Procyon Advisors LLC Increases Position in Marsh & McLennan Companies, Inc. (NYSE:MMC)

Procyon Advisors LLC increased its holdings in shares of Marsh & McLennan Companies, Inc. (NYSE:MMC) by 5.0% in the fourth quarter, according to its most recent filing with the SEC. The fund owned 2,522 shares of the financial services provider’s stock after acquiring an additional 120 shares during the period. Procyon Advisors LLC’s holdings in Marsh & McLennan Companies were worth $536,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

A number of other large investors also recently bought and sold shares of MMC. Carmichael Hill & Associates Inc. boosted its stake in shares of Marsh & McLennan Companies by 85.7% during the third quarter. Carmichael Hill & Associates Inc. now owns 130 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $29,000 after purchasing an additional 60 shares during the period. Catalyst Capital Advisors LLC bought a new stake in Marsh & McLennan Companies during the 3rd quarter valued at about $31,000. Capital Performance Advisors LLP bought a new position in Marsh & McLennan Companies in the 3rd quarter worth about $41,000. Bangor Savings Bank purchased a new position in shares of Marsh & McLennan Companies during the third quarter worth approximately $46,000. Finally, Fortitude Family Office LLC raised its stake in shares of 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 in the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 87.99% of the company’s stock.

Marsh & McLennan Companies Stock Down 0.5 %

Shares of MMC stock opened at $215.23 on Friday. The stock’s fifty day moving average price is $218.62 and its 200 day moving average price is $221.09. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.89, a current ratio of 1.14 and a quick ratio of 1.14. Marsh & McLennan Companies, Inc. has a 1-year low of $188.31 and a 1-year high of $235.50. The company has a market cap of $105.71 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 26.51, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.31 and a beta of 0.96.

Marsh & McLennan Companies (NYSE:MMC) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, October 17th. The financial services provider reported $1.63 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $1.61 by $0.02. The firm had revenue of $5.70 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $5.71 billion. Marsh & McLennan Companies had a net margin of 16.82% and a return on equity of 32.65%. The company’s revenue for the quarter was up 5.9% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter in the prior year, the company posted $1.57 earnings per share. On average, research analysts expect that Marsh & McLennan Companies, Inc. will post 8.68 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Marsh & McLennan Companies Dividend Announcement

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, February 14th. Shareholders of record on Thursday, January 30th will be issued a $0.815 dividend. The ex-dividend date is Thursday, January 30th. This represents a $3.26 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 1.51%. Marsh & McLennan Companies’s dividend payout ratio is currently 40.15%.

Insider Transactions 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 stock was 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 in the company, valued at $10,756,030.95. This trade represents a 4.90 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available at this link. Insiders own 0.35% of the company’s stock.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of equities research analysts have weighed in on MMC shares. Jefferies Financial Group lifted their target price on Marsh & McLennan Companies from $219.00 to $222.00 and gave the company a “hold” rating in a research report on Wednesday, October 9th. BMO Capital Markets lifted their price objective on Marsh & McLennan Companies from $217.00 to $228.00 and gave the company a “market perform” rating in a report on Tuesday, October 22nd. Royal Bank of Canada upgraded shares of Marsh & McLennan Companies from a “sector perform” rating to an “outperform” rating and increased their target price for the stock from $242.00 to $250.00 in a report on Thursday, December 12th. UBS Group boosted their price target on shares of Marsh & McLennan Companies from $255.00 to $259.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a report on Tuesday, October 22nd. Finally, Bank of America lifted their price objective on shares of Marsh & McLennan Companies from $248.00 to $250.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a report on Thursday, October 10th. Two investment analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, ten have given a hold rating and three have given a buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat, the stock currently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and an average target price of $228.60.

Marsh & McLennan Companies Company Profile

Marsh & McLennan Cos., Inc is a professional services firm, which engages in offering clients advice and solutions in risk, strategy, and people. It operates through the Risk and Insurance Services, and Consulting segments. The Risk and Insurance Services segment is involved in risk management activities, as well as insurance and reinsurance broking and services.