Cypress Capital Group Increases Position in Marsh & McLennan Companies, Inc. (NYSE:MMC)

Cypress Capital Group raised its holdings in shares of Marsh & McLennan Companies, Inc. (NYSE:MMC) by 84.8% in the 1st quarter, Holdings Channel reports. The institutional investor owned 1,848 shares of the financial services provider’s stock after purchasing an additional 848 shares during the quarter. Cypress Capital Group’s holdings in Marsh & McLennan Companies were worth $451,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Several other large investors have also modified their holdings of MMC. Accent Capital Management LLC bought a new stake in shares of Marsh & McLennan Companies during the first quarter valued at approximately $25,000. City Holding Co. bought a new stake in Marsh & McLennan Companies during the 1st quarter valued at $37,000. Ameriflex Group Inc. purchased a new position in shares of Marsh & McLennan Companies in the 4th quarter valued at $37,000. Garde Capital Inc. bought a new position in shares of Marsh & McLennan Companies in the 1st quarter worth $42,000. Finally, Transce3nd LLC bought a new position in shares of Marsh & McLennan Companies in the 4th quarter worth $39,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 87.99% of the company’s stock.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several research analysts have recently commented on MMC shares. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods reduced their price target on Marsh & McLennan Companies from $214.00 to $210.00 and set an “underperform” rating for the company in a research report on Monday, July 21st. Barclays reduced their price target on Marsh & McLennan Companies from $249.00 to $233.00 and set an “equal weight” rating for the company in a research report on Monday, July 7th. UBS Group reduced their price target on Marsh & McLennan Companies from $261.00 to $258.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a research report on Monday, July 21st. Finally, Wells Fargo & Company reduced their price target on Marsh & McLennan Companies from $229.00 to $226.00 and set an “equal weight” rating on the stock in a research report on Friday, July 18th. Two investment analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, seven have issued a hold rating and five have issued a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat, the company has an average rating of “Hold” and an average price target of $239.79.

Marsh & McLennan Companies Price Performance

Shares of MMC opened at $203.37 on Tuesday. The firm has a market capitalization of $99.98 billion, a PE ratio of 24.39, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.54 and a beta of 0.77. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.19, a current ratio of 1.20 and a quick ratio of 1.20. Marsh & McLennan Companies, Inc. has a 1-year low of $196.27 and a 1-year high of $248.00. The company’s fifty day moving average price is $213.10 and its 200-day moving average price is $223.77.

Marsh & McLennan Companies (NYSE:MMC) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, July 17th. The financial services provider reported $2.72 earnings per share for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $2.66 by $0.06. The firm had revenue of $6.97 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $6.92 billion. Marsh & McLennan Companies had a net margin of 16.00% and a return on equity of 31.90%. The business’s quarterly revenue was up 12.1% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period in the previous year, the company earned $2.41 earnings per share. On average, equities research analysts predict that Marsh & McLennan Companies, Inc. will post 9.61 EPS for the current year.

Marsh & McLennan Companies Increases Dividend

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, August 15th. Stockholders of record on Thursday, July 24th will be issued a dividend of $0.90 per share. This represents a $3.60 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 1.8%. This is a boost from Marsh & McLennan Companies’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.82. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Thursday, July 24th. Marsh & McLennan Companies’s dividend payout ratio is presently 43.17%.

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.