Rhumbline Advisers Trims Stake in Marsh & McLennan Companies, Inc. (NYSE:MMC)

Rhumbline Advisers lowered its holdings in Marsh & McLennan Companies, Inc. (NYSE:MMC) by 1.2% during the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 961,373 shares of the financial services provider’s stock after selling 11,958 shares during the period. Rhumbline Advisers’ holdings in Marsh & McLennan Companies were worth $204,205,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

A number of other large investors have also recently modified their holdings of MMC. FMR LLC raised its stake in Marsh & McLennan Companies by 2.5% in the third quarter. FMR LLC now owns 21,445,110 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $4,784,190,000 after purchasing an additional 518,185 shares in the last quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC lifted its holdings in shares of Marsh & McLennan Companies by 2.2% during the 3rd quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC now owns 11,905,431 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $2,648,304,000 after acquiring an additional 251,361 shares during the last quarter. Parnassus Investments LLC grew its position in Marsh & McLennan Companies by 2.0% in the third quarter. Parnassus Investments LLC now owns 4,274,880 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $953,683,000 after acquiring an additional 85,754 shares in the last quarter. JPMorgan Chase & Co. raised its position in Marsh & McLennan Companies by 4.8% during the third quarter. JPMorgan Chase & Co. now owns 3,999,771 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $892,309,000 after purchasing an additional 184,239 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. lifted its stake in Marsh & McLennan Companies by 1.1% during the third quarter. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. now owns 2,703,862 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $603,205,000 after purchasing an additional 30,367 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors own 87.99% of the company’s stock.

Marsh & McLennan Companies Stock Performance

Shares of MMC stock opened at $228.95 on Friday. The company has a quick ratio of 1.14, a current ratio of 1.13 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.44. The stock has a fifty day moving average of $216.71 and a 200 day moving average of $221.90. The firm has a market capitalization of $112.44 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 27.95, a PEG ratio of 2.35 and a beta of 0.96. Marsh & McLennan Companies, Inc. has a 52 week low of $196.17 and a 52 week high of $235.50.

Marsh & McLennan Companies (NYSE:MMC) last announced its earnings results on Thursday, January 30th. The financial services provider reported $1.87 earnings per share for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.75 by $0.12. Marsh & McLennan Companies had a net margin of 16.60% and a return on equity of 32.60%. As a group, research analysts expect that Marsh & McLennan Companies, Inc. will post 9.54 earnings per share for the current year.

Marsh & McLennan Companies Dividend Announcement

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, February 14th. Stockholders of record on Thursday, January 30th were paid a $0.815 dividend. This represents a $3.26 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 1.42%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Thursday, January 30th. Marsh & McLennan Companies’s payout ratio is presently 39.80%.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

MMC has been the topic of a number of research reports. BMO Capital Markets raised their price objective on Marsh & McLennan Companies from $217.00 to $228.00 and gave the company a “market perform” rating in a report on Tuesday, October 22nd. Barclays boosted their price objective on shares of Marsh & McLennan Companies from $236.00 to $246.00 and gave the stock an “equal weight” rating in a report on Thursday, November 21st. The Goldman Sachs Group set a $220.00 target price on shares of Marsh & McLennan Companies and gave the company a “sell” rating in a report on Friday, October 18th. UBS Group boosted their price target on shares of Marsh & McLennan Companies from $255.00 to $259.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research note on Tuesday, October 22nd. Finally, JPMorgan Chase & Co. lifted their price objective on Marsh & McLennan Companies from $230.00 to $235.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a report on Friday, January 3rd. Two research analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, ten have given a hold rating and four have issued a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the company currently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and an average target price of $230.44.

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.