Nissay Asset Management Corp Japan ADV Trims Stock Position in Marsh & McLennan Companies, Inc. (NYSE:MMC)

Nissay Asset Management Corp Japan ADV cut its position in shares of Marsh & McLennan Companies, Inc. (NYSE:MMC - Free Report) by 2.2% in the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The firm owned 61,049 shares of the financial services provider's stock after selling 1,375 shares during the quarter. Nissay Asset Management Corp Japan ADV's holdings in Marsh & McLennan Companies were worth $13,032,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Other large investors also recently modified their holdings of the company. Louisbourg Investments Inc. boosted its stake in Marsh & McLennan Companies by 67.2% during the fourth quarter. Louisbourg Investments Inc. now owns 8,211 shares of the financial services provider's stock worth $1,744,000 after acquiring an additional 3,300 shares in the last quarter. Handelsbanken Fonder AB boosted its stake in Marsh & McLennan Companies by 9.4% during the fourth quarter. Handelsbanken Fonder AB now owns 191,512 shares of the financial services provider's stock worth $40,679,000 after acquiring an additional 16,464 shares in the last quarter. Brentview Investment Management LLC bought a new position in Marsh & McLennan Companies during the fourth quarter worth $3,635,000. Occidental Asset Management LLC lifted its stake in shares of Marsh & McLennan Companies by 8.7% in the fourth quarter. Occidental Asset Management LLC now owns 19,359 shares of the financial services provider's stock valued at $4,112,000 after buying an additional 1,555 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Bell Asset Management Ltd lifted its stake in shares of Marsh & McLennan Companies by 12.5% in the fourth quarter. Bell Asset Management Ltd now owns 32,465 shares of the financial services provider's stock valued at $6,896,000 after buying an additional 3,595 shares in the last quarter. 87.99% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of research analysts have weighed in on the stock. Raymond James reaffirmed an "outperform" rating and issued a $250.00 price objective (up from $240.00) on shares of Marsh & McLennan Companies in a research note on Thursday, February 6th. Jefferies Financial Group raised their price objective 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. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods dropped their price objective on shares of Marsh & McLennan Companies from $220.00 to $215.00 and set an "underperform" rating on the stock in a research note on Monday, April 21st. UBS Group raised their price objective on shares of Marsh & McLennan Companies from $259.00 to $261.00 and gave the company a "buy" rating in a research note on Wednesday, April 9th. Finally, Barclays raised their price objective on shares of Marsh & McLennan Companies from $246.00 to $249.00 and gave the company an "equal weight" rating in a research note on Friday, April 11th. Two analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, seven have assigned a hold rating and five have given a buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the stock currently has a consensus rating of "Hold" and an average price target of $241.93.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other news, SVP Paul Beswick sold 2,237 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, April 3rd. The shares were sold at an average price of $246.00, for a total value of $550,302.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the senior vice president now directly owns 13,522 shares in the company, valued at approximately $3,326,412. This trade represents a 14.20% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through the SEC website. Also, CEO Nicholas Mark Studer sold 49,390 shares of the business's stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, March 12th. The shares were sold at an average price of $230.16, for a total transaction of $11,367,602.40. Following the transaction, the chief executive officer now directly owns 28,329 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $6,520,202.64. This represents a 63.55% decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Over the last 90 days, insiders sold 69,634 shares of company stock worth $16,244,986. Insiders own 0.35% of the company's stock.

Marsh & McLennan Companies Stock Performance

NYSE MMC traded up $4.20 during trading hours on Friday, reaching $231.44. 2,422,470 shares of the company were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 1,918,361. Marsh & McLennan Companies, Inc. has a 1 year low of $201.77 and a 1 year high of $248.00. The business's 50 day simple moving average is $229.22 and its 200-day simple moving average is $224.83. The company has a quick ratio of 1.13, a current ratio of 1.13 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.44. The stock has a market capitalization of $114.04 billion, a P/E ratio of 28.26, a P/E/G ratio of 2.70 and a beta of 0.85.

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

Marsh & McLennan Companies Announces Dividend

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Thursday, May 15th. Investors of record on Thursday, April 3rd were issued a dividend of $0.815 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Thursday, April 3rd. This represents a $3.26 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 1.41%. Marsh & McLennan Companies's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 39.95%.

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.