Gotham Asset Management LLC Boosts Holdings in Marsh & McLennan Companies, Inc. (NYSE:MMC)

Gotham Asset Management LLC boosted its position in shares of Marsh & McLennan Companies, Inc. (NYSE:MMC - Free Report) by 409.7% during the 4th quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the SEC. The fund owned 75,789 shares of the financial services provider's stock after purchasing an additional 60,920 shares during the quarter. Gotham Asset Management LLC's holdings in Marsh & McLennan Companies were worth $16,098,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Several other large investors have also bought and sold shares of MMC. Focus Partners Wealth boosted its position in shares of Marsh & McLennan Companies by 26.8% during the fourth quarter. Focus Partners Wealth now owns 28,317 shares of the financial services provider's stock valued at $6,015,000 after buying an additional 5,990 shares during the last quarter. Ethic Inc. grew its stake in shares of Marsh & McLennan Companies by 21.6% in the fourth quarter. Ethic Inc. now owns 67,569 shares of the financial services provider's stock worth $14,352,000 after acquiring an additional 12,002 shares during the period. First Manhattan CO. LLC. raised its holdings in shares of Marsh & McLennan Companies by 17.8% during the fourth quarter. First Manhattan CO. LLC. now owns 14,021 shares of the financial services provider's stock valued at $2,978,000 after purchasing an additional 2,118 shares during the last quarter. Clark Capital Management Group Inc. boosted its holdings in Marsh & McLennan Companies by 18.0% in the fourth quarter. Clark Capital Management Group Inc. now owns 1,777 shares of the financial services provider's stock worth $377,000 after purchasing an additional 271 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Deutsche Bank AG grew its position in Marsh & McLennan Companies by 25.7% in the 4th quarter. Deutsche Bank AG now owns 3,719,830 shares of the financial services provider's stock worth $790,129,000 after purchasing an additional 759,573 shares during the period. 87.99% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Marsh & McLennan Companies Trading Down 0.7 %

NYSE MMC opened at $226.79 on Friday. The stock has a market cap of $111.75 billion, a PE ratio of 27.69, a PEG ratio of 2.70 and a beta of 0.85. Marsh & McLennan Companies, Inc. has a 12 month low of $201.77 and a 12 month high of $248.00. The company's 50-day moving average price is $230.14 and its 200-day moving average price is $224.66. The company has a current ratio of 1.13, a quick ratio of 1.13 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.44.

Marsh & McLennan Companies (NYSE:MMC - Get Free Report) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, April 17th. The financial services provider reported $3.06 earnings per share for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $3.02 by $0.04. The firm had revenue of $6.70 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate 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 quarter in the previous year, the firm posted $2.89 earnings per share. Equities research analysts forecast that Marsh & McLennan Companies, Inc. will post 9.61 earnings per share for the current year.

Marsh & McLennan Companies Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, May 15th. Investors of record on Thursday, April 3rd will be paid a $0.815 dividend. This represents a $3.26 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 1.44%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Thursday, April 3rd. Marsh & McLennan Companies's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 39.95%.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of analysts have commented on MMC shares. Barclays upped 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 report on Friday, April 11th. Raymond James reiterated an "outperform" rating and set a $250.00 target price (up from $240.00) on shares of Marsh & McLennan Companies in a research report on Thursday, February 6th. Jefferies Financial Group raised their price objective on Marsh & McLennan Companies from $237.00 to $244.00 and gave the stock a "hold" rating in a research note on Friday, April 11th. Wells Fargo & Company increased their target price on shares of Marsh & McLennan Companies from $223.00 to $232.00 and gave the stock an "equal weight" rating in a report on Thursday, April 10th. Finally, Redburn Atlantic started coverage on shares of Marsh & McLennan Companies in a research note on Tuesday, March 25th. They issued a "buy" rating and a $281.00 price objective for the company. Two 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. According to MarketBeat, Marsh & McLennan Companies has an average rating of "Hold" and an average target price of $241.93.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other Marsh & McLennan Companies news, CEO Nicholas Mark Studer sold 49,390 shares of the business's stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, March 12th. The shares were sold at an average price of $230.16, for a total value of $11,367,602.40. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief executive officer now directly owns 28,329 shares in the company, valued at approximately $6,520,202.64. The trade was a 63.55 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which can be accessed through the SEC website. Also, VP Stacy Mills sold 1,317 shares of Marsh & McLennan Companies stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, March 10th. The stock was 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 in the company, valued at approximately $686,817.31. The trade was a 31.06 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders have sold a total of 69,634 shares of company stock worth $16,244,986 in the last three months. Corporate insiders own 0.35% of the company's stock.

Marsh & McLennan Companies Company 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.

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