Marsh & McLennan Companies (NYSE:MRSH) Given New $218.00 Price Target at Mizuho

Marsh & McLennan Companies (NYSE:MRSH) had its target price boosted by Mizuho from $200.00 to $218.00 in a research note issued to investors on Friday, Benzinga reports. The brokerage currently has a “neutral” rating on the financial services provider’s stock. Mizuho‘s price objective would suggest a potential upside of 4.52% from the stock’s previous close.

A number of other research firms have also issued reports on MRSH. Citigroup raised their target price on Marsh & McLennan Companies from $200.00 to $203.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a report on Friday, October 16th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. increased their price objective on Marsh & McLennan Companies from $215.00 to $218.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research report on Tuesday, October 20th. BMO Capital Markets upgraded shares of Marsh & McLennan Companies from a “market perform” rating to an “outperform” rating and raised their price objective for the stock from $204.00 to $230.00 in a research note on Tuesday, November 3rd. The Goldman Sachs Group dropped their target price on shares of Marsh & McLennan Companies from $197.00 to $191.00 and set a “neutral” rating on the stock in a research report on Thursday, October 1st. Finally, Keefe, Bruyette & Woods upped their target price on shares of Marsh & McLennan Companies from $186.00 to $201.00 and gave the company a “market perform” rating in a research note on Monday, October 19th. Two research analysts have rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, seven have assigned a Buy rating, nine have assigned a Hold rating and two have issued a Sell rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, Marsh & McLennan Companies presently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $206.79.

Marsh & McLennan Companies Stock Up 1.4%

MRSH stock traded up $2.88 during mid-day trading on Friday, reaching $208.56. 385,497 shares of the stock traded hands, compared to its average volume of 2,758,569. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.27, a current ratio of 1.09 and a quick ratio of 1.09. Marsh & McLennan Companies has a 52 week low of $156.60 and a 52 week high of $214.00. The stock has a 50-day simple moving average of $185.11. The company has a market cap of $99.17 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 24.93, a PEG ratio of 2.80 and a beta of 0.53.

Marsh & McLennan Companies (NYSE:MRSH) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, October 15th. The financial services provider reported $2.03 EPS for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.96 by $0.07. Marsh & McLennan Companies had a return on equity of 33.32% and a net margin of 14.20%. The business had revenue of $6.86 billion for the quarter. The company’s revenue was up 8.1% compared to the same quarter last year. On average, equities research analysts anticipate that Marsh & McLennan Companies will post 10.49 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other news, CEO Dean Klisura sold 4,194 shares of Marsh & McLennan Companies stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, October 23rd. The stock was sold at an average price of $200.00, for a total transaction of $838,800.00. Following the sale, the chief executive officer owned 20,935 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $4,187,000. This trade represents a 16.69% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through the SEC website. The transaction was executed under a pre-arranged Rule 10b5-1 trading plan. Also, VP Stacy Mills sold 1,215 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, October 23rd. The shares were sold at an average price of $200.00, for a total value of $243,000.00. Following the sale, the vice president owned 2,705 shares in the company, valued at approximately $541,000. This represents a 30.99% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale is available in the SEC filing. The transaction was executed under a pre-arranged Rule 10b5-1 trading plan. The sale was made to cover tax withholding obligations related to the vesting of equity awards. 0.38% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Marsh & McLennan Companies

A number of hedge funds have recently made changes to their positions in MRSH. Xcelsior Advisor Partners LLC boosted its holdings in Marsh & McLennan Companies by 113.1% during the third quarter. Xcelsior Advisor Partners LLC now owns 4,950 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $845,000 after purchasing an additional 2,627 shares in the last quarter. Bleakley Financial Group LLC lifted its position in shares of Marsh & McLennan Companies by 3.6% during the 3rd quarter. Bleakley Financial Group LLC now owns 47,971 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $8,190,000 after buying an additional 1,658 shares during the period. Essex Financial Services Inc. lifted its position in shares of Marsh & McLennan Companies by 8.1% during the 3rd quarter. Essex Financial Services Inc. now owns 7,362 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $1,257,000 after buying an additional 550 shares during the period. Lifeworks Advisors LLC acquired a new stake in Marsh & McLennan Companies in the 3rd quarter valued at $9,256,000. Finally, N.F.U. MUTUAL UNIT MANAGERS Ltd acquired a new stake in Marsh & McLennan Companies in the 3rd quarter valued at $1,842,000. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 87.99% of the company’s stock.

About Marsh & McLennan Companies

Marsh & McLennan Companies, now known as Marsh, is a professional services firm focused on risk, strategy and people. Its businesses help organizations assess and manage risk, arrange insurance and reinsurance, and address workforce and organizational challenges. The company operates through Marsh, an insurance brokerage and risk advisory business; Guy Carpenter, which specializes in reinsurance and related risk services; Mercer, which provides health, wealth and career consulting; and Oliver Wyman, a management consulting firm.