Guggenheim Capital LLC Purchases 3,041 Shares of Marsh & McLennan Companies, Inc. $MMC

Key Points

• Guggenheim Capital LLC increased its holdings in Marsh & McLennan Companies, Inc. by 4.2% in the first quarter, now owning a total of 74,806 shares valued at approximately $18.26 million.
• The company increased its quarterly dividend to $0.90 per share, reflecting an annualized payout of $3.60, resulting in a yield of 1.7%.
• Marsh & McLennan reported a 12.1% year-over-year revenue increase for the quarter, totaling $6.97 billion, and surpassed earnings expectations with $2.72 EPS.

Guggenheim Capital LLC grew its position in shares of Marsh & McLennan Companies, Inc. (NYSE:MMC - Free Report) by 4.2% in the 1st quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the SEC. The fund owned 74,806 shares of the financial services provider's stock after purchasing an additional 3,041 shares during the quarter. Guggenheim Capital LLC's holdings in Marsh & McLennan Companies were worth $18,255,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Several other hedge funds have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Vanguard Group Inc. raised its holdings in Marsh & McLennan Companies by 1.3% during the 1st quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 45,321,445 shares of the financial services provider's stock worth $11,059,792,000 after purchasing an additional 581,930 shares during the last quarter. Wellington Management Group LLP increased its stake in shares of Marsh & McLennan Companies by 54.2% in the 1st quarter. Wellington Management Group LLP now owns 12,814,788 shares of the financial services provider's stock valued at $3,127,193,000 after acquiring an additional 4,505,548 shares in the last quarter. UBS AM a distinct business unit of UBS ASSET MANAGEMENT AMERICAS LLC increased its stake in shares of Marsh & McLennan Companies by 13.2% in the 4th 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 valued at $1,108,459,000 after acquiring an additional 609,602 shares in the last quarter. Nuveen Asset Management LLC increased its stake in shares of Marsh & McLennan Companies by 7.2% in the 4th quarter. Nuveen Asset Management LLC now owns 4,581,773 shares of the financial services provider's stock valued at $973,214,000 after acquiring an additional 308,759 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Goldman Sachs Group Inc. increased its stake in shares of Marsh & McLennan Companies by 8.5% in the 1st quarter. Goldman Sachs Group Inc. now owns 4,345,211 shares of the financial services provider's stock valued at $1,060,362,000 after acquiring an additional 340,907 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors own 87.99% of the company's stock.

Marsh & McLennan Companies Price Performance

MMC opened at $206.49 on Thursday. 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 company has a market capitalization of $101.52 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 24.76, a P/E/G ratio of 2.59 and a beta of 0.77. The firm's fifty day moving average price is $209.75 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $222.59. Marsh & McLennan Companies, Inc. has a 1 year low of $196.27 and a 1 year high of $248.00.

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 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping analysts' consensus estimates of $2.66 by $0.06. The firm had revenue of $6.97 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $6.92 billion. Marsh & McLennan Companies had a net margin of 16.00% and a return on equity of 31.90%. The business's revenue for the quarter was up 12.1% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period in the previous year, the firm earned $2.41 EPS. As a group, analysts anticipate that Marsh & McLennan Companies, Inc. will post 9.61 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Marsh & McLennan Companies Increases Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, August 15th. Shareholders of record on Thursday, July 24th were issued a dividend of $0.90 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Thursday, July 24th. This represents a $3.60 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 1.7%. This is a positive change from Marsh & McLennan Companies's previous quarterly dividend of $0.82. Marsh & McLennan Companies's payout ratio is presently 43.17%.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several research firms have recently weighed in on MMC. Wells Fargo & Company lowered their price objective on shares of Marsh & McLennan Companies from $229.00 to $226.00 and set an "equal weight" rating for the company in a research note on Friday, July 18th. UBS Group reduced their price target on shares of 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. Cantor Fitzgerald began coverage on shares of Marsh & McLennan Companies in a research report on Wednesday, August 13th. They issued an "overweight" rating and a $256.00 price target for the company. Barclays reduced their price target 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. Finally, Citigroup began coverage on shares of Marsh & McLennan Companies in a research report on Wednesday, August 13th. They issued a "neutral" rating and a $226.00 price target for the company. Six analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, nine have issued a Hold rating and two have assigned a Sell rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, Marsh & McLennan Companies currently has an average rating of "Hold" and an average 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.

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