Third View Private Wealth LLC Purchases New Shares in Marsh & McLennan Companies, Inc. $MRSH

Key Points

• Third View Private Wealth LLC bought a new stake of 13,775 shares in Marsh & McLennan (NYSE:MRSH) during Q4, valued at approximately $2,555,000.
• CEO John Q. Doyle sold 16,655 shares on March 4 at an average price of $183.30 for about $3.05 million, reducing his ownership by 12.48%.
• Marsh & McLennan declared a quarterly dividend of $0.90 (annualized $3.60, yield 2.1%; ex-dividend April 9, payable May 15), while analysts' consensus is a "Hold" with an average target price of $205.60.

Third View Private Wealth LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Marsh & McLennan Companies, Inc. (NYSE:MRSH - Free Report) during the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The firm purchased 13,775 shares of the financial services provider's stock, valued at approximately $2,555,000.

Several other hedge funds and other institutional investors also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Baillie Gifford & Co. grew its position in Marsh & McLennan Companies by 5.8% during the fourth quarter. Baillie Gifford & Co. now owns 87,167 shares of the financial services provider's stock valued at $16,171,000 after buying an additional 4,806 shares during the period. Deprince Race & Zollo Inc. grew its position in Marsh & McLennan Companies by 19.7% during the fourth quarter. Deprince Race & Zollo Inc. now owns 114,498 shares of the financial services provider's stock valued at $21,242,000 after buying an additional 18,845 shares during the period. Palouse Capital Management Inc. grew its position in Marsh & McLennan Companies by 35.0% during the fourth quarter. Palouse Capital Management Inc. now owns 12,857 shares of the financial services provider's stock valued at $2,385,000 after buying an additional 3,332 shares during the period. Clear Creek Financial Management LLC grew its position in Marsh & McLennan Companies by 5.2% during the fourth quarter. Clear Creek Financial Management LLC now owns 1,449 shares of the financial services provider's stock valued at $269,000 after buying an additional 72 shares during the period. Finally, Howard Capital Management Inc. grew its position in Marsh & McLennan Companies by 5.2% during the fourth quarter. Howard Capital Management Inc. now owns 3,989 shares of the financial services provider's stock valued at $740,000 after buying an additional 196 shares during the period. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 87.99% of the company's stock.

Insider Buying and Selling at Marsh & McLennan Companies

In other news, CEO John Q. Doyle sold 16,655 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, March 4th. The shares were sold at an average price of $183.30, for a total value of $3,052,861.50. Following the transaction, the chief executive officer directly owned 116,811 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $21,411,456.30. This trade represents a 12.48% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available at this link. Corporate insiders own 0.38% of the company's stock.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several equities analysts have issued reports on the stock. JPMorgan Chase & Co. decreased their price objective on shares of Marsh & McLennan Companies from $226.00 to $206.00 and set an "overweight" rating on the stock in a report on Thursday, April 9th. Raymond James Financial raised shares of Marsh & McLennan Companies from an "outperform" rating to a "strong-buy" rating and set a $225.00 price objective on the stock in a report on Tuesday, February 17th. Citigroup increased their price objective on shares of Marsh & McLennan Companies from $201.00 to $205.00 and gave the company a "neutral" rating in a report on Tuesday, February 3rd. Morgan Stanley decreased their price objective on shares of Marsh & McLennan Companies from $195.00 to $190.00 and set an "equal weight" rating on the stock in a report on Monday, April 6th. Finally, Barclays decreased their price objective on shares of Marsh & McLennan Companies from $209.00 to $206.00 and set an "overweight" rating on the stock in a report on Wednesday, April 8th. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, five have issued a Buy rating, ten have issued a Hold rating and one has given a Sell rating to the company. According to MarketBeat.com, the stock has an average rating of "Hold" and an average target price of $205.60.

Marsh & McLennan Companies Trading Down 0.0%

NYSE:MRSH opened at $173.47 on Tuesday. The stock has a 50-day simple moving average of $173.02. The company has a current ratio of 1.10, a quick ratio of 1.10 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.20. The stock has a market capitalization of $83.98 billion, a P/E ratio of 20.58, a P/E/G ratio of 2.29 and a beta of 0.75. Marsh & McLennan Companies, Inc. has a twelve month low of $164.89 and a twelve month high of $239.34.

Marsh & McLennan Companies (NYSE:MRSH - Get Free Report) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, January 29th. The financial services provider reported $2.12 earnings per share for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $1.97 by $0.15. The firm had revenue of $6.60 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $6.52 billion. Marsh & McLennan Companies had a net margin of 15.42% and a return on equity of 31.60%. The company's revenue for the quarter was up 8.7% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period last year, the firm posted $1.87 earnings per share. On average, analysts expect that Marsh & McLennan Companies, Inc. will post 9.61 earnings per share for the current year.

Marsh & McLennan Companies Announces Dividend

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, May 15th. Stockholders of record on Thursday, April 9th will be paid a $0.90 dividend. This represents a $3.60 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 2.1%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Thursday, April 9th. Marsh & McLennan Companies's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 42.70%.

Marsh & McLennan Companies Company Profile

Marsh & McLennan Companies NYSE: MMC is a global professional services firm headquartered in New York City that provides advice and solutions in the areas of risk, strategy and people. Founded in 1905, the company has grown into a diversified group of businesses focused on insurance brokerage and risk management, reinsurance, human capital and investment consulting, and management consulting. Its long history and scale position it as a prominent adviser to corporations, governments and other institutions seeking to manage risk and optimize human and financial capital.

The firm operates through several well-known subsidiaries and business units that specialize in distinct services.

Want to see what other hedge funds are holding MRSH? Visit HoldingsChannel.com to get the latest 13F filings and insider trades for Marsh & McLennan Companies, Inc. (NYSE:MRSH - Free Report).

This instant news alert was generated by narrative science technology and financial data from MarketBeat in order to provide readers with the fastest reporting and unbiased coverage. Please send any questions or comments about this story to contact@marketbeat.com.