Harvest Fund Management Co. Ltd Trims Position in Marsh & McLennan Companies, Inc. (NYSE:MMC)

Harvest Fund Management Co. Ltd lessened its stake in shares of Marsh & McLennan Companies, Inc. (NYSE:MMC) by 36.1% during the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The firm owned 1,371 shares of the financial services provider’s stock after selling 773 shares during the period. Harvest Fund Management Co. Ltd’s holdings in Marsh & McLennan Companies were worth $291,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission.

Several other institutional investors have also modified their holdings of the stock. Vinva Investment Management Ltd raised its holdings in shares of Marsh & McLennan Companies by 39.7% during the 4th quarter. Vinva Investment Management Ltd now owns 24,621 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $5,219,000 after acquiring an additional 6,997 shares during the period. Generali Asset Management SPA SGR acquired a new stake in shares of Marsh & McLennan Companies during the 4th quarter worth about $13,957,000. Horizon Investments LLC increased its position in shares of Marsh & McLennan Companies by 2.3% during the 4th quarter. Horizon Investments LLC now owns 11,569 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $2,448,000 after purchasing an additional 255 shares during the last quarter. PDS Planning Inc increased its position in shares of Marsh & McLennan Companies by 15.4% during the 4th quarter. PDS Planning Inc now owns 2,987 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $635,000 after purchasing an additional 399 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Horizon Kinetics Asset Management LLC increased its position in shares of Marsh & McLennan Companies by 21.5% during the 4th quarter. Horizon Kinetics Asset Management LLC now owns 144,628 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $30,720,000 after purchasing an additional 25,554 shares during the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 87.99% of the company’s stock.

Marsh & McLennan Companies Price Performance

Shares of NYSE MMC opened at $232.05 on Friday. The company has a current ratio of 1.13, a quick ratio of 1.13 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.44. Marsh & McLennan Companies, Inc. has a twelve month low of $196.17 and a twelve month high of $241.84. The stock has a 50 day moving average of $227.10 and a two-hundred day moving average of $223.82. The stock has a market cap of $113.97 billion, a P/E ratio of 28.33, a P/E/G ratio of 2.70 and a beta of 0.95.

Marsh & McLennan Companies (NYSE:MMC) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, January 30th. The financial services provider reported $1.87 earnings per share 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%. On average, research analysts forecast that Marsh & McLennan Companies, Inc. will post 9.61 earnings per share for the current year.

Marsh & McLennan Companies Dividend Announcement

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

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of brokerages recently issued reports on MMC. Raymond James reissued an “outperform” rating and set a $250.00 price objective (up from $240.00) on shares of Marsh & McLennan Companies in a research report on Thursday, February 6th. Royal Bank of Canada raised Marsh & McLennan Companies from a “sector perform” rating to an “outperform” rating and lifted their target price for the company from $242.00 to $250.00 in a research report on Thursday, December 12th. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods dropped their target price on Marsh & McLennan Companies from $214.00 to $210.00 and set an “underperform” rating for the company in a research report on Monday, February 3rd. Evercore ISI reaffirmed an “outperform” rating and issued a $242.00 target price on shares of Marsh & McLennan Companies in a research report on Monday, November 25th. Finally, JPMorgan Chase & Co. boosted their price objective on Marsh & McLennan Companies from $230.00 to $235.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a research report on Friday, January 3rd. Two 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, the company currently has an average rating of “Hold” and an average price target of $230.44.

Insider Activity

In related news, VP Stacy Mills sold 1,317 shares of the company’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 transaction, the vice president now owns 2,923 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $686,817.31. This represents a 31.06 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available at this link. Also, CEO Nicholas Mark Studer sold 49,390 shares of the company’s 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 transaction, the chief executive officer now directly owns 28,329 shares in the company, valued at $6,520,202.64. This represents a 63.55 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Over the last 90 days, insiders have sold 57,828 shares of company stock valued at $13,350,279. Company insiders own 0.30% of the company’s stock.

Marsh & McLennan Companies 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.