Marsh & McLennan Companies (NYSE:MRSH) Stock Gets Price Target Trim from Wells Fargo & Company

Marsh & McLennan Companies (NYSE:MRSH) had its price objective cut by Wells Fargo & Company from $188.00 to $183.00 in a research report released on Monday,Benzinga reports. They currently have an equal weight rating on the financial services provider’s stock.

MRSH has been the subject of a number of other reports. Morgan Stanley reduced their price objective on shares of Marsh & McLennan Companies from $200.00 to $180.00 and set an “equal weight” rating for the company in a research note on Tuesday, October 6th. Jefferies Financial Group dropped their target price on Marsh & McLennan Companies from $193.00 to $188.00 and set a “hold” rating on the stock in a research report on Wednesday, September 30th. Evercore cut their price target on Marsh & McLennan Companies from $234.00 to $224.00 in a report on Thursday, October 8th. Weiss Ratings upgraded Marsh & McLennan Companies from a “hold (c-)” rating to a “hold (c)” rating in a research report on Friday, August 7th. Finally, Erste Group Bank upgraded Marsh & McLennan Companies to a “strong-buy” rating in a research note on Tuesday, September 8th. Two equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, six have issued a Buy rating, twelve have given a Hold rating and two have issued a Sell rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the company has an average rating of “Hold” and an average target price of $202.75.

Marsh & McLennan Companies Stock Up 0.8%

Shares of NYSE:MRSH opened at $178.43 on Monday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.22, a current ratio of 1.14 and a quick ratio of 1.14. The company has a market capitalization of $85.15 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 21.81, a PEG ratio of 2.46 and a beta of 0.59. Marsh & McLennan Companies has a twelve month low of $156.60 and a twelve month high of $206.04. The stock’s 50-day simple moving average is $181.35.

Marsh & McLennan Companies (NYSE:MRSH) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, July 21st. The financial services provider reported $2.96 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $2.89 by $0.07. The company had revenue of $7.28 billion for the quarter. Marsh & McLennan Companies had a net margin of 14.24% and a return on equity of 32.67%. Marsh & McLennan Companies’s quarterly revenue was up 6.2% compared to the same quarter last year. Analysts anticipate that Marsh & McLennan Companies will post 10.43 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 13th. Investors of record on Thursday, October 1st will be issued a dividend of $0.99 per share. This represents a $3.96 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 2.2%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Thursday, October 1st. Marsh & McLennan Companies’s dividend payout ratio is 48.41%.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other news, insider Martin South sold 7,100 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction on Tuesday, July 28th. The shares were sold at an average price of $189.99, for a total transaction of $1,348,929.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the insider directly owned 16,632 shares in the company, valued at $3,159,913.68. The trade was a 29.92% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this link. Also, Director Lloyd M. Yates sold 12,000 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on Thursday, July 23rd. The stock was sold at an average price of $175.65, for a total transaction of $2,107,800.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the director directly owned 12,001 shares in the company, valued at approximately $2,107,975.65. The trade was a 50.00% decrease in their position. The SEC filing for this sale provides additional information. In the last 90 days, insiders have sold 19,813 shares of company stock valued at $3,597,903. Company insiders own 0.38% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Marsh & McLennan Companies

Several large investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in MRSH. Mather Group LLC. grew its position in shares of Marsh & McLennan Companies by 33.0% in the 3rd quarter. Mather Group LLC. now owns 1,553 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $265,000 after buying an additional 385 shares during the last quarter. Reliant Investment Management LLC bought a new position in shares of Marsh & McLennan Companies during the third quarter valued at approximately $353,000. First Citizens Bank & Trust Co. lifted its stake in Marsh & McLennan Companies by 106.3% in the third quarter. First Citizens Bank & Trust Co. now owns 14,676 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $2,506,000 after acquiring an additional 7,561 shares during the period. Allied Investment Advisors LLC purchased a new stake in Marsh & McLennan Companies in the third quarter worth $12,168,000. Finally, B. Riley Wealth Advisors Inc. boosted its holdings in Marsh & McLennan Companies by 9.1% in the third quarter. B. Riley Wealth Advisors Inc. now owns 1,335 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $228,000 after acquiring an additional 111 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors own 87.99% of the company’s stock.

Marsh & McLennan Companies Company Profile

Marsh & McLennan Companies, now operating under the name Marsh McLennan, is a global professional services firm that provides advice and solutions in risk, strategy and people. The company serves businesses, governments and institutions through four principal businesses: Marsh, Guy Carpenter, Mercer and Oliver Wyman.

Marsh is an insurance brokerage and risk adviser that helps clients identify, manage and transfer risk. Guy Carpenter provides reinsurance brokerage and advisory services to insurance companies.