Bahl & Gaynor Inc. Has $357.93 Million Holdings in Marsh & McLennan Companies, Inc. (NYSE:MMC)

Bahl & Gaynor Inc. lessened its holdings in Marsh & McLennan Companies, Inc. (NYSE:MMC) by 3.6% during the fourth quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The fund owned 1,889,100 shares of the financial services provider’s stock after selling 69,949 shares during the period. Marsh & McLennan Companies comprises 2.2% of Bahl & Gaynor Inc.’s investment portfolio, making the stock its 12th biggest holding. Bahl & Gaynor Inc.’s holdings in Marsh & McLennan Companies were worth $357,928,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

A number of other institutional investors and hedge funds also recently made changes to their positions in MMC. Valley National Advisers Inc. grew its position in Marsh & McLennan Companies by 343.3% in the 4th quarter. Valley National Advisers Inc. now owns 133 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $25,000 after purchasing an additional 103 shares in the last quarter. Altshuler Shaham Ltd bought a new stake in Marsh & McLennan Companies in the 3rd quarter worth about $27,000. OFI Invest Asset Management bought a new stake in Marsh & McLennan Companies in the 3rd quarter worth about $28,000. Headinvest LLC bought a new stake in Marsh & McLennan Companies in the 3rd quarter worth about $28,000. Finally, Cordant Inc. bought a new stake in Marsh & McLennan Companies in the 4th quarter worth about $28,000. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 87.99% of the company’s stock.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of equities research analysts have issued reports on MMC shares. JPMorgan Chase & Co. upped their price objective on shares of Marsh & McLennan Companies from $190.00 to $198.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a research report on Monday, April 8th. Morgan Stanley increased their target price on shares of Marsh & McLennan Companies from $205.00 to $210.00 and gave the company an “equal weight” rating in a research report on Monday, April 15th. Piper Sandler downgraded shares of Marsh & McLennan Companies from an “overweight” rating to a “neutral” rating and set a $211.00 target price for the company. in a research report on Wednesday, April 17th. Wells Fargo & Company increased their target price on shares of Marsh & McLennan Companies from $212.00 to $213.00 and gave the company an “equal weight” rating in a research report on Friday, April 19th. Finally, Keefe, Bruyette & Woods increased their target price on shares of Marsh & McLennan Companies from $185.00 to $188.00 and gave the company an “underperform” rating in a research report on Wednesday, April 10th. Two investment analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, ten have issued a hold rating and four have given a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat, Marsh & McLennan Companies has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus target price of $207.69.

Insider Activity

In other news, CFO Mark C. Mcgivney sold 12,494 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction on Monday, March 4th. The shares were sold at an average price of $200.79, for a total transaction of $2,508,670.26. Following the sale, the chief financial officer now owns 33,678 shares in the company, valued at approximately $6,762,205.62. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is accessible through this link. In related news, CFO Mark C. Mcgivney sold 12,494 shares of the stock in a transaction on Monday, March 4th. The shares were sold at an average price of $200.79, for a total transaction of $2,508,670.26. Following the transaction, the chief financial officer now owns 33,678 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $6,762,205.62. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available through the SEC website. Also, VP Stacy Mills sold 1,461 shares of the stock in a transaction on Thursday, March 14th. The shares were sold at an average price of $209.16, for a total transaction of $305,582.76. Following the transaction, the vice president now directly owns 2,923 shares in the company, valued at approximately $611,374.68. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last quarter, insiders have sold 36,751 shares of company stock worth $7,448,163. 0.30% of the stock is currently owned by corporate insiders.

Marsh & McLennan Companies Stock Performance

NYSE MMC opened at $197.95 on Friday. Marsh & McLennan Companies, Inc. has a 1 year low of $171.47 and a 1 year high of $209.20. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.97, a current ratio of 1.14 and a quick ratio of 1.14. The stock has a market capitalization of $97.53 billion, a PE ratio of 25.12, a P/E/G ratio of 3.36 and a beta of 0.90. The company’s 50 day simple moving average is $203.10 and its two-hundred day simple moving average is $197.13.

Marsh & McLennan Companies (NYSE:MMC) last posted its earnings results on Thursday, April 18th. The financial services provider reported $2.89 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $2.80 by $0.09. The business had revenue of $6.50 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $6.38 billion. Marsh & McLennan Companies had a net margin of 16.84% and a return on equity of 34.14%. The business’s revenue for the quarter was up 9.7% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period in the prior year, the company posted $2.53 EPS. Analysts predict that Marsh & McLennan Companies, Inc. will post 8.69 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Marsh & McLennan Companies Announces Dividend

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, May 15th. Stockholders of record on Thursday, April 4th will be given a dividend of $0.71 per share. This represents a $2.84 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 1.43%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Wednesday, April 3rd. Marsh & McLennan Companies’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 36.04%.

About Marsh & McLennan Companies

Marsh & McLennan Companies, Inc, a professional services company, provides advice and solutions to clients in the areas of risk, strategy, and people worldwide. It operates through Risk and Insurance Services, and Consulting segments. The Risk and Insurance Services segment offers risk management services, such as risk advice, risk transfer, and risk control and mitigation solutions, as well as insurance and reinsurance broking, strategic advisory services, and analytics solutions, and insurance program management services.