Sone Capital Management LLC Makes New $5.95 Million Investment in Marsh & McLennan Companies, Inc. (NYSE:MMC)

Sone Capital Management LLC acquired a new position in Marsh & McLennan Companies, Inc. (NYSE:MMC) in the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The institutional investor acquired 28,008 shares of the financial services provider’s stock, valued at approximately $5,949,000.

Several other hedge funds have also recently modified their holdings of MMC. Norges Bank acquired a new stake in Marsh & McLennan Companies in the 4th quarter valued at about $1,236,186,000. Stifel Financial Corp grew its stake in shares of Marsh & McLennan Companies by 551.0% in the 4th quarter. Stifel Financial Corp now owns 2,224,932 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $472,599,000 after buying an additional 1,883,146 shares during the period. Amundi grew its stake in shares of Marsh & McLennan Companies by 81.1% in the 4th 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 period. Raymond James Financial Inc. purchased a new position in shares of Marsh & McLennan Companies during the 4th quarter worth approximately $207,278,000. Finally, Franklin Resources Inc. boosted its position in shares of Marsh & McLennan Companies by 473.2% during the 4th quarter. Franklin Resources Inc. now owns 927,525 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $197,016,000 after purchasing an additional 765,696 shares during the period. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 87.99% of the company’s stock.

Marsh & McLennan Companies Price Performance

Shares of MMC stock opened at $231.44 on Monday. The firm has a market cap of $114.04 billion, a P/E ratio of 28.26, a P/E/G ratio of 2.70 and a beta of 0.85. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.44, a current ratio of 1.13 and a quick ratio of 1.13. Marsh & McLennan Companies, Inc. has a 1-year low of $201.77 and a 1-year high of $248.00. The firm has a fifty day moving average of $229.22 and a two-hundred day moving average of $224.88.

Marsh & McLennan Companies (NYSE:MMC) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, April 17th. The financial services provider reported $3.06 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $3.02 by $0.04. Marsh & McLennan Companies had a net margin of 16.60% and a return on equity of 32.60%. The company had revenue of $6.70 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $7.08 billion. During the same period last year, the firm posted $2.89 EPS. As a group, research analysts anticipate that Marsh & McLennan Companies, Inc. will post 9.61 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Marsh & McLennan Companies Announces Dividend

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Thursday, May 15th. Shareholders of record on Thursday, April 3rd were paid a dividend of $0.815 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Thursday, April 3rd. This represents a $3.26 annualized dividend and a yield of 1.41%. Marsh & McLennan Companies’s payout ratio is 39.95%.

Insider Buying and Selling at Marsh & McLennan Companies

In other news, SVP Paul Beswick sold 2,237 shares of Marsh & McLennan Companies stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, April 3rd. The shares were sold at an average price of $246.00, for a total value of $550,302.00. Following the transaction, the senior vice president now directly owns 13,522 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $3,326,412. This trade represents a 14.20% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction 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 firm’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 sale, the chief executive officer now owns 28,329 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $6,520,202.64. This represents a 63.55% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last 90 days, insiders have sold 69,634 shares of company stock valued at $16,244,986. Company insiders own 0.35% of the company’s stock.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

MMC has been the subject of several recent research reports. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods decreased their price target on shares of Marsh & McLennan Companies from $220.00 to $215.00 and set an “underperform” rating for the company in a research report on Monday, April 21st. Raymond James restated an “outperform” rating and issued a $250.00 price objective (up from $240.00) on shares of Marsh & McLennan Companies in a report on Thursday, February 6th. 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 price target on the stock. 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 research report on Wednesday, April 9th. Finally, Wells Fargo & Company raised their price objective on shares of Marsh & McLennan Companies from $223.00 to $232.00 and gave the stock an “equal weight” rating in a research report on Thursday, April 10th. Two investment analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, seven have assigned a hold rating and five have given a buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat.com, the company currently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $241.93.

About Marsh & McLennan Companies

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.