German American Bancorp Inc. Decreases Holdings in Marsh & McLennan Companies, Inc. (NYSE:MMC)

German American Bancorp Inc. reduced its stake in Marsh & McLennan Companies, Inc. (NYSE:MMC) by 5.4% during the 4th quarter, HoldingsChannel.com reports. The firm owned 1,273 shares of the financial services provider’s stock after selling 73 shares during the period. German American Bancorp Inc.’s holdings in Marsh & McLennan Companies were worth $270,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

A number of other hedge funds and other institutional investors also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the stock. Financial Life Planners acquired a new stake in Marsh & McLennan Companies during the 4th quarter worth $33,000. Sierra Ocean LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Marsh & McLennan Companies in the 4th quarter valued at about $36,000. Albion Financial Group UT acquired a new stake in shares of Marsh & McLennan Companies in the 4th quarter valued at about $38,000. Golden State Wealth Management LLC purchased a new position in Marsh & McLennan Companies during the 4th quarter worth approximately $41,000. Finally, Halbert Hargrove Global Advisors LLC purchased a new stake in Marsh & McLennan Companies in the fourth quarter valued at approximately $45,000. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 87.99% of the company’s stock.

Marsh & McLennan Companies Price Performance

MMC stock opened at $223.61 on Tuesday. The stock has a market capitalization of $110.22 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 27.30, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.70 and a beta of 0.85. The stock’s fifty day simple moving average is $232.01 and its 200-day simple moving average is $224.50. Marsh & McLennan Companies, Inc. has a 52-week low of $196.17 and a 52-week high of $248.00. The company has a quick ratio of 1.13, a current ratio of 1.13 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.44.

Marsh & McLennan Companies (NYSE:MMC) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, January 30th. The financial services provider reported $1.87 earnings per share for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $1.75 by $0.12. Marsh & McLennan Companies had a net margin of 16.60% and a return on equity of 32.60%. Equities research analysts expect that Marsh & McLennan Companies, Inc. will post 9.61 EPS 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. Investors of record on Thursday, April 3rd will be issued a dividend of $0.815 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Thursday, April 3rd. This represents a $3.26 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 1.46%. Marsh & McLennan Companies’s payout ratio is currently 39.80%.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several brokerages have 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. Wells Fargo & Company lifted their target price on Marsh & McLennan Companies from $212.00 to $223.00 and gave the company an “equal weight” rating in a research note on Friday, January 31st. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods cut their price target on Marsh & McLennan Companies from $214.00 to $210.00 and set an “underperform” rating for the company in a research note on Monday, February 3rd. Redburn Atlantic initiated coverage on shares of Marsh & McLennan Companies in a research report on Tuesday, March 25th. They issued a “buy” rating and a $281.00 price objective on the stock. Finally, Royal Bank of Canada upgraded shares of Marsh & McLennan Companies from a “sector perform” rating to an “outperform” rating and raised their target price for the stock from $242.00 to $250.00 in a research note on Thursday, December 12th. Two investment analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, ten have given a hold rating and five have issued a buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat, Marsh & McLennan Companies has an average rating of “Hold” and an average price target of $233.41.

Insider Buying and Selling at Marsh & McLennan Companies

In related news, VP Stacy Mills sold 1,317 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Monday, March 10th. The stock was sold at an average price of $234.97, for a total value of $309,455.49. Following the completion of the transaction, the vice president now owns 2,923 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $686,817.31. This represents a 31.06 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is accessible through this link. Also, CEO Dean Michael Klisura sold 7,121 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, March 10th. The shares were sold at an average price of $234.97, for a total value of $1,673,221.37. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief executive officer now directly owns 20,935 shares in the company, valued at approximately $4,919,096.95. The trade was a 25.38 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders sold 69,634 shares of company stock valued at $16,244,986 over the last 90 days. 0.30% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

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.