Marsh & McLennan Companies, Inc. (NYSE:MMC) Holdings Reduced by Virtu Financial LLC

Virtu Financial LLC cut its holdings in shares of Marsh & McLennan Companies, Inc. (NYSE:MMC) by 88.1% in the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The firm owned 1,518 shares of the financial services provider’s stock after selling 11,238 shares during the period. Virtu Financial LLC’s holdings in Marsh & McLennan Companies were worth $322,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Other institutional investors and hedge funds have also added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Financial Life Planners acquired a new position in Marsh & McLennan Companies during the 4th quarter valued at about $33,000. Sierra Ocean LLC acquired a new position in shares of Marsh & McLennan Companies during the fourth quarter valued at approximately $36,000. Albion Financial Group UT acquired a new stake in Marsh & McLennan Companies in the fourth quarter worth approximately $38,000. Golden State Wealth Management LLC bought a new position in Marsh & McLennan Companies during the 4th quarter valued at $41,000. Finally, Halbert Hargrove Global Advisors LLC bought a new stake in shares of Marsh & McLennan Companies in the 4th quarter worth $45,000. 87.99% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of research analysts recently issued reports on MMC shares. Redburn Atlantic began coverage on Marsh & McLennan Companies in a report on Tuesday. They set a “buy” rating and a $281.00 target price on the stock. JPMorgan Chase & Co. boosted their target price on shares of Marsh & McLennan Companies from $230.00 to $235.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a report on Friday, January 3rd. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods reduced their target price on shares of Marsh & McLennan Companies from $214.00 to $210.00 and set an “underperform” rating for the company in a report on Monday, February 3rd. Royal Bank of Canada upgraded Marsh & McLennan Companies from a “sector perform” rating to an “outperform” rating and increased their price objective for the company from $242.00 to $250.00 in a research report on Thursday, December 12th. Finally, Raymond James restated an “outperform” rating and issued a $250.00 target price (up from $240.00) on shares of Marsh & McLennan Companies in a report on Thursday, February 6th. Two analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, ten have assigned a hold rating and five have assigned a buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat, the company has a consensus rating of “Hold” and an average target price of $233.41.

Marsh & McLennan Companies Trading Up 2.1 %

NYSE:MMC opened at $243.77 on Friday. The stock’s 50-day moving average is $229.10 and its two-hundred day moving average is $224.08. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.44, a current ratio of 1.13 and a quick ratio of 1.13. The stock has a market cap of $119.72 billion, a PE ratio of 29.76, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.70 and a beta of 0.95. Marsh & McLennan Companies, Inc. has a fifty-two week low of $196.17 and a fifty-two week high of $243.89.

Marsh & McLennan Companies (NYSE:MMC) last released its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, January 30th. The financial services provider reported $1.87 earnings per share for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate 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, equities research 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 company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, May 15th. Shareholders of record on Thursday, April 3rd will be paid a $0.815 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Thursday, April 3rd. This represents a $3.26 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 1.34%. Marsh & McLennan Companies’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 39.80%.

Insider Transactions at Marsh & McLennan Companies

In other news, VP Stacy Mills sold 1,317 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction on Monday, March 10th. The shares were sold at an average price of $234.97, for a total transaction of $309,455.49. Following the transaction, the vice president now owns 2,923 shares in the company, valued at approximately $686,817.31. This trade represents a 31.06 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this link. Also, CEO Nicholas Mark Studer sold 49,390 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on Wednesday, March 12th. The stock was sold at an average price of $230.16, for a total transaction of $11,367,602.40. Following the completion of the sale, the chief executive officer now owns 28,329 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $6,520,202.64. This represents a 63.55 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders sold 57,828 shares of company stock valued at $13,350,279 in the last three months. Corporate insiders own 0.30% of the company’s stock.

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.