Empirical Finance LLC Raises Holdings in Marsh & McLennan Companies, Inc. (NYSE:MMC)

Empirical Finance LLC increased its position in Marsh & McLennan Companies, Inc. (NYSE:MMC) by 2.2% in the third quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The fund owned 17,102 shares of the financial services provider’s stock after buying an additional 364 shares during the period. Empirical Finance LLC’s holdings in Marsh & McLennan Companies were worth $3,815,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

A number of other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also made changes to their positions in the business. Fortitude Family Office LLC grew its position in Marsh & McLennan Companies by 18.8% during the third quarter. Fortitude Family Office LLC now owns 285 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $64,000 after acquiring an additional 45 shares during the period. Kingfisher Capital LLC increased its position in shares of Marsh & McLennan Companies by 4.7% during the second quarter. Kingfisher Capital LLC now owns 1,042 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $220,000 after acquiring an additional 47 shares during the last quarter. Drive Wealth Management LLC boosted its stake in shares of Marsh & McLennan Companies by 3.7% during the 2nd quarter. Drive Wealth Management LLC now owns 1,382 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $291,000 after buying an additional 49 shares during the last quarter. Legacy Financial Advisors Inc. raised its stake in shares of Marsh & McLennan Companies by 2.3% in the 2nd quarter. Legacy Financial Advisors Inc. now owns 2,222 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $468,000 after purchasing an additional 49 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Ritholtz Wealth Management lifted its holdings in Marsh & McLennan Companies by 0.6% during the 2nd quarter. Ritholtz Wealth Management now owns 8,953 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $1,887,000 after buying an additional 51 shares during the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 87.99% of the company’s stock.

Insider Activity at Marsh & McLennan Companies

In related news, Director Oscar Fanjul sold 2,500 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction on Wednesday, October 30th. The shares were sold at an average price of $221.55, for a total value of $553,875.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the director now owns 48,549 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $10,756,030.95. This trade represents a 4.90 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this hyperlink. 0.30% of the stock is owned by insiders.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of equities analysts have commented on the company. UBS Group lifted their target price on Marsh & McLennan Companies from $255.00 to $259.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research note on Tuesday, October 22nd. Wells Fargo & Company cut their price objective on Marsh & McLennan Companies from $212.00 to $211.00 and set an “equal weight” rating for the company in a report on Thursday, October 10th. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods increased their price objective on Marsh & McLennan Companies from $209.00 to $212.00 and gave the company an “underperform” rating in a research report on Tuesday, October 22nd. Jefferies Financial Group boosted their price target on shares of Marsh & McLennan Companies from $219.00 to $222.00 and gave the company a “hold” rating in a report on Wednesday, October 9th. Finally, Bank of America upped their target price on Marsh & McLennan Companies from $248.00 to $250.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a report on Thursday, October 10th. Two equities research analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, twelve have assigned a hold rating and two have issued a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the stock currently has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus target price of $225.33.

Marsh & McLennan Companies Price Performance

Marsh & McLennan Companies stock opened at $222.01 on Friday. The business’s fifty day moving average is $224.56 and its two-hundred day moving average is $217.70. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.89, a quick ratio of 1.14 and a current ratio of 1.14. Marsh & McLennan Companies, Inc. has a 52 week low of $184.28 and a 52 week high of $232.32. The firm has a market cap of $109.03 billion, a P/E ratio of 27.28, a P/E/G ratio of 3.36 and a beta of 0.94.

Marsh & McLennan Companies (NYSE:MMC) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, October 17th. The financial services provider reported $1.63 EPS for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.61 by $0.02. Marsh & McLennan Companies had a return on equity of 32.65% and a net margin of 16.82%. The firm had revenue of $5.70 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $5.71 billion. During the same period last year, the company earned $1.57 earnings per share. The company’s revenue was up 5.9% on a year-over-year basis. Equities research analysts forecast that Marsh & McLennan Companies, Inc. will post 8.7 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Marsh & McLennan Companies Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, November 15th. Shareholders of record on Friday, October 4th will be issued a dividend of $0.815 per share. The ex-dividend date is Friday, October 4th. This represents a $3.26 annualized dividend and a yield of 1.47%. Marsh & McLennan Companies’s dividend payout ratio is presently 40.15%.

About Marsh & McLennan Companies

Marsh & McLennan Companies, Inc, a professional services company, provides advice and solutions to clients in the areas of risk, strategy, and people worldwide. It operates through Risk and Insurance Services, and Consulting segments. The Risk and Insurance Services segment offers risk management services, such as risk advice, risk transfer, and risk control and mitigation solutions, as well as insurance and reinsurance broking, strategic advisory services, and analytics solutions, and insurance program management services.