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

Key Points

• The average recommendation for Marsh & McLennan Companies, Inc. (NYSE:MMC) by seventeen analysts is a "Hold", with two sell ratings, nine hold ratings, and six buy ratings.
• Marsh & McLennan recently reported earnings of $2.72 per share, exceeding estimates, with revenue of $6.97 billion, reflecting a 12.1% year-over-year increase.
• The company has increased its quarterly dividend to $0.90 per share, which provides a yield of 1.7%, up from the previous dividend of $0.82.

Marsh & McLennan Companies, Inc. (NYSE:MMC - Get Free Report) has been given an average rating of "Hold" by the seventeen analysts that are covering the company, MarketBeat reports. Two investment analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, nine have issued a hold rating and six have issued a buy rating on the company. The average twelve-month price target among brokers that have updated their coverage on the stock in the last year is $238.7647.

MMC has been the topic of several recent research reports. Morgan Stanley reduced their price objective on Marsh & McLennan Companies from $225.00 to $220.00 and set an "equal weight" rating on the stock in a research report on Monday, August 18th. UBS Group reduced their price objective on Marsh & McLennan Companies from $261.00 to $258.00 and set a "buy" rating on the stock in a research report on Monday, July 21st. Wells Fargo & Company reduced their price objective on 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. Cantor Fitzgerald began coverage on Marsh & McLennan Companies in a research report on Wednesday, August 13th. They set an "overweight" rating and a $256.00 target price on the stock. Finally, Citigroup began coverage on Marsh & McLennan Companies in a research report on Wednesday, August 13th. They set a "neutral" rating and a $226.00 target price on the stock.

Marsh & McLennan Companies Trading Down 1.6%

Shares of MMC stock opened at $207.1920 on Tuesday. The business's fifty day moving average price is $210.09 and its 200 day moving average price is $222.82. Marsh & McLennan Companies has a 1-year low of $196.27 and a 1-year high of $248.00. The firm has a market capitalization of $101.86 billion, a PE ratio of 24.84, a P/E/G ratio of 2.64 and a beta of 0.77. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.19, a current ratio of 1.20 and a quick ratio of 1.20.

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

Marsh & McLennan Companies Increases Dividend

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, August 15th. Investors of record on Thursday, July 24th were given a dividend of $0.90 per share. This represents a $3.60 annualized dividend and a yield of 1.7%. This is a boost from Marsh & McLennan Companies's previous quarterly dividend of $0.82. The ex-dividend date was Thursday, July 24th. Marsh & McLennan Companies's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 43.17%.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Marsh & McLennan Companies

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

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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