Swedbank AB Buys 371,870 Shares of Marsh & McLennan Companies, Inc. $MMC

Key Points

• Swedbank AB increased its stake in Marsh & McLennan Companies, buying 371,870 shares and boosting its ownership to approximately 0.13%, valued at around $159 million.
• Multiple institutional investors have also adjusted their positions in Marsh & McLennan, with significant increases from firms like Wealth Enhancement Advisory Services, which raised its holdings by 101.7%.
• Marsh & McLennan recently increased its quarterly dividend to $0.90 per share, reflecting a 9.8% increase from the previous dividend of $0.82, with a current dividend yield of 1.8%.

Swedbank AB boosted its stake in shares of Marsh & McLennan Companies, Inc. (NYSE:MMC - Free Report) by 132.8% in the first quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The institutional investor owned 651,830 shares of the financial services provider's stock after buying an additional 371,870 shares during the quarter. Swedbank AB owned approximately 0.13% of Marsh & McLennan Companies worth $159,066,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Other institutional investors and hedge funds also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Parisi Gray Wealth Management bought a new stake in Marsh & McLennan Companies during the 1st quarter valued at about $947,000. Wealth Enhancement Advisory Services LLC lifted its holdings in Marsh & McLennan Companies by 101.7% during the 1st quarter. Wealth Enhancement Advisory Services LLC now owns 103,551 shares of the financial services provider's stock valued at $25,270,000 after buying an additional 52,218 shares in the last quarter. LPL Financial LLC lifted its holdings in Marsh & McLennan Companies by 9.9% during the 1st quarter. LPL Financial LLC now owns 324,035 shares of the financial services provider's stock valued at $78,662,000 after buying an additional 29,247 shares in the last quarter. Penserra Capital Management LLC lifted its holdings in Marsh & McLennan Companies by 101.4% during the 1st quarter. Penserra Capital Management LLC now owns 7,136 shares of the financial services provider's stock valued at $1,741,000 after buying an additional 3,593 shares in the last quarter. Finally, US Asset Management LLC lifted its holdings in Marsh & McLennan Companies by 23.1% during the 1st quarter. US Asset Management LLC now owns 6,847 shares of the financial services provider's stock valued at $1,671,000 after buying an additional 1,284 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors own 87.99% of the company's stock.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

MMC has been the topic of a number of research reports. Cantor Fitzgerald began coverage on shares of Marsh & McLennan Companies in a research report on Wednesday, August 13th. They set an "overweight" rating and a $256.00 target price on the stock. Barclays lowered their target price on shares of 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. Morgan Stanley decreased their price objective on shares of Marsh & McLennan Companies from $225.00 to $220.00 and set an "equal weight" rating for the company in a research note on Monday, August 18th. UBS Group decreased their price objective on shares of 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. Finally, Wells Fargo & Company decreased their target price 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. Six equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, nine have given a Hold rating and two have given a Sell rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat, Marsh & McLennan Companies has an average rating of "Hold" and an average price target of $238.76.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In related news, CEO John Q. Doyle sold 21,079 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, September 2nd. The shares were sold at an average price of $205.65, for a total value of $4,334,896.35. Following the sale, the chief executive officer owned 87,681 shares of the company's stock, valued at $18,031,597.65. This trade represents a 19.38% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this hyperlink. 0.35% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

Marsh & McLennan Companies Trading Up 2.2%

Shares of MMC opened at $203.19 on Friday. 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 firm has a market capitalization of $99.89 billion, a P/E ratio of 24.36, a P/E/G ratio of 2.50 and a beta of 0.81. The firm has a 50-day moving average price of $207.04 and a 200 day moving average price of $220.64. Marsh & McLennan Companies, Inc. has a 12-month low of $196.27 and a 12-month high of $248.00.

Marsh & McLennan Companies (NYSE:MMC - Get Free Report) last announced its earnings results on Thursday, July 17th. The financial services provider reported $2.72 earnings per share for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $2.66 by $0.06. The company had revenue of $6.97 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $6.92 billion. Marsh & McLennan Companies had a net margin of 16.00% and a return on equity of 31.90%. Marsh & McLennan Companies's revenue was up 12.1% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter last year, the firm posted $2.41 earnings per share. Sell-side analysts forecast that Marsh & McLennan Companies, Inc. will post 9.61 EPS for the current year.

Marsh & McLennan Companies Increases Dividend

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, August 15th. Stockholders of record on Thursday, July 24th were paid a $0.90 dividend. The ex-dividend date was Thursday, July 24th. 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%. Marsh & McLennan Companies's payout ratio is 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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