NorthCrest Asset Manangement LLC Takes $285,000 Position in Marsh & McLennan Companies, Inc. (NYSE:MMC)

NorthCrest Asset Manangement LLC purchased a new stake in Marsh & McLennan Companies, Inc. (NYSE:MMC - Free Report) in the first quarter, according to its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The institutional investor purchased 1,170 shares of the financial services provider's stock, valued at approximately $285,000.

A number of other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also bought and sold shares of the company. Norges Bank acquired a new stake in shares of Marsh & McLennan Companies in the fourth quarter valued at about $1,236,186,000. Stifel Financial Corp increased its position in Marsh & McLennan Companies by 551.0% in the 4th quarter. Stifel Financial Corp now owns 2,224,932 shares of the financial services provider's stock valued at $472,599,000 after buying an additional 1,883,146 shares in the last quarter. Amundi grew its holdings in shares of Marsh & McLennan Companies by 81.1% during the fourth quarter. Amundi now owns 4,072,976 shares of the financial services provider's stock valued at $860,824,000 after buying an additional 1,823,807 shares during the last quarter. GAMMA Investing LLC raised its position in Marsh & McLennan Companies by 32,120.9% in the 1st quarter. GAMMA Investing LLC now owns 1,515,670 shares of the financial services provider's stock valued at $369,869,000 after buying an additional 1,510,966 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Raymond James Financial Inc. bought a new stake in Marsh & McLennan Companies in the 4th quarter worth about $207,278,000. Institutional investors own 87.99% of the company's stock.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several equities analysts recently commented on the company. Jefferies Financial Group upped their price objective on Marsh & McLennan Companies from $237.00 to $244.00 and gave the company a "hold" rating in a research note on Friday, April 11th. Redburn Atlantic assumed coverage on shares of Marsh & McLennan Companies in a research note on Tuesday, March 25th. They set a "buy" rating and a $281.00 price target on the stock. Barclays lifted their price objective on shares of Marsh & McLennan Companies from $246.00 to $249.00 and gave the company an "equal weight" rating in a research note on Friday, April 11th. Wells Fargo & Company raised their price objective on shares of Marsh & McLennan Companies from $223.00 to $232.00 and gave the company an "equal weight" rating in a research report on Thursday, April 10th. Finally, Keefe, Bruyette & Woods cut their price target on shares of Marsh & McLennan Companies from $220.00 to $215.00 and set an "underperform" rating for the company in a report on Monday, April 21st. Two research analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, seven have issued a hold rating and five have given a buy rating to the company's stock. According to MarketBeat, the company has a consensus rating of "Hold" and a consensus price target of $241.93.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other Marsh & McLennan Companies news, CEO Dean Michael Klisura sold 9,569 shares of Marsh & McLennan Companies stock in a transaction on Monday, March 31st. The shares were sold at an average price of $245.00, for a total transaction of $2,344,405.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief executive officer now directly owns 20,935 shares of the company's stock, valued at $5,129,075. The trade was a 31.37% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this hyperlink. Also, SVP Paul Beswick sold 2,237 shares of the stock in a transaction on Thursday, April 3rd. The shares were sold at an average price of $246.00, for a total transaction of $550,302.00. Following the completion of the sale, the senior vice president now directly owns 13,522 shares in the company, valued at approximately $3,326,412. This represents a 14.20% decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. 0.35% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

Marsh & McLennan Companies Price Performance

Shares of MMC traded down $0.89 during mid-day trading on Monday, hitting $216.49. 2,524,837 shares of the stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 1,941,302. The firm has a 50-day moving average of $226.42 and a two-hundred day moving average of $225.29. Marsh & McLennan Companies, Inc. has a 52-week low of $207.21 and a 52-week high of $248.00. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.44, a quick ratio of 1.13 and a current ratio of 1.13. The company has a market cap of $106.67 billion, a PE ratio of 26.43, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.70 and a beta of 0.83.

Marsh & McLennan Companies (NYSE:MMC - Get Free Report) last released its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, April 17th. The financial services provider reported $3.06 EPS for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $3.02 by $0.04. Marsh & McLennan Companies had a net margin of 16.60% and a return on equity of 32.60%. The business had revenue of $6.70 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $7.08 billion. During the same quarter last year, the business earned $2.89 earnings per share. On average, equities analysts predict that Marsh & McLennan Companies, Inc. will post 9.61 earnings per share for the current year.

Marsh & McLennan Companies 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.