Lafayette Investments Inc. Sells 135 Shares of Marsh & McLennan Companies, Inc. (NYSE:MMC)

Lafayette Investments Inc. trimmed its stake in Marsh & McLennan Companies, Inc. (NYSE:MMC) by 0.7% in the 1st quarter, according to its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The fund owned 19,788 shares of the financial services provider’s stock after selling 135 shares during the period. Marsh & McLennan Companies makes up about 1.0% of Lafayette Investments Inc.’s portfolio, making the stock its 28th biggest position. Lafayette Investments Inc.’s holdings in Marsh & McLennan Companies were worth $4,829,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC).

A number of other institutional investors and hedge funds have also recently modified their holdings of MMC. Norges Bank purchased a new stake in Marsh & McLennan Companies in the 4th quarter worth about $1,236,186,000. Stifel Financial Corp grew its stake in shares of Marsh & McLennan Companies by 551.0% during the fourth 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 last quarter. Amundi raised its holdings in shares of Marsh & McLennan Companies by 81.1% in the fourth quarter. Amundi now owns 4,072,976 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $860,824,000 after buying an additional 1,823,807 shares during the period. GAMMA Investing LLC boosted its holdings in Marsh & McLennan Companies by 32,120.9% during the 1st quarter. GAMMA Investing LLC now owns 1,515,670 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $369,869,000 after acquiring an additional 1,510,966 shares during the period. Finally, Raymond James Financial Inc. bought a new position in Marsh & McLennan Companies in the 4th quarter valued at $207,278,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 87.99% of the company’s stock.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several analysts have recently weighed in on the company. Jefferies Financial Group lifted their target price on Marsh & McLennan Companies from $237.00 to $244.00 and gave the stock a “hold” rating in a research report on Friday, April 11th. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods decreased their price objective on shares of Marsh & McLennan Companies from $220.00 to $215.00 and set an “underperform” rating for the company in a report on Monday, April 21st. Wells Fargo & Company upped their target price on shares of Marsh & McLennan Companies from $223.00 to $232.00 and gave the stock an “equal weight” rating in a research note on Thursday, April 10th. UBS Group lifted their price target on shares of Marsh & McLennan Companies from $259.00 to $261.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research note on Wednesday, April 9th. Finally, Redburn Atlantic initiated coverage on Marsh & McLennan Companies in a research note on Tuesday, March 25th. They issued a “buy” rating and a $281.00 price objective on the stock. Two research 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 data from MarketBeat, the company currently has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus target price of $241.93.

Insider Transactions at Marsh & McLennan Companies

In other news, SVP Paul Beswick sold 2,237 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Thursday, April 3rd. The stock was sold at an average price of $246.00, for a total value of $550,302.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the senior vice president now directly owns 13,522 shares in the company, valued at $3,326,412. This trade represents a 14.20% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available through the SEC website. Also, CEO Dean Michael Klisura sold 9,569 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, March 31st. The stock was sold at an average price of $245.00, for a total transaction of $2,344,405.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief executive officer now owns 20,935 shares in the company, valued at approximately $5,129,075. This trade represents a 31.37% decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders own 0.35% of the company’s stock.

Marsh & McLennan Companies Stock Performance

MMC stock opened at $216.01 on Friday. The firm has a market cap of $106.44 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 26.47, a PEG ratio of 2.65 and a beta of 0.83. Marsh & McLennan Companies, Inc. has a one year low of $207.21 and a one year high of $248.00. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.32, a quick ratio of 1.14 and a current ratio of 1.14. The firm has a 50-day simple moving average of $224.14 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $224.60.

Marsh & McLennan Companies (NYSE:MMC) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, April 17th. The financial services provider reported $3.06 earnings per share for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $3.02 by $0.04. Marsh & McLennan Companies had a return on equity of 32.19% and a net margin of 16.13%. The firm had revenue of $6.70 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $7.08 billion. During the same quarter last year, the firm earned $2.89 EPS. On average, equities analysts forecast that Marsh & McLennan Companies, Inc. will post 9.61 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Marsh & McLennan Companies 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.