6,319 Shares in Marsh & McLennan Companies, Inc. $MMC Acquired by Virtus Investment Advisers LLC

Virtus Investment Advisers LLC bought a new stake in Marsh & McLennan Companies, Inc. (NYSE:MMC) in the 2nd quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The institutional investor bought 6,319 shares of the financial services provider’s stock, valued at approximately $1,382,000.

Other institutional investors have also modified their holdings of the company. Brighton Jones LLC raised its stake in Marsh & McLennan Companies by 51.2% during the fourth quarter. Brighton Jones LLC now owns 8,738 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $1,856,000 after purchasing an additional 2,960 shares during the period. Bison Wealth LLC lifted its holdings in Marsh & McLennan Companies by 39.6% in the fourth quarter. Bison Wealth LLC now owns 3,064 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $651,000 after acquiring an additional 869 shares during the last quarter. Norden Group LLC purchased a new position in Marsh & McLennan Companies in the first quarter worth approximately $224,000. Eastern Bank increased its stake in Marsh & McLennan Companies by 14.2% during the first quarter. Eastern Bank now owns 2,125 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $519,000 after acquiring an additional 264 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Arkadios Wealth Advisors raised its position in Marsh & McLennan Companies by 11.9% in the first quarter. Arkadios Wealth Advisors now owns 3,217 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $785,000 after purchasing an additional 343 shares during the period. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 87.99% of the company’s stock.

Marsh & McLennan Companies Trading Up 0.4%

NYSE MMC opened at $183.51 on Friday. Marsh & McLennan Companies, Inc. has a one year low of $174.18 and a one year high of $248.00. The firm has a 50 day simple moving average of $189.42 and a 200-day simple moving average of $204.88. The firm has a market cap of $89.90 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 22.00, a PEG ratio of 2.25 and a beta of 0.78. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.19, a quick ratio of 1.12 and a current ratio of 1.12.

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

Marsh & McLennan Companies Dividend Announcement

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, November 14th. Shareholders of record on Thursday, October 2nd were issued a dividend of $0.90 per share. The ex-dividend date was Thursday, October 2nd. This represents a $3.60 annualized dividend and a yield of 2.0%. Marsh & McLennan Companies’s dividend payout ratio is 43.17%.

Insider Transactions at Marsh & McLennan Companies

In other news, CEO John Q. Doyle sold 21,079 shares of Marsh & McLennan Companies stock in a transaction dated 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 completion of the transaction, the chief executive officer owned 87,681 shares in the company, valued at approximately $18,031,597.65. This trade represents a 19.38% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through the SEC website. 0.35% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of equities analysts have recently weighed in on the company. Royal Bank Of Canada began coverage on Marsh & McLennan Companies in a report on Tuesday. They set a “sector perform” rating and a $200.00 price target for the company. Cantor Fitzgerald began coverage on shares of Marsh & McLennan Companies in a research note on Wednesday, August 13th. They set an “overweight” rating and a $256.00 target price for the company. Citigroup started coverage on shares of Marsh & McLennan Companies in a report on Wednesday, August 13th. They issued a “neutral” rating and a $226.00 price objective on the stock. Morgan Stanley lowered their price objective on shares of Marsh & McLennan Companies from $220.00 to $215.00 and set an “equal weight” rating for the company in a research report on Tuesday, October 7th. Finally, Keefe, Bruyette & Woods upgraded Marsh & McLennan Companies from an “underperform” rating to a “market perform” rating and decreased their price target for the stock from $209.00 to $191.00 in a research note on Friday, October 17th. Seven analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, ten have assigned a Hold rating and one has issued a Sell rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat, the stock has a consensus rating of “Hold” and an average price target of $224.56.

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.