Aberdeen Group plc Acquires 31,304 Shares of Marsh & McLennan Companies, Inc. $MMC

Aberdeen Group plc lifted its holdings in shares of Marsh & McLennan Companies, Inc. (NYSE:MMC) by 8.3% in the 2nd quarter, HoldingsChannel.com reports. The fund owned 410,373 shares of the financial services provider’s stock after purchasing an additional 31,304 shares during the quarter. Aberdeen Group plc’s holdings in Marsh & McLennan Companies were worth $88,987,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission.

Several other institutional investors have also added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Harbour Investments Inc. boosted its stake in Marsh & McLennan Companies by 3.6% in 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. IFP Advisors Inc boosted its stake in Marsh & McLennan Companies by 0.6% in 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 boosted its stake in Marsh & McLennan Companies by 1.1% in 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. E Fund Management Co. Ltd. boosted its stake in Marsh & McLennan Companies by 3.9% in 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. Finally, McAdam LLC boosted its stake in Marsh & McLennan Companies by 1.2% in the 1st quarter. McAdam LLC now owns 3,948 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $963,000 after purchasing an additional 47 shares during the period. 87.99% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Insider Transactions at Marsh & McLennan Companies

In other Marsh & McLennan Companies news, CEO John Q. Doyle sold 21,079 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, September 2nd. The stock was 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 owned 87,681 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $18,031,597.65. This represents a 19.38% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this link. 0.35% of the stock is currently owned by insiders.

Marsh & McLennan Companies Price Performance

Marsh & McLennan Companies stock opened at $207.12 on Friday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.19, a quick ratio of 1.20 and a current ratio of 1.20. Marsh & McLennan Companies, Inc. has a 52 week low of $195.01 and a 52 week high of $248.00. The stock has a market capitalization of $101.83 billion, a P/E ratio of 24.83, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.61 and a beta of 0.81. The stock has a fifty day moving average of $203.29 and a 200-day moving average of $215.57.

Marsh & McLennan Companies (NYSE:MMC) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, July 17th. The financial services provider reported $2.72 EPS for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $2.66 by $0.06. Marsh & McLennan Companies had a return on equity of 31.90% and a net margin of 16.00%.The company had revenue of $6.97 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $6.92 billion. During the same quarter in the previous year, the firm earned $2.41 EPS. Marsh & McLennan Companies’s revenue was up 12.1% on a year-over-year basis. On average, sell-side analysts expect that Marsh & McLennan Companies, Inc. will post 9.61 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Marsh & McLennan Companies Announces Dividend

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, November 14th. Shareholders of record on Thursday, October 2nd will be issued a $0.90 dividend. This represents a $3.60 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 1.7%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Thursday, October 2nd. Marsh & McLennan Companies’s dividend payout ratio is presently 43.17%.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several brokerages have weighed in on MMC. UBS Group dropped their price objective on Marsh & McLennan Companies from $258.00 to $257.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a report on Wednesday. Barclays dropped their price objective on Marsh & McLennan Companies from $233.00 to $221.00 and set an “equal weight” rating for the company in a report on Wednesday. Wells Fargo & Company dropped their price objective on Marsh & McLennan Companies from $226.00 to $222.00 and set an “equal weight” rating for the company in a report on Wednesday. Wolfe Research began coverage on Marsh & McLennan Companies in a report on Tuesday, September 16th. They issued a “peer perform” rating for the company. Finally, Keefe, Bruyette & Woods dropped their price objective on Marsh & McLennan Companies from $214.00 to $210.00 and set an “underperform” rating for the company in a report on Monday, July 21st. Seven research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, nine have assigned a Hold rating and two have assigned a Sell rating to the company. According to MarketBeat.com, the company has a consensus rating of “Hold” and an average price target of $237.13.

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.