Segment Wealth Management LLC Decreases Stock Position in Marsh & McLennan Companies, Inc. $MMC

Segment Wealth Management LLC cut its position in Marsh & McLennan Companies, Inc. (NYSE:MMC) by 1.3% during the second quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the SEC. The firm owned 78,036 shares of the financial services provider’s stock after selling 1,003 shares during the period. Marsh & McLennan Companies makes up 1.1% of Segment Wealth Management LLC’s holdings, making the stock its 27th largest position. Segment Wealth Management LLC’s holdings in Marsh & McLennan Companies were worth $17,062,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

A number of other hedge funds have also modified their holdings of MMC. Wellington Management Group LLP increased its holdings in shares of Marsh & McLennan Companies by 54.2% in the first quarter. Wellington Management Group LLP now owns 12,814,788 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $3,127,193,000 after purchasing an additional 4,505,548 shares during the period. Nuveen LLC acquired a new position in shares of Marsh & McLennan Companies in the first quarter valued at about $1,038,594,000. Ninety One UK Ltd increased its holdings in shares of Marsh & McLennan Companies by 153.6% in the first quarter. Ninety One UK Ltd now owns 2,370,678 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $578,517,000 after purchasing an additional 1,436,044 shares during the period. Assenagon Asset Management S.A. increased its holdings in shares of Marsh & McLennan Companies by 5,035.9% in the second quarter. Assenagon Asset Management S.A. now owns 808,800 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $176,836,000 after purchasing an additional 793,052 shares during the period. Finally, Vanguard Group Inc. grew its holdings in Marsh & McLennan Companies by 1.3% during the first quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 45,321,445 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $11,059,792,000 after acquiring an additional 581,930 shares during the period. 87.99% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Insider Buying and Selling at Marsh & McLennan Companies

In other news, CEO John Q. Doyle sold 21,079 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, September 2nd. The stock was sold at an average price of $205.65, for a total value of $4,334,896.35. Following the transaction, the chief executive officer owned 87,681 shares in the company, valued at $18,031,597.65. This trade represents a 19.38% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available through this link. 0.35% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several research firms recently commented on MMC. Cantor Fitzgerald began coverage on Marsh & McLennan Companies in a report on Wednesday, August 13th. They set an “overweight” rating and a $256.00 target price on the stock. Citigroup began coverage on Marsh & McLennan Companies in a report on Wednesday, August 13th. They set a “neutral” rating and a $226.00 target price on the stock. Weiss Ratings reaffirmed a “hold (c+)” rating on shares of Marsh & McLennan Companies in a report on Saturday, September 27th. Wolfe Research assumed coverage on Marsh & McLennan Companies in a report on Tuesday, September 16th. They set a “peer perform” rating on the stock. Finally, Wells Fargo & Company lowered their price target on Marsh & McLennan Companies from $229.00 to $226.00 and set an “equal weight” rating on the stock in a research report on Friday, July 18th. Six analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, eleven have issued a Hold rating and two have assigned a Sell rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat.com, Marsh & McLennan Companies presently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and an average target price of $238.76.

Marsh & McLennan Companies Stock Performance

NYSE MMC opened at $201.25 on Friday. The company has a market cap of $98.94 billion, a PE ratio of 24.13, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.51 and a beta of 0.81. The stock’s 50 day simple moving average is $202.96 and its 200-day simple moving average is $216.74. Marsh & McLennan Companies, Inc. has a 1-year low of $195.01 and a 1-year high of $248.00. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.19, a current ratio of 1.20 and a quick ratio of 1.20.

Marsh & McLennan Companies (NYSE:MMC) last released its earnings results on Thursday, July 17th. The financial services provider reported $2.72 earnings per share for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $2.66 by $0.06. The business had revenue of $6.97 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $6.92 billion. Marsh & McLennan Companies had a return on equity of 31.90% and a net margin of 16.00%.The business’s quarterly revenue was up 12.1% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter last year, the business posted $2.41 earnings per share. As a group, equities research analysts anticipate that Marsh & McLennan Companies, Inc. will post 9.61 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Marsh & McLennan Companies Announces Dividend

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, November 14th. Stockholders of record on Thursday, October 2nd will be given a $0.90 dividend. This represents a $3.60 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 1.8%. The ex-dividend date is Thursday, October 2nd. Marsh & McLennan Companies’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 43.17%.

About Marsh & McLennan Companies

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.