J. Safra Sarasin Holding AG Takes $633,000 Position in Marsh & McLennan Companies, Inc. $MRSH

J. Safra Sarasin Holding AG acquired a new position in shares of Marsh & McLennan Companies, Inc. (NYSE:MRSH) in the first quarter, Holdings Channel reports. The institutional investor acquired 3,652 shares of the financial services provider’s stock, valued at approximately $633,000.

Several other hedge funds also recently bought and sold shares of MRSH. Swiss Life Asset Management Ltd grew its holdings in shares of Marsh & McLennan Companies by 9.5% in the fourth quarter. Swiss Life Asset Management Ltd now owns 134,542 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $24,960,000 after purchasing an additional 11,648 shares in the last quarter. Sarasin & Partners LLP boosted its position in Marsh & McLennan Companies by 0.9% in the 4th quarter. Sarasin & Partners LLP now owns 934,732 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $173,411,000 after buying an additional 8,283 shares during the period. Essex LLC acquired a new position in shares of Marsh & McLennan Companies in the first quarter worth $2,891,000. Mirae Asset Global Investments Co. Ltd. increased its position in shares of Marsh & McLennan Companies by 20.6% during the fourth quarter. Mirae Asset Global Investments Co. Ltd. now owns 88,934 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $16,499,000 after acquiring an additional 15,166 shares during the period. Finally, Benjamin Edwards Inc. raised its stake in shares of Marsh & McLennan Companies by 26.6% in the fourth quarter. Benjamin Edwards Inc. now owns 35,293 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $6,549,000 after acquiring an additional 7,418 shares in the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 87.99% of the company’s stock.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

MRSH has been the subject of several analyst reports. Mizuho boosted their target price on Marsh & McLennan Companies from $194.00 to $197.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a research note on Thursday, July 9th. Morgan Stanley decreased their price objective on Marsh & McLennan Companies from $180.00 to $175.00 and set an “equal weight” rating for the company in a research note on Monday, July 6th. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods upped their target price on shares of Marsh & McLennan Companies from $200.00 to $203.00 and gave the stock a “market perform” rating in a research note on Friday, April 17th. UBS Group raised their target price on shares of Marsh & McLennan Companies from $203.00 to $212.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a report on Wednesday, July 8th. Finally, Barclays lowered their price target on shares of Marsh & McLennan Companies from $209.00 to $206.00 and set an “overweight” rating for the company in a report on Wednesday, April 8th. One analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, six have given a Buy rating, ten have assigned a Hold rating and one has given a Sell rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat, Marsh & McLennan Companies has a consensus rating of “Hold” and an average target price of $200.81.

Insider Activity

In other Marsh & McLennan Companies news, CEO John Q. Doyle sold 16,656 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, June 2nd. The stock was sold at an average price of $161.71, for a total transaction of $2,693,441.76. Following the transaction, the chief executive officer owned 116,811 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $18,889,506.81. This trade represents a 12.48% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. The transaction was executed under a pre-arranged Rule 10b5-1 trading plan. Insiders own 0.38% of the company’s stock.

Marsh & McLennan Companies Trading Down 1.0%

Shares of Marsh & McLennan Companies stock opened at $176.29 on Thursday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.28, a quick ratio of 1.11 and a current ratio of 1.11. Marsh & McLennan Companies, Inc. has a 52 week low of $156.60 and a 52 week high of $216.32. The company has a market capitalization of $85.17 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 22.04, a P/E/G ratio of 2.59 and a beta of 0.61.

Marsh & McLennan Companies (NYSE:MRSH) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, April 16th. The financial services provider reported $3.29 earnings per share for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $3.21 by $0.08. The business had revenue of $7.30 billion during the quarter. Marsh & McLennan Companies had a net margin of 14.26% and a return on equity of 31.87%. The business’s revenue was up 7.6% on a year-over-year basis. On average, sell-side analysts anticipate that Marsh & McLennan Companies, Inc. will post 10.37 EPS for the current year.

Marsh & McLennan Companies Increases Dividend

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, August 14th. Investors of record on Thursday, July 23rd will be given a $0.99 dividend. This represents a $3.96 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 2.2%. This is a boost from Marsh & McLennan Companies’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.90. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Thursday, July 23rd. Marsh & McLennan Companies’s dividend payout ratio is presently 45.00%.

Marsh & McLennan Companies Company Profile

Marsh & McLennan Companies (NYSE: MMC) is a global professional services firm headquartered in New York City that provides advice and solutions in the areas of risk, strategy and people. Founded in 1905, the company has grown into a diversified group of businesses focused on insurance brokerage and risk management, reinsurance, human capital and investment consulting, and management consulting. Its long history and scale position it as a prominent adviser to corporations, governments and other institutions seeking to manage risk and optimize human and financial capital.

The firm operates through several well-known subsidiaries and business units that specialize in distinct services.