Toronto Dominion Bank Lowers Stock Holdings in Marsh & McLennan Companies, Inc. (NYSE:MMC)

Toronto Dominion Bank decreased its holdings in Marsh & McLennan Companies, Inc. (NYSE:MMC - Free Report) by 35.1% in the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the SEC. The fund owned 165,451 shares of the financial services provider's stock after selling 89,594 shares during the quarter. Toronto Dominion Bank's holdings in Marsh & McLennan Companies were worth $35,142,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

A number of other institutional investors have also recently made changes to their positions in the stock. JPMorgan Chase & Co. boosted its holdings in Marsh & McLennan Companies by 4.8% in the third quarter. JPMorgan Chase & Co. now owns 3,999,771 shares of the financial services provider's stock worth $892,309,000 after purchasing an additional 184,239 shares during the last quarter. Procyon Advisors LLC lifted its holdings in shares of Marsh & McLennan Companies by 5.0% during the 4th quarter. Procyon Advisors LLC now owns 2,522 shares of the financial services provider's stock valued at $536,000 after buying an additional 120 shares during the period. Merit Financial Group LLC boosted its stake in shares of Marsh & McLennan Companies by 95.4% in the 4th quarter. Merit Financial Group LLC now owns 17,385 shares of the financial services provider's stock worth $3,693,000 after buying an additional 8,487 shares during the last quarter. Arkadios Wealth Advisors grew its holdings in shares of Marsh & McLennan Companies by 4.4% in the fourth quarter. Arkadios Wealth Advisors now owns 2,874 shares of the financial services provider's stock worth $611,000 after acquiring an additional 122 shares during the period. Finally, Sanibel Captiva Trust Company Inc. increased its position in Marsh & McLennan Companies by 24.1% during the fourth quarter. Sanibel Captiva Trust Company Inc. now owns 3,956 shares of the financial services provider's stock valued at $840,000 after acquiring an additional 767 shares during the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 87.99% of the company's stock.

Marsh & McLennan Companies Price Performance

Marsh & McLennan Companies stock traded down $0.54 during midday trading on Thursday, reaching $228.47. 1,664,406 shares of the stock traded hands, compared to its average volume of 1,917,214. The company has a quick ratio of 1.13, a current ratio of 1.13 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.44. Marsh & McLennan Companies, Inc. has a 12 month low of $201.77 and a 12 month high of $248.00. The stock's fifty day moving average is $229.22 and its 200-day moving average is $225.03. The stock has a market cap of $112.57 billion, a P/E ratio of 27.90, a PEG ratio of 2.70 and a beta of 0.85.

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

Marsh & McLennan Companies Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Thursday, May 15th. Investors of record on Thursday, April 3rd were issued a $0.815 dividend. This represents a $3.26 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 1.43%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Thursday, April 3rd. Marsh & McLennan Companies's payout ratio is 39.95%.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In related news, VP Stacy Mills sold 1,317 shares of Marsh & McLennan Companies stock in a transaction dated Monday, March 10th. The shares were sold at an average price of $234.97, for a total transaction of $309,455.49. Following the completion of the transaction, the vice president now directly owns 2,923 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $686,817.31. The trade was a 31.06% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through the SEC website. Also, CEO Nicholas Mark Studer sold 49,390 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, March 12th. The stock was sold at an average price of $230.16, for a total transaction of $11,367,602.40. Following the completion of the sale, the chief executive officer now directly owns 28,329 shares in the company, valued at $6,520,202.64. This trade represents a 63.55% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders have sold 69,634 shares of company stock valued at $16,244,986 over the last ninety days. 0.35% of the stock is owned by insiders.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several research analysts have issued reports on the company. Redburn Atlantic initiated coverage on Marsh & McLennan Companies in a research report on Tuesday, March 25th. They issued a "buy" rating and a $281.00 target price on the stock. UBS Group increased their price objective on shares of Marsh & McLennan Companies from $259.00 to $261.00 and gave the stock a "buy" rating in a research note on Wednesday, April 9th. Barclays boosted their target price on shares of Marsh & McLennan Companies from $246.00 to $249.00 and gave the company an "equal weight" rating in a research report on Friday, April 11th. Jefferies Financial Group increased their price target on shares of Marsh & McLennan Companies from $237.00 to $244.00 and gave the stock a "hold" rating in a research report on Friday, April 11th. Finally, Raymond James reissued an "outperform" rating and set a $250.00 price objective (up previously from $240.00) on shares of Marsh & McLennan Companies in a research report on Thursday, February 6th. Two research analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, seven have assigned a hold rating and five have issued a buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, Marsh & McLennan Companies currently has an average rating of "Hold" and a consensus price target of $241.93.

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.