Scotia Capital Inc. Acquires 13,312 Shares of Marsh & McLennan Companies, Inc. (NYSE:MMC)

Scotia Capital Inc. raised its position in shares of Marsh & McLennan Companies, Inc. (NYSE:MMC) by 16.0% during the fourth quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The fund owned 96,728 shares of the financial services provider’s stock after acquiring an additional 13,312 shares during the quarter. Scotia Capital Inc.’s holdings in Marsh & McLennan Companies were worth $20,546,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Several other institutional investors have also recently made changes to their positions in MMC. Financial Life Planners bought a new stake in Marsh & McLennan Companies in the 4th quarter worth about $33,000. Sierra Ocean LLC bought a new stake in Marsh & McLennan Companies in the 4th quarter worth about $36,000. Albion Financial Group UT bought a new stake in Marsh & McLennan Companies in the 4th quarter worth about $38,000. Golden State Wealth Management LLC bought a new stake in Marsh & McLennan Companies in the 4th quarter worth about $41,000. Finally, Halbert Hargrove Global Advisors LLC bought a new stake in Marsh & McLennan Companies in the 4th quarter worth about $45,000. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 87.99% of the company’s stock.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of research analysts have recently weighed in on MMC shares. Raymond James reissued an “outperform” rating and set a $250.00 target price (up from $240.00) on shares of Marsh & McLennan Companies in a research report on Thursday, February 6th. Royal Bank of Canada raised shares of Marsh & McLennan Companies from a “sector perform” rating to an “outperform” rating and raised their price objective for the stock from $242.00 to $250.00 in a report on Thursday, December 12th. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods raised their price objective on shares of Marsh & McLennan Companies from $210.00 to $220.00 and gave the stock an “underperform” rating in a report on Wednesday. JPMorgan Chase & Co. raised their price objective on shares of Marsh & McLennan Companies from $230.00 to $235.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a report on Friday, January 3rd. Finally, UBS Group raised their price objective on shares of Marsh & McLennan Companies from $259.00 to $261.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a report on Wednesday. Two analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, ten have issued a hold rating and five have assigned a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the stock currently has an average rating of “Hold” and an average price target of $234.12.

Insider Buying and Selling at Marsh & McLennan Companies

In other Marsh & McLennan Companies news, SVP Paul Beswick sold 2,237 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Thursday, April 3rd. The shares were sold at an average price of $246.00, for a total value of $550,302.00. Following the sale, the senior vice president now owns 13,522 shares in the company, valued at approximately $3,326,412. This represents a 14.20 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this link. Also, 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 completion of the transaction, the vice president now owns 2,923 shares in the company, valued at approximately $686,817.31. This represents a 31.06 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Over the last quarter, insiders have sold 69,634 shares of company stock worth $16,244,986. 0.30% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

Marsh & McLennan Companies Stock Performance

NYSE MMC opened at $229.84 on Thursday. Marsh & McLennan Companies, Inc. has a 52-week low of $196.17 and a 52-week high of $248.00. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.44, a quick ratio of 1.13 and a current ratio of 1.13. The company has a market capitalization of $113.29 billion, a P/E ratio of 28.06, a P/E/G ratio of 2.70 and a beta of 0.85. The company has a fifty day moving average of $232.44 and a 200-day moving average of $224.51.

Marsh & McLennan Companies (NYSE:MMC) last posted its quarterly earnings results 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%. As a group, equities research analysts predict that Marsh & McLennan Companies, Inc. will post 9.61 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Marsh & McLennan Companies Announces Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, May 15th. Shareholders of record on Thursday, April 3rd will be given a $0.815 dividend. This represents a $3.26 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 1.42%. 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.