Marsh & McLennan Companies, Inc. (NYSE:MMC) Receives Average Rating of "Hold" from Brokerages

Key Points

• Marsh & McLennan Companies has received an average broker rating of "Hold" from eighteen firms, with two sell ratings, nine holds, and seven buy ratings.
• The stock's average 12-month price target is $237.13, while it currently trades at approximately $207.01.
• The company recently announced a quarterly dividend of $0.90 per share, representing an annualized dividend yield of 1.7%.

Shares of Marsh & McLennan Companies, Inc. (NYSE:MMC - Get Free Report) have earned an average rating of "Hold" from the eighteen research firms that are covering the company, MarketBeat.com reports. Two analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, nine have issued a hold rating and seven have given a buy rating to the company. The average 12-month price target among brokers that have covered the stock in the last year is $237.1250.

A number of equities analysts have recently issued reports on MMC shares. Wells Fargo & Company cut their price target on shares of Marsh & McLennan Companies from $226.00 to $222.00 and set an "equal weight" rating for the company in a report on Wednesday, October 8th. Weiss Ratings reissued a "hold (c+)" rating on shares of Marsh & McLennan Companies in a research note on Wednesday, October 8th. Citigroup initiated coverage on Marsh & McLennan Companies in a research note on Wednesday, August 13th. They set a "neutral" rating and a $226.00 price target on the stock. Morgan Stanley dropped their price target on Marsh & McLennan Companies from $220.00 to $215.00 and set an "equal weight" rating for the company in a research report on Tuesday, October 7th. Finally, Wolfe Research assumed coverage on shares of Marsh & McLennan Companies in a research note on Tuesday, September 16th. They issued a "peer perform" rating on the stock.

Marsh & McLennan Companies Stock Performance

NYSE MMC opened at $207.01 on Wednesday. The company has a current ratio of 1.20, a quick ratio of 1.20 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.19. Marsh & McLennan Companies has a 12-month low of $195.01 and a 12-month high of $248.00. The stock has a market capitalization of $101.77 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 24.82, a PEG ratio of 2.59 and a beta of 0.81. The business's 50 day moving average is $203.54 and its two-hundred day moving average is $215.05.

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

Marsh & McLennan Companies Dividend Announcement

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, November 14th. Investors of record on Thursday, October 2nd will be given a dividend of $0.90 per share. This represents a $3.60 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 1.7%. The ex-dividend date is Thursday, October 2nd. Marsh & McLennan Companies's payout ratio is currently 43.17%.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other Marsh & McLennan Companies news, CEO John Q. Doyle sold 21,079 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction on Tuesday, September 2nd. The stock was sold at an average price of $205.65, for a total transaction of $4,334,896.35. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief executive officer owned 87,681 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $18,031,597.65. This trade represents a 19.38% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is accessible through this link. Insiders own 0.35% of the company's stock.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

A number of institutional investors and hedge funds have recently added to or reduced their stakes in MMC. Accent Capital Management LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Marsh & McLennan Companies during the first quarter worth $25,000. Knuff & Co LLC purchased a new position in Marsh & McLennan Companies during the first quarter worth about $28,000. Activest Wealth Management increased its stake in shares of Marsh & McLennan Companies by 2,775.0% during the 1st quarter. Activest Wealth Management now owns 115 shares of the financial services provider's stock valued at $28,000 after acquiring an additional 111 shares during the last quarter. Headlands Technologies LLC acquired a new position in shares of Marsh & McLennan Companies during the 2nd quarter valued at about $29,000. Finally, Westside Investment Management Inc. grew its holdings in Marsh & McLennan Companies by 363.3% in the second quarter. Westside Investment Management Inc. now owns 139 shares of the financial services provider's stock valued at $30,000 after purchasing an additional 109 shares during the period. 87.99% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

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.

This instant news alert was generated by narrative science technology and financial data from MarketBeat in order to provide readers with the fastest and most accurate reporting. This story was reviewed by MarketBeat's editorial team prior to publication. Please send any questions or comments about this story to contact@marketbeat.com.