Ariston Services Group Buys 89 Shares of Marsh & McLennan Companies, Inc. $MMC

Ariston Services Group grew its position in shares of Marsh & McLennan Companies, Inc. (NYSE:MMC) by 8.2% during the second quarter, Holdings Channel.com reports. The fund owned 1,168 shares of the financial services provider’s stock after purchasing an additional 89 shares during the quarter. Ariston Services Group’s holdings in Marsh & McLennan Companies were worth $255,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

A number of other large investors also recently made changes to their positions in the company. Accent Capital Management LLC bought a new stake in Marsh & McLennan Companies in the 1st quarter worth about $25,000. Knuff & Co LLC purchased a new position in shares of Marsh & McLennan Companies in the 1st quarter worth approximately $28,000. Activest Wealth Management increased its position in shares of Marsh & McLennan Companies by 2,775.0% during the first quarter. Activest Wealth Management now owns 115 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $28,000 after acquiring an additional 111 shares during the last quarter. Capital Analysts LLC lifted its holdings in Marsh & McLennan Companies by 61.0% during the first quarter. Capital Analysts LLC now owns 169 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $41,000 after acquiring an additional 64 shares during the period. Finally, Garde Capital Inc. purchased a new position in Marsh & McLennan Companies in the first quarter worth $42,000. 87.99% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

Analyst Ratings Changes

MMC has been the topic of a number of recent analyst reports. Weiss Ratings reiterated a “hold (c+)” rating on shares of Marsh & McLennan Companies in a research note on Wednesday, October 8th. Evercore ISI lowered their price objective on shares of Marsh & McLennan Companies from $243.00 to $237.00 and set an “outperform” rating on the stock in a research report on Friday. Citigroup assumed coverage on shares of Marsh & McLennan Companies in a research report on Wednesday, August 13th. They set a “neutral” rating and a $226.00 target price for the company. Cantor Fitzgerald started coverage on shares of Marsh & McLennan Companies in a report on Wednesday, August 13th. They issued an “overweight” rating and a $256.00 price target on the stock. Finally, Wolfe Research began coverage on Marsh & McLennan Companies in a report on Tuesday, September 16th. They set a “peer perform” rating for the company. Seven research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and nine have assigned a Hold rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the company presently has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus target price of $236.43.

Marsh & McLennan Companies Stock Up 1.8%

Marsh & McLennan Companies stock opened at $189.85 on Friday. The firm has a market capitalization of $93.34 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 22.76, a P/E/G ratio of 2.35 and a beta of 0.81. The firm has a 50 day simple moving average of $202.94 and a 200 day simple moving average of $214.21. Marsh & McLennan Companies, Inc. has a 1-year low of $185.12 and a 1-year high of $248.00. The company has a current ratio of 1.12, a quick ratio of 1.20 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.19.

Marsh & McLennan Companies (NYSE:MMC) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, October 16th. The financial services provider reported $1.85 EPS for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.78 by $0.07. Marsh & McLennan Companies had a return on equity of 31.79% and a net margin of 15.60%.The firm had revenue of $6.35 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $6.34 billion. During the same period last year, the company earned $1.63 earnings per share. The business’s revenue for the quarter was up 11.5% on a year-over-year basis. On average, analysts predict that Marsh & McLennan Companies, Inc. will post 9.61 earnings per share for the current year.

Marsh & McLennan Companies Announces Dividend

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, November 14th. Stockholders of record on Thursday, October 2nd will be issued a $0.90 dividend. This represents a $3.60 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 1.9%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Thursday, October 2nd. Marsh & McLennan Companies’s dividend payout ratio is presently 43.17%.

Insider Activity at Marsh & McLennan Companies

In related news, CEO John Q. Doyle sold 21,079 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, September 2nd. The shares were sold at an average price of $205.65, for a total transaction of $4,334,896.35. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief executive officer owned 87,681 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $18,031,597.65. The trade was a 19.38% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through the SEC website. Company insiders own 0.35% of the company’s stock.

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.