Marsh & McLennan Companies, Inc. (NYSE:MMC) Shares Sold by Asahi Life Asset Management CO. LTD.

Asahi Life Asset Management CO. LTD. lessened its stake in Marsh & McLennan Companies, Inc. (NYSE:MMC) by 6.2% in the 4th quarter, Holdings Channel.com reports. The firm owned 2,440 shares of the financial services provider’s stock after selling 160 shares during the period. Asahi Life Asset Management CO. LTD.’s holdings in Marsh & McLennan Companies were worth $518,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

A number of other institutional investors have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the stock. Carmichael Hill & Associates Inc. increased its stake in shares of Marsh & McLennan Companies by 85.7% in the 3rd quarter. Carmichael Hill & Associates Inc. now owns 130 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $29,000 after acquiring an additional 60 shares during the last quarter. Catalyst Capital Advisors LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Marsh & McLennan Companies in the third quarter valued at about $31,000. Financial Life Planners acquired a new stake in Marsh & McLennan Companies during the fourth quarter worth about $33,000. Sierra Ocean LLC purchased a new position in Marsh & McLennan Companies during the fourth quarter worth about $36,000. Finally, Albion Financial Group UT purchased a new stake in shares of Marsh & McLennan Companies in the 4th quarter valued at approximately $38,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 87.99% of the company’s stock.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several research firms have recently commented on MMC. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods reduced their price target on shares of Marsh & McLennan Companies from $214.00 to $210.00 and set an “underperform” rating on the stock in a research report on Monday, February 3rd. JPMorgan Chase & Co. upped their price target on Marsh & McLennan Companies from $230.00 to $235.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a research note on Friday, January 3rd. Evercore ISI reissued an “outperform” rating and set a $242.00 price objective on shares of Marsh & McLennan Companies in a research report on Monday, November 25th. Barclays upped their target price on shares of Marsh & McLennan Companies from $236.00 to $246.00 and gave the company an “equal weight” rating in a research report on Thursday, November 21st. Finally, Royal Bank of Canada upgraded shares of Marsh & McLennan Companies from a “sector perform” rating to an “outperform” rating and lifted their price target for the company from $242.00 to $250.00 in a research report on Thursday, December 12th. Two analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, ten have given a hold rating and four have assigned a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat, the stock has a consensus rating of “Hold” and an average target price of $230.44.

Marsh & McLennan Companies Stock Up 1.4 %

Shares of NYSE:MMC opened at $237.78 on Friday. Marsh & McLennan Companies, Inc. has a fifty-two week low of $196.17 and a fifty-two week high of $237.97. The firm’s 50 day moving average price is $220.47 and its 200 day moving average price is $222.83. The company has a quick ratio of 1.13, a current ratio of 1.13 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.44. The stock has a market cap of $116.78 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 29.03, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.70 and a beta of 0.96.

Marsh & McLennan Companies (NYSE:MMC) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, January 30th. The financial services provider reported $1.87 earnings per share for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.75 by $0.12. Marsh & McLennan Companies had a net margin of 16.60% and a return on equity of 32.60%. As a group, equities research analysts predict that Marsh & McLennan Companies, Inc. will post 9.61 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Marsh & McLennan Companies Announces Dividend

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, February 14th. Stockholders of record on Thursday, January 30th were given a dividend of $0.815 per share. The ex-dividend date was Thursday, January 30th. This represents a $3.26 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 1.37%. Marsh & McLennan Companies’s dividend payout ratio is currently 39.80%.

About Marsh & McLennan Companies

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.