Marsh & McLennan Companies (NYSE:MMC) executives said the company delivered “another good year” in 2025, while acknowledging a more competitive insurance and reinsurance pricing environment and headwinds from lower interest rates. On the company’s fourth-quarter earnings call, President and CEO John Doyle and CFO Mark McGivney also emphasized ongoing investments in technology and talent under the firm’s “Thrive” growth program and highlighted digital infrastructure as a key area of opportunity.
Full-year results and capital deployment
Doyle said total revenue grew 10% in 2025 to $27 billion, with underlying revenue growth of 4%. Adjusted operating income increased 11% to $7.3 billion, and adjusted operating margin improved 30 basis points, which he described as the company’s 18th consecutive year of reported margin expansion. Adjusted EPS grew 9%.
McGivney said the buyback pace increased in the fourth quarter largely because M&A deployment was lower than it might have been given the pipeline. He reiterated that management favors “high quality, accretive acquisitions” over repurchases when opportunities are available, and said the company expects to deploy about $5 billion of capital in 2026 across dividends, acquisitions, and share repurchases, with the ultimate repurchase level dependent on M&A activity.
Fourth-quarter performance
For the fourth quarter, consolidated revenue rose 9% to $6.6 billion, with 4% underlying growth, which McGivney said came “despite a headwind from fiduciary interest income.” Operating income was $1.2 billion and adjusted operating income was $1.6 billion, up 12%. Adjusted operating margin increased 40 basis points to 23.7%. GAAP EPS was $1.68 and adjusted EPS was $2.12, up 10% year over year. The company repurchased $1 billion of stock during the quarter.
Segment details: RIS, consulting, and fiduciary interest income
Risk and Insurance Services (RIS) fourth-quarter revenue was $4.0 billion, up 9% year over year, or 2% on an underlying basis. Adjusted operating income rose 11% to $1.1 billion and the adjusted operating margin was 27.6%, up 60 basis points. For the full year, RIS revenue was $17.3 billion with 4% underlying growth; adjusted operating income increased 12% to $5.5 billion and the adjusted operating margin was 32%.
Within RIS:
- Marsh Risk fourth-quarter revenue increased 10% to $3.7 billion, or 3% underlying. McGivney said comparisons were tougher due to elevated claims activity in the Torrent flood business in the prior year’s quarter and the renewal of 18-month policies in Latin America. U.S. and Canada underlying growth was 3% and international was 4% (with EMEA up 6%, Asia Pacific up 2%, and Latin America down 4%). Full-year Marsh Risk revenue was $14.4 billion with 4% underlying growth.
- Guy Carpenter fourth-quarter revenue was $215 million, up 7%, or 5% underlying, which management said was achieved despite softer reinsurance market conditions and against a strong prior-year comparison. Full-year Guy Carpenter revenue was $2.5 billion with 5% underlying growth.
In consulting, fourth-quarter revenue increased 8% to $2.6 billion, or 5% on an underlying basis. Adjusted operating income rose 10% to $550 million, and the adjusted operating margin was 20.8%. For the full year, consulting revenue was $9.8 billion with 5% underlying growth, adjusted operating income increased 10% to $2.1 billion, and the adjusted operating margin increased 40 basis points to 21.1%.
Within consulting:
- Mercer fourth-quarter revenue rose 9% to $1.6 billion, or 4% underlying. Health grew 6% and wealth increased 5%, led by the investments business. Mercer’s assets under management were $692 billion at quarter end, up 12% year over year, driven primarily by acquisitions and capital markets. Career revenue declined 2% due to softness in project-related work in the U.S. and Canada, partially offset by demand internationally and growth in workforce products.
- Marsh Management Consulting (formerly reported as Oliver Wyman Group) posted fourth-quarter revenue of $1.0 billion, up 8% on both a GAAP and underlying basis. For the full year, revenue was $3.6 billion, up 6% on an underlying basis.
Fiduciary interest income was $92 million in the quarter, down $20 million year over year, reflecting lower interest rates. McGivney said the company expects fiduciary interest income of about $83 million in the first quarter. He also said the firm expects first-quarter interest expense of about $240 million, compared with $235 million in the fourth quarter.
Market conditions: pricing, reinsurance capacity, and health trends
Doyle characterized the insurance and reinsurance markets as competitive. Citing the Marsh Global Insurance Market Index, he said primary commercial insurance rates decreased 4% in the fourth quarter, driven largely by property, matching the 4% decline in the third quarter. U.S. rates were flat; the U.K., Canada, and Latin America were down 7%. He said global property rates decreased 9% year over year, global financial and professional liability rates were down 4%, cyber decreased 7%, and global casualty rates increased 4%, including U.S. excess casualty up 19%.
In reinsurance, Doyle said the property catastrophe market continued to soften as reinsurers pursue growth by deploying more capital, with price decreases accelerating at Jan. 1 and “double-digit rate reductions for non-loss-impacted cat placements.” He said demand increased 5%–10% depending on region and segment, with buyers seeking improved risk sharing such as aggregate covers.
Doyle also noted a record year for cat bonds, with 86 new bonds totaling more than $24 billion in limits, and said dedicated reinsurance capital is projected to increase 9% to $660 billion at the end of 2025, driven by growth in traditional and alternative capital.
On health trends, Doyle said company surveys indicate medical costs are expected to continue rising in 2026, estimating a 7% increase in the U.S. and high single-digit to low double-digit increases in other regions.
Thrive, AI, and digital infrastructure focus
Management repeatedly pointed to Thrive as a multi-year program intended to increase financial flexibility and agility, while funding investment in “frontline talent and integrated solutions.” Doyle said Thrive includes the formation of Business and Client Services (BCS), which he described as a fundamental change to the operating model that accelerates expense savings and investment in AI and automation. He said the company has introduced “dozens” of AI-driven productivity tools and is ramping adoption, while also developing client-facing tools such as Sentrisk and Aida.
McGivney said the company expects Thrive to generate “$400 billion of total savings” and incur about $500 million of charges to produce those savings. (He noted $210 million of noteworthy items in the fourth quarter, including $112 million of Thrive-related costs.)
During Q&A, executives highlighted digital infrastructure as a significant opportunity. Doyle said he expects roughly $3 trillion of investment over the next five years and positioned Marsh’s capabilities across risk advisory, capital management, workforce strategies, and energy solutions as relevant to the build-out.
Marsh Risk CEO Martin South said Marsh has long been a leader in the technology sector and described work across data centers, fabrication plants, and related services. He said Marsh U.S. “handled the leading market share” of $205 billion in data center construction values in 2025 and pointed to a capacity solution called Nimbus that “doubled its capacity to $2.7 billion.” Guy Carpenter CEO Dean Klisura said the market may see “up to $10 billion of new premium entering the market in 2026” tied to these opportunities and argued that additional capital—potentially through third-party capital and securitization vehicles—will be needed to address large-risk capacity constraints.
In consulting, Mercer CEO Pat Tomlinson said clients are seeking help with workforce planning, skills assessment and development, mobility, rewards, and healthcare plan designs to support large programs, especially in Asia. Marsh Management Consulting CEO Nick Studer said the firm is helping clients not only build new data centers, but also transform existing data centers to become “AI-enabled,” while also seeing demand for energy-related work including power and grid strategy, supply chain resilience, and regulation navigation.
Looking to 2026, Doyle and McGivney both said the company expects underlying revenue growth to be similar to 2025, with continued margin expansion and solid adjusted EPS growth, while noting headwinds from lower interest rates and declining insurance and reinsurance pricing. Executives also emphasized continued investment in talent and technology, and maintained that the firm sees opportunity in a complex environment they described as an “era of polycrises.”
About Marsh & McLennan Companies (NYSE:MMC)
Marsh & McLennan Companies (NYSE: MMC) is a global professional services firm headquartered in New York City that provides advice and solutions in the areas of risk, strategy and people. Founded in 1905, the company has grown into a diversified group of businesses focused on insurance brokerage and risk management, reinsurance, human capital and investment consulting, and management consulting. Its long history and scale position it as a prominent adviser to corporations, governments and other institutions seeking to manage risk and optimize human and financial capital.
The firm operates through several well-known subsidiaries and business units that specialize in distinct services.
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