Marsh & McLennan Companies, Inc. (NYSE:MMC) Shares Sold by Lafayette Investments Inc.

Lafayette Investments Inc. cut its stake in shares of Marsh & McLennan Companies, Inc. (NYSE:MMC) by 0.8% during the fourth quarter, Holdings Channel reports. The firm owned 19,923 shares of the financial services provider’s stock after selling 160 shares during the quarter. Lafayette Investments Inc.’s holdings in Marsh & McLennan Companies were worth $4,232,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Other hedge funds have also modified their holdings of the company. Financial Life Planners purchased a new stake in Marsh & McLennan Companies during the fourth quarter valued at about $33,000. Sierra Ocean LLC acquired a new position in Marsh & McLennan Companies in the 4th quarter worth approximately $36,000. Albion Financial Group UT purchased a new position in Marsh & McLennan Companies during the 4th quarter worth approximately $38,000. Golden State Wealth Management LLC acquired a new stake in Marsh & McLennan Companies during the 4th quarter valued at $41,000. Finally, Halbert Hargrove Global Advisors LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Marsh & McLennan Companies in the fourth quarter worth $45,000. 87.99% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several research analysts recently weighed in on MMC shares. JPMorgan Chase & Co. upped their price target on Marsh & McLennan Companies from $230.00 to $235.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a research report on Friday, January 3rd. Barclays boosted their price objective on shares of Marsh & McLennan Companies from $246.00 to $249.00 and gave the company an “equal weight” rating in a research report on Friday. Redburn Atlantic assumed coverage on shares of Marsh & McLennan Companies in a research note on Tuesday, March 25th. They set a “buy” rating and a $281.00 target price for the company. Raymond James reaffirmed an “outperform” rating and set a $250.00 price target (up from $240.00) on shares of Marsh & McLennan Companies in a research note on Thursday, February 6th. Finally, Jefferies Financial Group raised their target price on Marsh & McLennan Companies from $237.00 to $244.00 and gave the company a “hold” rating in a report on Friday. Two equities research analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, ten have given a hold rating and five have given a buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat, the stock currently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and an average price target of $236.12.

Insider Transactions at Marsh & McLennan Companies

In other news, CEO Dean Michael Klisura sold 7,121 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, March 10th. The shares were sold at an average price of $234.97, for a total transaction of $1,673,221.37. Following the sale, the chief executive officer now directly owns 20,935 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $4,919,096.95. This represents a 25.38 % 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 business’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, March 12th. The stock was 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 owns 28,329 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $6,520,202.64. This trade represents a 63.55 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders have sold 69,634 shares of company stock valued at $16,244,986 in the last three months. 0.30% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

Marsh & McLennan Companies Trading Up 1.8 %

Shares of MMC opened at $237.43 on Tuesday. The stock has a 50 day simple moving average of $233.07 and a 200-day simple moving average of $224.72. The company has a current ratio of 1.13, a quick ratio of 1.13 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.44. The stock has a market cap of $117.03 billion, a PE ratio of 28.99, a PEG ratio of 2.70 and a beta of 0.85. Marsh & McLennan Companies, Inc. has a 1 year low of $196.17 and a 1 year high of $248.00.

Marsh & McLennan Companies (NYSE:MMC) last issued its earnings results 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, sell-side analysts predict that Marsh & McLennan Companies, Inc. will post 9.61 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Marsh & McLennan Companies Dividend Announcement

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, May 15th. Stockholders of record on Thursday, April 3rd will be issued a dividend of $0.815 per share. This represents a $3.26 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 1.37%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Thursday, April 3rd. Marsh & McLennan Companies’s payout ratio is 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.