Howard Capital Management Inc. Raises Stock Position in Marsh & McLennan Companies, Inc. (NYSE:MMC)

Howard Capital Management Inc. raised its stake in shares of Marsh & McLennan Companies, Inc. (NYSE:MMC) by 5.0% during the fourth quarter, Holdings Channel reports. The firm owned 3,100 shares of the financial services provider’s stock after buying an additional 148 shares during the quarter. Howard Capital Management Inc.’s holdings in Marsh & McLennan Companies were worth $658,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

A number of other hedge funds have also added to or reduced their stakes in MMC. Carmichael Hill & Associates Inc. grew its position in shares of Marsh & McLennan Companies by 85.7% in the 3rd quarter. Carmichael Hill & Associates Inc. now owns 130 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $29,000 after buying an additional 60 shares during the period. Catalyst Capital Advisors LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Marsh & McLennan Companies in the 3rd quarter worth about $31,000. Financial Life Planners purchased a new stake in shares of Marsh & McLennan Companies in the 4th quarter worth about $33,000. Sierra Ocean LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Marsh & McLennan Companies in the 4th quarter worth about $36,000. Finally, Albion Financial Group UT purchased a new stake in shares of Marsh & McLennan Companies in the 4th quarter worth about $38,000. 87.99% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

MMC has been the topic of a number of analyst reports. Wells Fargo & Company upped their price target on shares of Marsh & McLennan Companies from $212.00 to $223.00 and gave the stock an “equal weight” rating in a research note on Friday, January 31st. Raymond James restated an “outperform” rating and set a $250.00 target price (up previously from $240.00) on shares of Marsh & McLennan Companies in a research note on Thursday, February 6th. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods lowered their target price on shares of Marsh & McLennan Companies from $214.00 to $210.00 and set an “underperform” rating on the stock in a research note on Monday, February 3rd. JPMorgan Chase & Co. upped their target price on shares of Marsh & McLennan Companies from $230.00 to $235.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a research note on Friday, January 3rd. Finally, Royal Bank of Canada upgraded shares of Marsh & McLennan Companies from a “sector perform” rating to an “outperform” rating and upped their target price for the company from $242.00 to $250.00 in a research note on Thursday, December 12th. Two equities research analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, ten have assigned a hold rating and four have given a buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the stock presently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and an average target price of $230.44.

Marsh & McLennan Companies Stock Up 1.1 %

NYSE MMC opened at $232.63 on Tuesday. The company has a market capitalization of $114.25 billion, a P/E ratio of 28.40, a P/E/G ratio of 2.70 and a beta of 0.96. The stock has a 50 day moving average price of $218.61 and a 200-day moving average price of $222.41. Marsh & McLennan Companies, Inc. has a one year low of $196.17 and a one year high of $235.50. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.44, a quick ratio of 1.13 and a current ratio of 1.13.

Marsh & McLennan Companies (NYSE:MMC) last released its earnings results on Thursday, January 30th. The financial services provider reported $1.87 earnings per share for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $1.75 by $0.12. Marsh & McLennan Companies had a return on equity of 32.60% and a net margin of 16.60%. As a group, equities analysts predict that Marsh & McLennan Companies, Inc. will post 9.61 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Marsh & McLennan Companies Dividend Announcement

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, February 14th. Stockholders of record on Thursday, January 30th were paid a dividend of $0.815 per share. The ex-dividend date was Thursday, January 30th. This represents a $3.26 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 1.40%. Marsh & McLennan Companies’s dividend payout ratio is currently 39.80%.

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.