Marsh & McLennan Companies, Inc. (NYSE:MMC) Stake Cut by Xponance Inc.

Xponance Inc. trimmed its holdings in shares of Marsh & McLennan Companies, Inc. (NYSE:MMC) by 16.8% during the fourth quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the SEC. The firm owned 77,441 shares of the financial services provider’s stock after selling 15,594 shares during the period. Xponance Inc.’s holdings in Marsh & McLennan Companies were worth $16,449,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Other large investors also recently modified their holdings of the company. Modera Wealth Management LLC boosted its position in shares of Marsh & McLennan Companies by 2.5% in the 4th quarter. Modera Wealth Management LLC now owns 1,885 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $400,000 after purchasing an additional 46 shares during the period. Geneos Wealth Management Inc. grew its stake in shares of Marsh & McLennan Companies by 3.7% in the fourth quarter. Geneos Wealth Management Inc. now owns 1,324 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $281,000 after acquiring an additional 47 shares during the last quarter. Hemington Wealth Management grew its stake in shares of Marsh & McLennan Companies by 6.7% in the fourth quarter. Hemington Wealth Management now owns 768 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $163,000 after acquiring an additional 48 shares during the last quarter. New England Professional Planning Group Inc. lifted its position in Marsh & McLennan Companies by 4.1% in the fourth quarter. New England Professional Planning Group Inc. now owns 1,261 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $268,000 after purchasing an additional 50 shares during the period. Finally, TFB Advisors LLC lifted its holdings in shares of Marsh & McLennan Companies by 2.0% during the fourth quarter. TFB Advisors LLC now owns 2,576 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $547,000 after acquiring an additional 51 shares during the period. 87.99% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Insider Transactions at Marsh & McLennan Companies

In other news, VP Stacy Mills sold 1,317 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction on Monday, March 10th. The stock was sold at an average price of $234.97, for a total transaction of $309,455.49. Following the sale, the vice president now owns 2,923 shares in the company, valued at $686,817.31. This trade represents a 31.06 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this link. Also, CEO Nicholas Mark Studer sold 49,390 shares of the stock in a transaction on Wednesday, March 12th. The stock was sold at an average price of $230.16, for a total value of $11,367,602.40. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief executive officer now directly owns 28,329 shares in the company, valued at $6,520,202.64. This trade represents a 63.55 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last three months, insiders sold 57,828 shares of company stock valued at $13,350,279. Corporate insiders own 0.30% of the company’s stock.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of analysts have recently weighed in on MMC shares. Evercore ISI restated an “outperform” rating and issued a $242.00 target price on shares of Marsh & McLennan Companies in a research note on Monday, November 25th. Barclays lifted their price objective on Marsh & McLennan Companies from $236.00 to $246.00 and gave the company an “equal weight” rating in a report on Thursday, November 21st. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods cut their target price on Marsh & McLennan Companies from $214.00 to $210.00 and set an “underperform” rating on the stock in a research note on Monday, February 3rd. Wells Fargo & Company upped their price objective on Marsh & McLennan Companies from $212.00 to $223.00 and gave the company an “equal weight” rating in a report on Friday, January 31st. Finally, JPMorgan Chase & Co. upped their price objective on Marsh & McLennan Companies from $230.00 to $235.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a report on Friday, January 3rd. Two equities research analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, ten have issued a hold rating and four have issued a buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, Marsh & McLennan Companies currently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and an average price target of $230.44.

Marsh & McLennan Companies Price Performance

Shares of Marsh & McLennan Companies stock opened at $232.97 on Tuesday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.44, a quick ratio of 1.13 and a current ratio of 1.13. Marsh & McLennan Companies, Inc. has a one year low of $196.17 and a one year high of $241.84. The stock has a 50 day moving average price of $225.34 and a 200-day moving average price of $223.63. The stock has a market cap of $114.42 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 28.45, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.70 and a beta of 0.95.

Marsh & McLennan Companies (NYSE:MMC) last posted its earnings results on Thursday, January 30th. The financial services provider reported $1.87 EPS for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.75 by $0.12. Marsh & McLennan Companies had a return on equity of 32.60% and a net margin of 16.60%. Equities analysts expect that Marsh & McLennan Companies, Inc. will post 9.61 EPS for the current year.

Marsh & McLennan Companies Announces Dividend

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, May 15th. Stockholders of record on Thursday, April 3rd will be given a dividend of $0.815 per share. The ex-dividend date is Thursday, April 3rd. This represents a $3.26 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 1.40%. Marsh & McLennan Companies’s dividend payout ratio is currently 39.80%.

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.