Van ECK Associates Corp Has $16.26 Million Position in Marsh & McLennan Companies, Inc. (NYSE:MMC)

Van ECK Associates Corp increased its position in shares of Marsh & McLennan Companies, Inc. (NYSE:MMC) by 4.4% in the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 85,834 shares of the financial services provider’s stock after acquiring an additional 3,579 shares during the period. Van ECK Associates Corp’s holdings in Marsh & McLennan Companies were worth $16,263,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission.

Other institutional investors and hedge funds have also recently bought and sold shares of the company. Impax Asset Management Group plc bought a new stake in shares of Marsh & McLennan Companies in the 4th quarter valued at approximately $261,787,000. Assenagon Asset Management S.A. grew its position in Marsh & McLennan Companies by 3,413.7% in the fourth quarter. Assenagon Asset Management S.A. now owns 532,670 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $100,925,000 after acquiring an additional 517,510 shares in the last quarter. Healthcare of Ontario Pension Plan Trust Fund increased its stake in shares of Marsh & McLennan Companies by 1,496.4% during the 3rd quarter. Healthcare of Ontario Pension Plan Trust Fund now owns 447,000 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $85,064,000 after purchasing an additional 419,000 shares during the last quarter. Adage Capital Partners GP L.L.C. lifted its stake in shares of Marsh & McLennan Companies by 60.5% in the 3rd quarter. Adage Capital Partners GP L.L.C. now owns 791,161 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $150,558,000 after purchasing an additional 298,300 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Northern Trust Corp boosted its holdings in Marsh & McLennan Companies by 4.8% in the third quarter. Northern Trust Corp now owns 5,979,821 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $1,137,960,000 after purchasing an additional 271,408 shares in the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 87.99% of the company’s stock.

Insider Transactions at Marsh & McLennan Companies

In other Marsh & McLennan Companies news, CFO Mark C. Mcgivney sold 12,494 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on Monday, March 4th. The stock was sold at an average price of $200.79, for a total value of $2,508,670.26. Following the sale, the chief financial officer now directly owns 33,678 shares in the company, valued at $6,762,205.62. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this hyperlink. In other news, CFO Mark C. Mcgivney sold 12,494 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction on Monday, March 4th. The shares were sold at an average price of $200.79, for a total value of $2,508,670.26. Following the sale, the chief financial officer now owns 33,678 shares in the company, valued at approximately $6,762,205.62. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through the SEC website. Also, VP Stacy Mills sold 1,461 shares of Marsh & McLennan Companies stock in a transaction dated Thursday, March 14th. The shares were sold at an average price of $209.16, for a total transaction of $305,582.76. Following the transaction, the vice president now directly owns 2,923 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $611,374.68. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last ninety days, insiders sold 36,751 shares of company stock valued at $7,448,163. Corporate insiders own 0.30% of the company’s stock.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of analysts have weighed in on MMC shares. JPMorgan Chase & Co. boosted their price target on Marsh & McLennan Companies from $190.00 to $198.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a research report on Monday, April 8th. Jefferies Financial Group upped their target price on Marsh & McLennan Companies from $197.00 to $208.00 and gave the stock a “hold” rating in a research report on Friday, April 19th. Royal Bank of Canada lifted their price target on shares of Marsh & McLennan Companies from $208.00 to $210.00 and gave the company a “sector perform” rating in a research report on Friday, April 19th. Morgan Stanley upped their price objective on shares of Marsh & McLennan Companies from $205.00 to $210.00 and gave the stock an “equal weight” rating in a report on Monday, April 15th. Finally, The Goldman Sachs Group lowered shares of Marsh & McLennan Companies from a “buy” rating to a “sell” rating and cut their target price for the stock from $215.00 to $185.00 in a research report on Monday, January 8th. Two equities research analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, ten have given a hold rating and four have given a buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the company has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $207.69.

Marsh & McLennan Companies Stock Performance

MMC opened at $199.73 on Thursday. The stock has a market cap of $98.41 billion, a PE ratio of 25.35, a P/E/G ratio of 3.33 and a beta of 0.90. Marsh & McLennan Companies, Inc. has a 1 year low of $171.47 and a 1 year high of $209.20. The stock’s 50 day simple moving average is $203.03 and its 200-day simple moving average is $197.32. The company has a current ratio of 1.14, a quick ratio of 1.14 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.97.

Marsh & McLennan Companies (NYSE:MMC) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, April 18th. The financial services provider reported $2.89 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $2.80 by $0.09. Marsh & McLennan Companies had a net margin of 16.84% and a return on equity of 34.14%. The company had revenue of $6.50 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $6.38 billion. During the same quarter in the prior year, the company posted $2.53 EPS. The business’s revenue was up 9.7% on a year-over-year basis. Sell-side analysts forecast that Marsh & McLennan Companies, Inc. will post 8.69 EPS for the current year.

Marsh & McLennan Companies Dividend Announcement

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, May 15th. Stockholders of record on Thursday, April 4th will be paid a $0.71 dividend. The ex-dividend date is Wednesday, April 3rd. This represents a $2.84 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 1.42%. Marsh & McLennan Companies’s dividend payout ratio is currently 36.04%.

About Marsh & McLennan Companies

Marsh & McLennan Companies, Inc, a professional services company, provides advice and solutions to clients in the areas of risk, strategy, and people worldwide. It operates through Risk and Insurance Services, and Consulting segments. The Risk and Insurance Services segment offers risk management services, such as risk advice, risk transfer, and risk control and mitigation solutions, as well as insurance and reinsurance broking, strategic advisory services, and analytics solutions, and insurance program management services.