Jensen Investment Management Inc. Sells 206,049 Shares of Marsh & McLennan Companies, Inc. $MMC

Jensen Investment Management Inc. lowered its stake in shares of Marsh & McLennan Companies, Inc. (NYSE:MMC) by 7.8% during the second quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The fund owned 2,423,637 shares of the financial services provider’s stock after selling 206,049 shares during the period. Marsh & McLennan Companies makes up 6.2% of Jensen Investment Management Inc.’s portfolio, making the stock its 3rd biggest position. Jensen Investment Management Inc. owned approximately 0.49% of Marsh & McLennan Companies worth $529,904,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission.

A number of other hedge funds have also modified their holdings of the company. Jennison Associates LLC raised its holdings in shares of Marsh & McLennan Companies by 225.1% during the second quarter. Jennison Associates LLC now owns 1,051,055 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $229,803,000 after acquiring an additional 727,714 shares during the period. LPL Financial LLC raised its stake in shares of Marsh & McLennan Companies by 9.9% in the 1st quarter. LPL Financial LLC now owns 324,035 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $78,662,000 after purchasing an additional 29,247 shares during the period. Fjarde AP Fonden Fourth Swedish National Pension Fund lifted its holdings in shares of Marsh & McLennan Companies by 18.7% in the second quarter. Fjarde AP Fonden Fourth Swedish National Pension Fund now owns 218,131 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $47,692,000 after purchasing an additional 34,400 shares in the last quarter. Valeo Financial Advisors LLC boosted its position in shares of Marsh & McLennan Companies by 48,212.9% during the second quarter. Valeo Financial Advisors LLC now owns 2,629,187 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $574,845,000 after buying an additional 2,623,745 shares during the period. Finally, Shell Asset Management Co. grew its holdings in shares of Marsh & McLennan Companies by 48.6% during the second quarter. Shell Asset Management Co. now owns 8,577 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $1,875,000 after buying an additional 2,806 shares in the last quarter. 87.99% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of equities analysts have weighed in on MMC shares. JPMorgan Chase & Co. raised Marsh & McLennan Companies from a “neutral” rating to an “overweight” rating and reduced their price target for the stock from $248.00 to $242.00 in a research report on Thursday, October 9th. Bank of America restated an “underperform” rating and set a $181.00 target price (down previously from $243.00) on shares of Marsh & McLennan Companies in a report on Monday, November 3rd. Wolfe Research began coverage on shares of Marsh & McLennan Companies in a research note on Tuesday, September 16th. They issued a “peer perform” rating on the stock. The Goldman Sachs Group upgraded shares of Marsh & McLennan Companies from a “sell” rating to a “neutral” rating and reduced their price objective for the stock from $200.00 to $195.00 in a research note on Monday, October 20th. Finally, Wells Fargo & Company lowered their target price on Marsh & McLennan Companies from $222.00 to $212.00 and set an “equal weight” rating on the stock in a research report on Friday, October 17th. Seven investment analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, ten have given a Hold rating and one has assigned a Sell rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, Marsh & McLennan Companies has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $228.63.

Marsh & McLennan Companies Stock Performance

Shares of MMC opened at $182.84 on Friday. The company has a market cap of $89.58 billion, a PE ratio of 21.92, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.25 and a beta of 0.78. The firm has a 50-day moving average of $193.15 and a 200-day moving average of $207.94. Marsh & McLennan Companies, Inc. has a one year low of $174.18 and a one year high of $248.00. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.19, a current ratio of 1.12 and a quick ratio of 1.12.

Marsh & McLennan Companies (NYSE:MMC) last issued its earnings results on Thursday, October 16th. The financial services provider reported $1.85 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $1.78 by $0.07. Marsh & McLennan Companies had a net margin of 15.60% and a return on equity of 31.79%. The business had revenue of $6.35 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $6.34 billion. During the same period last year, the business posted $1.63 EPS. Marsh & McLennan Companies’s revenue was up 11.5% on a year-over-year basis. As a group, equities analysts forecast that Marsh & McLennan Companies, Inc. will post 9.61 earnings per share for the current year.

Marsh & McLennan Companies Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, November 14th. Stockholders of record on Thursday, October 2nd were paid a dividend of $0.90 per share. This represents a $3.60 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 2.0%. The ex-dividend date was Thursday, October 2nd. Marsh & McLennan Companies’s payout ratio is currently 43.17%.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other Marsh & McLennan Companies news, CEO John Q. Doyle sold 21,079 shares of Marsh & McLennan Companies stock in a transaction on Tuesday, September 2nd. The shares were sold at an average price of $205.65, for a total transaction of $4,334,896.35. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief executive officer directly owned 87,681 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $18,031,597.65. The trade was a 19.38% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available through this hyperlink. Company insiders own 0.35% of the company’s stock.

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.