Korea Investment CORP Lowers Stake in Marsh & McLennan Companies, Inc. (NYSE:MMC)

Korea Investment CORP decreased its holdings in shares of Marsh & McLennan Companies, Inc. (NYSE:MMC) by 7.4% in the fourth quarter, Holdings Channel.com reports. The firm owned 309,166 shares of the financial services provider’s stock after selling 24,533 shares during the period. Korea Investment CORP’s holdings in Marsh & McLennan Companies were worth $65,670,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Other large investors have also recently made changes to their positions in the company. Amundi raised its stake in Marsh & McLennan Companies by 81.1% during the fourth quarter. Amundi now owns 4,072,976 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $860,824,000 after buying an additional 1,823,807 shares during the last quarter. Assenagon Asset Management S.A. increased its holdings in shares of Marsh & McLennan Companies by 7,320.9% during the fourth quarter. Assenagon Asset Management S.A. now owns 1,108,758 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $235,511,000 after acquiring an additional 1,093,817 shares in the last quarter. Raymond James Financial Inc. bought a new position in Marsh & McLennan Companies in the 4th quarter worth about $207,278,000. Proficio Capital Partners LLC grew its position in Marsh & McLennan Companies by 29,648.6% during the 4th quarter. Proficio Capital Partners LLC now owns 688,978 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $146,346,000 after purchasing an additional 686,662 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Vanguard Group Inc. increased its stake in Marsh & McLennan Companies by 0.8% during the 4th quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 44,739,515 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $9,503,120,000 after purchasing an additional 356,618 shares in the last quarter. 87.99% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other news, VP Stacy Mills sold 1,317 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction that occurred 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 directly owns 2,923 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $686,817.31. This represents a 31.06 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at the SEC website. Also, CEO Nicholas Mark Studer sold 49,390 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction on Wednesday, March 12th. The shares were sold at an average price of $230.16, for a total transaction of $11,367,602.40. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief executive officer now directly owns 28,329 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $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 have sold 57,828 shares of company stock valued at $13,350,279. Corporate insiders own 0.30% of the company’s stock.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of research firms have recently commented on MMC. Wells Fargo & Company increased their price target on shares of Marsh & McLennan Companies from $212.00 to $223.00 and gave the company an “equal weight” rating in a report on Friday, January 31st. 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. Raymond James restated an “outperform” rating and issued a $250.00 price target (up previously from $240.00) on shares of Marsh & McLennan Companies in a research note on Thursday, February 6th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. lifted their price objective on Marsh & McLennan Companies from $230.00 to $235.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a report on Friday, January 3rd. Finally, Redburn Atlantic initiated coverage on shares of Marsh & McLennan Companies in a research note on Tuesday. They issued a “buy” rating and a $281.00 price target for the company. Two research analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, ten have issued a hold rating and five have issued a buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the stock presently has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $233.41.

Marsh & McLennan Companies Stock Up 2.1 %

MMC stock opened at $243.77 on Friday. The business’s 50-day moving average price is $229.10 and its 200-day moving average price is $224.08. The stock has a market cap of $119.72 billion, a P/E ratio of 29.76, a PEG ratio of 2.70 and a beta of 0.95. Marsh & McLennan Companies, Inc. has a twelve month low of $196.17 and a twelve month high of $243.89. 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 EPS for the quarter, beating 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%. On average, equities research analysts forecast that Marsh & McLennan Companies, Inc. will post 9.61 EPS for the current year.

Marsh & McLennan Companies Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, May 15th. Investors of record on Thursday, April 3rd will be given a dividend of $0.815 per share. This represents a $3.26 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 1.34%. The ex-dividend date is Thursday, April 3rd. Marsh & McLennan Companies’s dividend payout ratio is currently 39.80%.

Marsh & McLennan Companies Company 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.