Park Avenue Securities LLC Acquires New Position in Marsh & McLennan Companies, Inc. $MMC

Park Avenue Securities LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Marsh & McLennan Companies, Inc. (NYSE:MMC) in the second quarter, Holdings Channel reports. The firm acquired 19,289 shares of the financial services provider’s stock, valued at approximately $4,217,000.

A number of other institutional investors have also added to or reduced their stakes in the business. Harbour Investments Inc. increased its position in Marsh & McLennan Companies by 3.6% during the 1st quarter. Harbour Investments Inc. now owns 1,253 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $306,000 after purchasing an additional 44 shares during the period. Defined Wealth Management LLC increased its position in Marsh & McLennan Companies by 1.5% during the 1st quarter. Defined Wealth Management LLC now owns 3,198 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $780,000 after purchasing an additional 47 shares during the period. IFP Advisors Inc increased its position in Marsh & McLennan Companies by 0.6% during the 1st quarter. IFP Advisors Inc now owns 7,479 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $1,825,000 after purchasing an additional 47 shares during the period. Pinnacle Wealth Management Advisory Group LLC increased its position in Marsh & McLennan Companies by 1.1% during the 1st quarter. Pinnacle Wealth Management Advisory Group LLC now owns 4,517 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $1,102,000 after purchasing an additional 47 shares during the period. Finally, E Fund Management Co. Ltd. increased its position in Marsh & McLennan Companies by 3.9% during the 1st quarter. E Fund Management Co. Ltd. now owns 1,263 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $308,000 after purchasing an additional 47 shares during the period. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 87.99% of the company’s stock.

Marsh & McLennan Companies Stock Performance

Shares of NYSE MMC opened at $197.03 on Tuesday. The company has a current ratio of 1.20, a quick ratio of 1.20 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.19. Marsh & McLennan Companies, Inc. has a 12 month low of $195.01 and a 12 month high of $248.00. The company has a 50 day simple moving average of $204.89 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $218.56. The stock has a market cap of $96.86 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 23.62, a PEG ratio of 2.47 and a beta of 0.81.

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

Marsh & McLennan Companies Dividend Announcement

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, November 14th. Investors of record on Thursday, October 2nd will be paid a $0.90 dividend. This represents a $3.60 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 1.8%. The ex-dividend date is Thursday, October 2nd. Marsh & McLennan Companies’s payout ratio is currently 43.17%.

Insider Activity

In related news, CEO John Q. Doyle sold 21,079 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction on Tuesday, September 2nd. The shares were sold at an average price of $205.65, for a total value of $4,334,896.35. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief executive officer directly owned 87,681 shares in the company, valued at $18,031,597.65. The trade was a 19.38% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available at the SEC website. 0.35% of the stock is currently owned by corporate insiders.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of research analysts have commented on the stock. Morgan Stanley cut their target price on shares of Marsh & McLennan Companies from $225.00 to $220.00 and set an “equal weight” rating on the stock in a research report on Monday, August 18th. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods cut their price objective on shares of Marsh & McLennan Companies from $214.00 to $210.00 and set an “underperform” rating on the stock in a research report on Monday, July 21st. Wolfe Research started coverage on shares of Marsh & McLennan Companies in a research report on Tuesday, September 16th. They issued a “peer perform” rating on the stock. UBS Group cut their price objective on shares of Marsh & McLennan Companies from $261.00 to $258.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a research report on Monday, July 21st. Finally, Citigroup started coverage on shares of Marsh & McLennan Companies in a research report on Wednesday, August 13th. They issued a “neutral” rating and a $226.00 price objective on the stock. Six equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, ten have given a Hold rating and two have issued a Sell rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the stock currently has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $238.76.

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.