Marsh & McLennan Companies, Inc. $MRSH Stock: Maryland State Retirement & Pension System Boosts Holdings

Maryland State Retirement & Pension System grew its holdings in Marsh & McLennan Companies, Inc. (NYSE:MRSH) by 15.0% in the third quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the SEC. The institutional investor owned 29,876 shares of the financial services provider’s stock after buying an additional 3,894 shares during the quarter. Maryland State Retirement & Pension System’s holdings in Marsh & McLennan Companies were worth $5,101,000 as of its most recent filing with the SEC.

A number of other hedge funds and other institutional investors also recently made changes to their positions in MRSH. Asset Dedication LLC acquired a new position in Marsh & McLennan Companies in the first quarter worth about $25,000. Quest 10 Wealth Builders Inc. boosted its holdings in Marsh & McLennan Companies by 95.0% during the third quarter. Quest 10 Wealth Builders Inc. now owns 156 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $27,000 after purchasing an additional 76 shares in the last quarter. EFG International AG acquired a new stake in Marsh & McLennan Companies during the second quarter valued at approximately $30,000. Bell Investment Advisors Inc bought a new stake in shares of Marsh & McLennan Companies in the 2nd quarter valued at approximately $31,000. Finally, Gen Wealth Partners Inc acquired a new position in shares of Marsh & McLennan Companies in the 3rd quarter worth approximately $33,000. 87.99% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

Insider Transactions at Marsh & McLennan Companies

In other Marsh & McLennan Companies news, CEO Dean Klisura sold 4,194 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated Friday, October 23rd. The stock was sold at an average price of $200.00, for a total transaction of $838,800.00. Following the completion of the sale, the chief executive officer directly owned 20,935 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $4,187,000. The trade was a 16.69% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which can be accessed through the SEC website. The transaction was executed under a pre-arranged Rule 10b5-1 trading plan. Also, VP Stacy Mills sold 1,215 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Friday, October 23rd. The shares were sold at an average price of $200.00, for a total transaction of $243,000.00. Following the transaction, the vice president owned 2,705 shares in the company, valued at approximately $541,000. The trade was a 30.99% decrease in their ownership of the stock. Additional details regarding this sale are available in the official SEC disclosure. The transaction was executed under a pre-arranged Rule 10b5-1 trading plan. The sale was made to cover tax withholding obligations related to the vesting of equity awards. 0.38% of the stock is owned by company insiders.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several research firms recently commented on MRSH. UBS Group raised their target price on Marsh & McLennan Companies from $216.00 to $222.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research report on Tuesday, October 6th. BMO Capital Markets upgraded Marsh & McLennan Companies from a “market perform” rating to an “outperform” rating and upped their price target for the company from $204.00 to $230.00 in a research report on Tuesday, November 3rd. Evercore dropped their price objective on Marsh & McLennan Companies from $234.00 to $224.00 in a research note on Thursday, October 8th. The Goldman Sachs Group cut their price objective on Marsh & McLennan Companies from $197.00 to $191.00 and set a “neutral” rating for the company in a report on Thursday, October 1st. Finally, Jefferies Financial Group reduced their target price on shares of Marsh & McLennan Companies from $193.00 to $188.00 and set a “hold” rating on the stock in a research note on Wednesday, September 30th. Two equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, seven have assigned a Buy rating, nine have assigned a Hold rating and two have issued a Sell rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat, the company currently has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $205.84.

Marsh & McLennan Companies Price Performance

Shares of Marsh & McLennan Companies stock opened at $205.69 on Friday. The company has a current ratio of 1.09, a quick ratio of 1.09 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.27. The firm has a 50 day moving average of $185.11. Marsh & McLennan Companies, Inc. has a fifty-two week low of $156.60 and a fifty-two week high of $214.00. The firm has a market capitalization of $97.81 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 24.60, a P/E/G ratio of 2.80 and a beta of 0.53.

Marsh & McLennan Companies (NYSE:MRSH) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, October 15th. The financial services provider reported $2.03 EPS for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.96 by $0.07. The firm had revenue of $6.86 billion for the quarter. Marsh & McLennan Companies had a return on equity of 33.32% and a net margin of 14.20%. The company’s revenue for the quarter was up 8.1% on a year-over-year basis. On average, sell-side analysts expect that Marsh & McLennan Companies, Inc. will post 10.49 EPS for the current year.

Marsh & McLennan Companies Announces Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, November 13th. Investors of record on Thursday, October 1st will be given a $0.99 dividend. This represents a $3.96 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 1.9%. The ex-dividend date is Thursday, October 1st. Marsh & McLennan Companies’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 47.37%.

Marsh & McLennan Companies Company Profile

Marsh & McLennan Companies, now known as Marsh, is a professional services firm focused on risk, strategy and people. Its businesses help organizations assess and manage risk, arrange insurance and reinsurance, and address workforce and organizational challenges. The company operates through Marsh, an insurance brokerage and risk advisory business; Guy Carpenter, which specializes in reinsurance and related risk services; Mercer, which provides health, wealth and career consulting; and Oliver Wyman, a management consulting firm.