Zacks Investment Management Sells 28,632 Shares of Marsh & McLennan Companies, Inc. (NYSE:MMC)

Zacks Investment Management cut its holdings in shares of Marsh & McLennan Companies, Inc. (NYSE:MMC - Free Report) by 13.2% during the 4th quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the SEC. The firm owned 187,687 shares of the financial services provider's stock after selling 28,632 shares during the period. Zacks Investment Management's holdings in Marsh & McLennan Companies were worth $39,867,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

A number of other institutional investors also recently bought and sold shares of the stock. Financial Life Planners purchased a new stake in shares of Marsh & McLennan Companies during the fourth quarter valued at $33,000. Sierra Ocean LLC bought a new position in Marsh & McLennan Companies during the fourth quarter valued at approximately $36,000. Albion Financial Group UT bought a new stake in Marsh & McLennan Companies during the fourth quarter worth approximately $38,000. Golden State Wealth Management LLC bought a new position in Marsh & McLennan Companies during the fourth quarter valued at $41,000. Finally, Halbert Hargrove Global Advisors LLC purchased a new stake in Marsh & McLennan Companies in the 4th quarter worth about $45,000. 87.99% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

Marsh & McLennan Companies Price Performance

Marsh & McLennan Companies stock traded down $7.12 during trading hours on Monday, hitting $212.95. 684,769 shares of the company traded hands, compared to its average volume of 2,224,888. The firm's 50-day simple moving average is $232.95 and its two-hundred day simple moving average is $224.81. The firm has a market cap of $104.96 billion, a P/E ratio of 26.00, a P/E/G ratio of 2.70 and a beta of 0.85. Marsh & McLennan Companies, Inc. has a 1-year low of $196.72 and a 1-year high of $248.00. The company has a quick ratio of 1.13, a current 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 (EPS) for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $3.02 by $0.04. Marsh & McLennan Companies had a return on equity of 32.60% and a net margin of 16.60%. The company had revenue of $6.70 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $7.08 billion. During the same quarter in the prior year, the company earned $2.89 earnings per share. As a group, analysts forecast that Marsh & McLennan Companies, Inc. will post 9.61 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Marsh & McLennan Companies Announces Dividend

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, May 15th. Shareholders of record on Thursday, April 3rd will be given a $0.815 dividend. This represents a $3.26 annualized dividend and a yield of 1.53%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Thursday, April 3rd. Marsh & McLennan Companies's dividend payout ratio is 39.95%.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several research firms have recently commented on MMC. Redburn Atlantic initiated coverage on shares of Marsh & McLennan Companies in a report on Tuesday, March 25th. They issued a "buy" rating and a $281.00 price target for the company. UBS Group upped 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. Wells Fargo & Company boosted their price target on shares of Marsh & McLennan Companies from $223.00 to $232.00 and gave the company an "equal weight" rating in a research note on Thursday, April 10th. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods cut their target price on Marsh & McLennan Companies from $220.00 to $215.00 and set an "underperform" rating on the stock in a research report on Monday. Finally, Raymond James reiterated an "outperform" rating and issued a $250.00 price objective (up previously from $240.00) on shares of Marsh & McLennan Companies in a research report on Thursday, February 6th. Two analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, eight have assigned a hold rating and five have given a buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat.com, Marsh & McLennan Companies presently has a consensus rating of "Hold" and an average price target of $239.20.

Insiders Place Their Bets

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 transaction of $550,302.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the senior vice president now directly owns 13,522 shares of the company's stock, valued at $3,326,412. This trade represents a 14.20 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through the SEC website. Also, CEO Dean Michael Klisura sold 7,121 shares of the business's stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, March 10th. The stock was sold at an average price of $234.97, for a total value of $1,673,221.37. Following the transaction, the chief executive officer now directly owns 20,935 shares in the company, valued at approximately $4,919,096.95. This trade represents a 25.38 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders sold 69,634 shares of company stock valued at $16,244,986 over the last 90 days. 0.35% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

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.