Marsh & McLennan Companies (NYSE:MRSH) Upgraded at Erste Group Bank

Erste Group Bank upgraded shares of Marsh & McLennan Companies (NYSE:MRSH) to a strong-buy rating in a report released on Tuesday morning,Zacks reports.

MRSH has been the topic of several other research reports. UBS Group boosted their price target on shares of Marsh & McLennan Companies from $212.00 to $216.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research report on Monday, July 27th. Mizuho boosted their price objective on shares of Marsh & McLennan Companies from $197.00 to $201.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a report on Wednesday, July 22nd. Piper Sandler dropped their target price on Marsh & McLennan Companies from $190.00 to $182.00 and set a “neutral” rating for the company in a report on Tuesday, May 26th. Cantor Fitzgerald raised their price target on shares of Marsh & McLennan Companies from $210.00 to $218.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a report on Thursday, July 9th. Finally, Weiss Ratings upgraded Marsh & McLennan Companies from a “hold (c-)” rating to a “hold (c)” rating in a report on Friday, August 7th. Two research analysts have rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, five have issued a Buy rating, eleven have given a Hold rating and one has given a Sell rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat, Marsh & McLennan Companies presently has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus target price of $203.50.

Marsh & McLennan Companies Stock Performance

Marsh & McLennan Companies stock opened at $177.08 on Tuesday. The stock has a market capitalization of $84.50 billion, a PE ratio of 21.65, a PEG ratio of 2.45 and a beta of 0.58. Marsh & McLennan Companies has a fifty-two week low of $156.60 and a fifty-two week high of $207.82. The company has a current ratio of 1.14, a quick ratio of 1.14 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.22. The stock’s 50-day moving average price is $185.85.

Marsh & McLennan Companies (NYSE:MRSH) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, July 21st. The financial services provider reported $2.96 earnings per share for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $2.89 by $0.07. The company had revenue of $7.28 billion during the quarter. Marsh & McLennan Companies had a net margin of 14.24% and a return on equity of 32.67%. The business’s quarterly revenue was up 6.2% compared to the same quarter last year. As a group, analysts predict that Marsh & McLennan Companies will post 10.44 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Marsh & McLennan Companies Increases Dividend

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, August 14th. Investors of record on Thursday, July 23rd were paid a dividend of $0.99 per share. This is a boost from Marsh & McLennan Companies’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.90. The ex-dividend date was Thursday, July 23rd. This represents a $3.96 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 2.2%. Marsh & McLennan Companies’s dividend payout ratio is presently 48.41%.

Insider Activity

In related news, Director Lloyd M. Yates sold 12,000 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Thursday, July 23rd. The stock was sold at an average price of $175.65, for a total transaction of $2,107,800.00. Following the completion of the sale, the director owned 12,001 shares in the company, valued at approximately $2,107,975.65. This trade represents a 50.00% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. Also, SVP Paul Beswick sold 713 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, July 29th. The stock was sold at an average price of $198.00, for a total value of $141,174.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the senior vice president directly owned 16,376 shares in the company, valued at approximately $3,242,448. This represents a 4.17% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale is available in the SEC filing. The transaction was executed under a pre-arranged Rule 10b5-1 trading plan. Insiders have sold 19,813 shares of company stock worth $3,597,903 in the last three months. Company insiders own 0.38% of the company’s stock.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Marsh & McLennan Companies

Several institutional investors have recently bought and sold shares of MRSH. Solstein Capital LLC purchased a new position in shares of Marsh & McLennan Companies during the fourth quarter valued at about $25,000. Asset Dedication LLC purchased a new position in Marsh & McLennan Companies during the 1st quarter valued at approximately $25,000. SHP Wealth Management purchased a new stake in shares of Marsh & McLennan Companies during the 4th quarter worth approximately $26,000. KERR FINANCIAL PLANNING Corp bought a new position in shares of Marsh & McLennan Companies during the 4th quarter valued at approximately $27,000. Finally, Golden State Wealth Management LLC bought a new stake in Marsh & McLennan Companies in the fourth quarter worth $27,000. 87.99% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Marsh & McLennan Companies Company Profile

Marsh & McLennan Companies, now operating under the name Marsh McLennan, is a global professional services firm that helps organizations manage risk, strategy and people-related challenges. Its businesses serve corporations, governments, institutional investors and other organizations across a broad range of industries and geographies.

The company’s principal businesses include Marsh, an insurance brokerage and risk advisory firm; Guy Carpenter, which provides reinsurance brokerage and related risk management services; Mercer, which offers consulting in areas such as talent, health, retirement and investments; and Oliver Wyman, a management consulting firm.