Marsh & McLennan Companies, Inc. $MRSH Stock: Bank Pictet & Cie Europe AG Lowers Position

Bank Pictet & Cie Europe AG reduced its position in Marsh & McLennan Companies, Inc. (NYSE:MRSH) by 22.5% during the 3rd quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The fund owned 87,306 shares of the financial services provider’s stock after selling 25,358 shares during the period. Bank Pictet & Cie Europe AG’s holdings in Marsh & McLennan Companies were worth $14,906,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

A number of other hedge funds and other institutional investors also recently made changes to their positions in MRSH. Net Worth Advisory Group lifted its holdings in shares of Marsh & McLennan Companies by 17.9% during the 3rd quarter. Net Worth Advisory Group now owns 4,735 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $814,000 after buying an additional 720 shares during the last quarter. Sumitomo Mitsui DS Asset Management Company Ltd grew its stake in shares of Marsh & McLennan Companies by 9.2% in the 3rd quarter. Sumitomo Mitsui DS Asset Management Company Ltd now owns 153,200 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $26,156,000 after buying an additional 12,907 shares in the last quarter. Novem Group grew its stake in shares of Marsh & McLennan Companies by 2.5% in the 3rd quarter. Novem Group now owns 6,447 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $1,101,000 after buying an additional 155 shares in the last quarter. AA Financial Advisors LLC increased its holdings in Marsh & McLennan Companies by 3.2% in the third quarter. AA Financial Advisors LLC now owns 5,851 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $999,000 after buying an additional 183 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Abel Hall LLC acquired a new position in Marsh & McLennan Companies in the third quarter worth approximately $262,000. 87.99% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Marsh & McLennan Companies Stock Performance

Shares of Marsh & McLennan Companies stock traded up $1.86 on Tuesday, reaching $190.36. The stock had a trading volume of 692,572 shares, compared to its average volume of 2,804,552. The company has a current ratio of 1.09, a quick ratio of 1.09 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.27. The business has a 50-day moving average price of $181.14. The company has a market capitalization of $90.52 billion, a PE ratio of 22.77, a P/E/G ratio of 2.61 and a beta of 0.59. Marsh & McLennan Companies, Inc. has a fifty-two week low of $156.60 and a fifty-two week high of $198.49.

Marsh & McLennan Companies (NYSE:MRSH) last posted its earnings results on Thursday, October 15th. The financial services provider reported $2.03 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.96 by $0.07. The business had revenue of $6.86 billion for the quarter. Marsh & McLennan Companies had a net margin of 14.20% and a return on equity of 33.32%. The company’s revenue was up 8.1% on a year-over-year basis. As a group, equities analysts forecast that Marsh & McLennan Companies, Inc. will post 10.45 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Marsh & McLennan Companies Dividend Announcement

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, November 13th. Shareholders 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 2.1%. The ex-dividend date is Thursday, October 1st. Marsh & McLennan Companies’s dividend payout ratio is 47.37%.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

MRSH has been the topic of several recent research reports. JPMorgan Chase & Co. raised their price objective on shares of Marsh & McLennan Companies from $215.00 to $218.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research report on Tuesday. Weiss Ratings raised shares of Marsh & McLennan Companies from a “hold (c-)” rating to a “hold (c)” rating in a research report on Friday, August 7th. Bank of America dropped their price target on shares of Marsh & McLennan Companies from $179.00 to $178.00 and set an “underperform” rating on the stock in a research note on Wednesday, July 15th. UBS Group raised their price target on shares of Marsh & McLennan Companies from $216.00 to $222.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a report on Tuesday, October 6th. Finally, BMO Capital Markets reduced their price objective on shares of Marsh & McLennan Companies from $203.00 to $179.00 and set a “market perform” rating for the company in a research note on Thursday, October 1st. Two analysts have rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, six have assigned a Buy rating, eleven have given a Hold rating and two have assigned a Sell rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the company presently has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus target price of $204.42.

Insider Buying and Selling at Marsh & McLennan Companies

In other news, SVP Paul Beswick sold 713 shares of Marsh & McLennan Companies stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, July 29th. The stock was sold at an average price of $198.00, for a total value of $141,174.00. Following the transaction, the senior vice president directly owned 16,376 shares in the company, valued at approximately $3,242,448. The trade was a 4.17% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is accessible through this hyperlink. The transaction was executed under a pre-arranged Rule 10b5-1 trading plan. Also, insider Martin South sold 7,100 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, July 28th. The stock was sold at an average price of $189.99, for a total value of $1,348,929.00. Following the transaction, the insider directly owned 16,632 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $3,159,913.68. This represents a 29.92% decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale is available in the SEC filing. Insiders sold 19,813 shares of company stock worth $3,597,903 over the last ninety days. Company insiders own 0.38% of the company’s stock.

Marsh & McLennan Companies Profile

Marsh & McLennan Companies is a global professional services firm that provides advice and solutions in risk, strategy and people. The company serves businesses, governments and institutions through a portfolio of specialized businesses focused on insurance brokerage, reinsurance, consulting and talent management.

Its principal businesses include Marsh, an insurance brokerage and risk advisory firm; Guy Carpenter, a provider of reinsurance brokerage and related risk-management services; Mercer, which offers consulting in investment, retirement, health and workforce strategy; and Oliver Wyman, a management consulting firm serving clients across industries and regions.

Founded in 1905, Marsh & McLennan serves clients in countries and markets around the world.