4,400 Shares in Marsh & McLennan Companies, Inc. (NYSE:MMC) Acquired by United Super Pty Ltd in its capacity as Trustee for the Construction & Building Unions Superannuation Fund

Key Points

• United Super Pty Ltd has acquired 4,400 new shares in Marsh & McLennan Companies, valued at approximately $1,074,000, as part of its investment strategy.
• Marsh & McLennan Companies recently reported earnings of $2.72 per share, exceeding analysts' estimates and demonstrating a 12.1% year-over-year revenue increase.
• The company has announced a quarterly dividend increase from $0.82 to $0.90 per share, reflecting a strong dividend payout ratio of 43.17%.

United Super Pty Ltd in its capacity as Trustee for the Construction & Building Unions Superannuation Fund purchased a new stake in Marsh & McLennan Companies, Inc. (NYSE:MMC - Free Report) in the 1st quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The institutional investor purchased 4,400 shares of the financial services provider's stock, valued at approximately $1,074,000.

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

Marsh & McLennan Companies Stock Performance

NYSE:MMC traded down $1.44 during mid-day trading on Friday, reaching $197.76. 3,514,400 shares of the company's stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 2,765,680. Marsh & McLennan Companies, Inc. has a one year low of $196.27 and a one year high of $248.00. The firm has a market capitalization of $97.22 billion, a PE ratio of 23.71, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.40 and a beta of 0.77. The business's fifty day simple moving average is $216.62 and its two-hundred day simple moving average is $224.39. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.19, a quick ratio of 1.20 and a current ratio of 1.20.

Marsh & McLennan Companies (NYSE:MMC - Get Free Report) last released 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 net margin of 16.00% and a return on equity of 31.90%. The firm had revenue of $6.97 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $6.92 billion. During the same period last year, the firm earned $2.41 EPS. The business's quarterly revenue was up 12.1% compared to the same quarter last year. Analysts anticipate that Marsh & McLennan Companies, Inc. will post 9.61 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Marsh & McLennan Companies Increases Dividend

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, August 15th. Shareholders of record on Thursday, July 24th will be issued a $0.90 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Thursday, July 24th. This represents a $3.60 annualized dividend and a yield of 1.8%. This is an increase from Marsh & McLennan Companies's previous quarterly dividend of $0.82. Marsh & McLennan Companies's payout ratio is 43.17%.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several brokerages recently commented on MMC. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods reduced their target price on shares of Marsh & McLennan Companies from $214.00 to $210.00 and set an "underperform" rating for the company in a report on Monday, July 21st. UBS Group cut their price target 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. Barclays cut their price target 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. Jefferies Financial Group increased their price target on shares of Marsh & McLennan Companies from $237.00 to $244.00 and gave the company a "hold" rating in a research note on Friday, April 11th. Finally, Wells Fargo & Company dropped their price objective on shares of Marsh & McLennan Companies from $229.00 to $226.00 and set an "equal weight" rating on the stock in a research report on Friday, July 18th. Two equities research analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, seven have issued a hold rating and five have issued a buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the stock has a consensus rating of "Hold" and an average price target of $239.79.

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.