset Management LLC Cuts Stock Position in Marsh & McLennan Companies, Inc. $MMC

Key Points

• Gotham Asset Management LLC has reduced its stake in Marsh & McLennan Companies, Inc. by 7.2%, selling 5,432 shares, and now holds 70,357 shares valued at approximately $17.17 million.
• In recent developments, Marsh & McLennan Companies announced a quarterly dividend increase to $0.90 per share, up from $0.82, reflecting a 1.8% yield.
• The company reported strong quarterly earnings with an EPS of $2.72, exceeding estimates and showing a 12.1% increase in revenue year-over-year.

Gotham Asset Management LLC cut its stake in shares of Marsh & McLennan Companies, Inc. (NYSE:MMC - Free Report) by 7.2% in the first quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The firm owned 70,357 shares of the financial services provider's stock after selling 5,432 shares during the quarter. Gotham Asset Management LLC's holdings in Marsh & McLennan Companies were worth $17,169,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Wellington Management Group LLP lifted its holdings in shares of Marsh & McLennan Companies by 54.2% in the first quarter. Wellington Management Group LLP now owns 12,814,788 shares of the financial services provider's stock worth $3,127,193,000 after buying an additional 4,505,548 shares in the last quarter. Nuveen LLC purchased a new position in shares of Marsh & McLennan Companies in the first quarter worth $1,038,594,000. GAMMA Investing LLC lifted its holdings in shares of Marsh & McLennan Companies by 32,120.9% in the first quarter. GAMMA Investing LLC now owns 1,515,670 shares of the financial services provider's stock worth $369,869,000 after buying an additional 1,510,966 shares in the last quarter. Ninety One UK Ltd lifted its holdings in shares of Marsh & McLennan Companies by 153.6% in the first quarter. Ninety One UK Ltd now owns 2,370,678 shares of the financial services provider's stock worth $578,517,000 after buying an additional 1,436,044 shares in the last quarter. Finally, UBS AM a distinct business unit of UBS ASSET MANAGEMENT AMERICAS LLC lifted its holdings in shares of Marsh & McLennan Companies by 13.2% in the fourth 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 worth $1,108,459,000 after buying an additional 609,602 shares in the last quarter. 87.99% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Marsh & McLennan Companies Trading Down 1.6%

Shares of MMC traded down $3.21 during midday trading on Wednesday, hitting $198.67. The stock had a trading volume of 1,802,455 shares, compared to its average volume of 2,246,417. Marsh & McLennan Companies, Inc. has a 1 year low of $196.27 and a 1 year high of $248.00. The firm has a market cap of $97.67 billion, a PE ratio of 23.82, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.56 and a beta of 0.81. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.19, a current ratio of 1.20 and a quick ratio of 1.20. The stock's 50 day moving average is $207.50 and its 200 day moving average is $221.00.

Marsh & McLennan Companies (NYSE:MMC - Get Free Report) last released its earnings results on Thursday, July 17th. The financial services provider reported $2.72 earnings per share for the quarter, topping 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 business had revenue of $6.97 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $6.92 billion. During the same quarter last year, the firm posted $2.41 earnings per share. The business's revenue was up 12.1% compared to the same quarter last year. As a group, analysts forecast that Marsh & McLennan Companies, Inc. will post 9.61 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Marsh & McLennan Companies Increases Dividend

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

Insider Transactions at Marsh & McLennan Companies

In other Marsh & McLennan Companies news, CEO John Q. Doyle sold 21,079 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, September 2nd. The shares were sold at an average price of $205.65, for a total transaction of $4,334,896.35. Following the transaction, the chief executive officer directly owned 87,681 shares in the company, valued at $18,031,597.65. This represents a 19.38% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at the SEC website. 0.35% of the stock is currently owned by insiders.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of research analysts have recently commented on the company. Citigroup assumed coverage on Marsh & McLennan Companies in a research report on Wednesday, August 13th. They set a "neutral" rating and a $226.00 target price for the company. Barclays lowered their target price on 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. UBS Group lowered their target price on Marsh & McLennan Companies from $261.00 to $258.00 and set a "buy" rating for the company in a research report on Monday, July 21st. Morgan Stanley lowered their target price on Marsh & McLennan Companies from $225.00 to $220.00 and set an "equal weight" rating for the company in a research report on Monday, August 18th. Finally, Cantor Fitzgerald assumed coverage on Marsh & McLennan Companies in a research report on Wednesday, August 13th. They set an "overweight" rating and a $256.00 target price for the company. Six equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, nine have assigned a Hold rating and two have given a Sell rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat, the company presently has a consensus rating of "Hold" and a consensus target price of $238.76.

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.