Marsh & McLennan Companies, Inc. (NYSE:MMC) Shares Acquired by National Pension Service

Key Points

• The National Pension Service increased its stake in Marsh & McLennan Companies by 4.8%, owning approximately 0.20% of the company, valued at $238.77 million.
• Marsh & McLennan reported a 12.1% increase in revenue year-over-year, totaling $6.97 billion, with earnings per share of $2.72, exceeding analysts' estimates.
• The company announced a dividend increase to $0.90 per share, representing an annualized total of $3.60, with a yield of 1.8%.

National Pension Service increased its holdings in shares of Marsh & McLennan Companies, Inc. (NYSE:MMC - Free Report) by 4.8% during the first quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The firm owned 978,462 shares of the financial services provider's stock after acquiring an additional 44,961 shares during the period. National Pension Service owned approximately 0.20% of Marsh & McLennan Companies worth $238,774,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Other institutional investors and hedge funds have also recently bought and sold shares of the company. Nuveen LLC purchased a new stake in Marsh & McLennan Companies during the first quarter worth $1,038,594,000. Stifel Financial Corp lifted its position in shares of Marsh & McLennan Companies by 551.0% in the fourth quarter. Stifel Financial Corp now owns 2,224,932 shares of the financial services provider's stock valued at $472,599,000 after acquiring an additional 1,883,146 shares in the last quarter. GAMMA Investing LLC lifted its position 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 valued at $369,869,000 after acquiring an additional 1,510,966 shares in the last quarter. Ninety One UK Ltd lifted its position in Marsh & McLennan Companies by 153.6% during 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 during the period. Finally, Deutsche Bank AG lifted its position in Marsh & McLennan Companies by 25.7% during the fourth quarter. Deutsche Bank AG now owns 3,719,830 shares of the financial services provider's stock worth $790,129,000 after buying an additional 759,573 shares during the period. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 87.99% of the company's stock.

Marsh & McLennan Companies Stock Performance

NYSE:MMC traded up $0.30 during trading hours on Friday, reaching $207.29. 1,767,649 shares of the stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 2,290,763. The stock has a market capitalization of $101.91 billion, a P/E ratio of 24.85, a P/E/G ratio of 2.61 and a beta of 0.77. Marsh & McLennan Companies, Inc. has a 52 week low of $196.27 and a 52 week high of $248.00. The company has a quick ratio of 1.20, a current ratio of 1.20 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.19. The firm has a 50 day simple moving average of $211.60 and a 200-day simple moving average of $223.43.

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

Marsh & McLennan Companies Increases Dividend

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, August 15th. Investors of record on Thursday, July 24th will be issued a $0.90 dividend. This represents a $3.60 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 1.7%. The ex-dividend date is Thursday, July 24th. 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%.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

MMC has been the subject of several research analyst reports. Cantor Fitzgerald initiated coverage on Marsh & McLennan Companies in a research note on Wednesday. They set an "overweight" rating and a $256.00 price target for the company. Citigroup initiated coverage on Marsh & McLennan Companies in a research note on Wednesday. They set a "neutral" rating and a $226.00 price target for the company. 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 note on Monday, July 21st. 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 note on Monday, July 7th. Finally, Wells Fargo & Company lowered their target price on 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. Two investment analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, eight have issued a hold rating and six have issued a buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the stock currently has a consensus rating of "Hold" and an average price target of $239.94.

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.