Marsh & McLennan Companies (NYSE:MMC) Issues Quarterly Earnings Results

Marsh & McLennan Companies (NYSE:MMC) announced its quarterly earnings data on Thursday. The financial services provider reported $2.89 earnings per share for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $2.80 by $0.09, RTT News reports. The business had revenue of $6.50 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $6.38 billion. Marsh & McLennan Companies had a net margin of 16.84% and a return on equity of 34.14%. The company’s revenue was up 9.7% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period last year, the business earned $2.53 EPS.

Marsh & McLennan Companies Stock Performance

NYSE MMC traded up $0.68 during trading hours on Friday, hitting $202.41. 2,460,976 shares of the stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 1,728,628. Marsh & McLennan Companies has a 12-month low of $171.47 and a 12-month high of $209.20. The stock has a 50-day moving average of $202.86 and a 200 day moving average of $196.82. The company has a market cap of $99.90 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 25.69, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 3.65 and a beta of 0.90. The company has a quick ratio of 1.10, a current ratio of 1.14 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.97.

Marsh & McLennan Companies Dividend Announcement

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, May 15th. Stockholders of record on Thursday, April 4th will be issued a $0.71 dividend. This represents a $2.84 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 1.40%. The ex-dividend date is Wednesday, April 3rd. Marsh & McLennan Companies’s payout ratio is 36.04%.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

MMC has been the subject of several analyst reports. TD Cowen initiated coverage on Marsh & McLennan Companies in a research report on Wednesday, January 10th. They set a “market perform” rating and a $189.00 price objective for the company. Royal Bank of Canada boosted their price objective on shares of Marsh & McLennan Companies from $208.00 to $210.00 and gave the stock a “sector perform” rating in a research report on Friday. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods increased their target price on shares of Marsh & McLennan Companies from $185.00 to $188.00 and gave the company an “underperform” rating in a research report on Wednesday, April 10th. Evercore ISI boosted their price target on shares of Marsh & McLennan Companies from $212.00 to $218.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a research report on Thursday, April 11th. Finally, Morgan Stanley boosted their target price on Marsh & McLennan Companies from $205.00 to $210.00 and gave the company an “equal weight” rating in a report on Monday, April 15th. Two research analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, eleven have assigned a hold rating and three have assigned a buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the company presently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $204.87.

Insider Buying and Selling at Marsh & McLennan Companies

In other news, VP Stacy Mills sold 1,461 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, March 14th. The stock was sold at an average price of $209.16, for a total value of $305,582.76. Following the completion of the sale, the vice president now directly owns 2,923 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $611,374.68. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this link. In related news, VP Stacy Mills sold 1,461 shares of the business’s 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 sale, the vice president now owns 2,923 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $611,374.68. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through this link. Also, SVP Paul Beswick sold 2,169 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, March 5th. The shares were sold at an average price of $202.00, for a total transaction of $438,138.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the senior vice president now directly owns 14,199 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $2,868,198. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last 90 days, insiders have sold 36,751 shares of company stock valued at $7,448,163. 0.30% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

Institutional Trading of Marsh & McLennan Companies

Several large investors have recently bought and sold shares of MMC. Fortis Capital Advisors LLC lifted its stake in shares of Marsh & McLennan Companies by 4.7% during the second quarter. Fortis Capital Advisors LLC now owns 1,188 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $223,000 after buying an additional 53 shares during the period. Harbour Investments Inc. lifted its position in Marsh & McLennan Companies by 7.6% during the fourth quarter. Harbour Investments Inc. now owns 905 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $172,000 after buying an additional 64 shares during the period. Ambassador Advisors LLC lifted its holdings in shares of Marsh & McLennan Companies by 3.7% during the 4th quarter. Ambassador Advisors LLC now owns 2,084 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $345,000 after acquiring an additional 75 shares during the period. Continuum Advisory LLC grew its holdings in Marsh & McLennan Companies by 5.4% in the fourth quarter. Continuum Advisory LLC now owns 1,614 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $305,000 after purchasing an additional 82 shares during the period. Finally, First Citizens Bank & Trust Co. raised its stake in Marsh & McLennan Companies by 6.5% during the second quarter. First Citizens Bank & Trust Co. now owns 1,468 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $276,000 after purchasing an additional 89 shares during the period. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 87.99% of the company’s stock.

Marsh & McLennan Companies Company Profile

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.