Assetmark Inc. Acquires New Holdings in Marsh & McLennan Companies, Inc. $MRSH

Assetmark Inc. bought a new position in Marsh & McLennan Companies, Inc. (NYSE:MRSH) in the 1st quarter, HoldingsChannel reports. The fund bought 628,686 shares of the financial services provider’s stock, valued at approximately $109,046,000.

A number of other hedge funds also recently made changes to their positions in MRSH. Vanguard Group Inc. grew its holdings in Marsh & McLennan Companies by 0.8% in the 4th quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 46,589,633 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $8,643,309,000 after buying an additional 387,100 shares in the last quarter. State Street Corp bought a new stake in Marsh & McLennan Companies during the 4th quarter valued at $4,057,682,000. Capital International Investors acquired a new position in Marsh & McLennan Companies during the 4th quarter worth $3,482,557,000. Capital World Investors bought a new position in shares of Marsh & McLennan Companies in the fourth quarter worth $3,140,284,000. Finally, Wellington Management Group LLP acquired a new position in shares of Marsh & McLennan Companies during the fourth quarter valued at $2,967,927,000. Institutional investors own 87.99% of the company’s stock.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

MRSH has been the topic of a number of recent analyst reports. Cantor Fitzgerald lifted their price objective on shares of Marsh & McLennan Companies from $210.00 to $218.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research note on Thursday, July 9th. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods raised their target price on shares of Marsh & McLennan Companies from $200.00 to $203.00 and gave the company a “market perform” rating in a research note on Friday, April 17th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. upped their price target on shares of Marsh & McLennan Companies from $206.00 to $212.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research note on Monday. Mizuho increased their price objective on shares of Marsh & McLennan Companies from $194.00 to $197.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a report on Thursday, July 9th. Finally, Wells Fargo & Company dropped their target price on Marsh & McLennan Companies from $203.00 to $178.00 and set an “equal weight” rating on the stock in a report on Thursday, April 9th. One analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, six have assigned a Buy rating, ten have assigned a Hold rating and one has given a Sell rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the company has a consensus rating of “Hold” and an average price target of $200.81.

Insider Activity

In related news, CEO John Q. Doyle sold 16,656 shares of Marsh & McLennan Companies stock in a transaction on Tuesday, June 2nd. The stock was sold at an average price of $161.71, for a total value of $2,693,441.76. Following the transaction, the chief executive officer directly owned 116,811 shares in the company, valued at $18,889,506.81. The trade was a 12.48% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available through this link. The transaction was executed under a pre-arranged Rule 10b5-1 trading plan. 0.38% of the stock is owned by insiders.

Marsh & McLennan Companies Stock Up 3.4%

Shares of MRSH opened at $182.22 on Friday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.28, a quick ratio of 1.11 and a current ratio of 1.11. Marsh & McLennan Companies, Inc. has a 12-month low of $156.60 and a 12-month high of $216.32. The company has a market capitalization of $88.03 billion, a PE ratio of 22.78, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.57 and a beta of 0.61.

Marsh & McLennan Companies (NYSE:MRSH) last issued its earnings results on Thursday, April 16th. The financial services provider reported $3.29 earnings per share for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $3.21 by $0.08. The firm had revenue of $7.30 billion during the quarter. Marsh & McLennan Companies had a net margin of 14.26% and a return on equity of 31.87%. The business’s revenue for the quarter was up 7.6% compared to the same quarter last year. On average, research analysts anticipate that Marsh & McLennan Companies, Inc. will post 10.36 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 14th. Stockholders of record on Thursday, July 23rd will be paid a dividend of $0.99 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Thursday, July 23rd. This represents a $3.96 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 2.2%. This is a boost from Marsh & McLennan Companies’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.90. Marsh & McLennan Companies’s dividend payout ratio is 45.00%.

Marsh & McLennan Companies Company Profile

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.