Bridgewater Advisors Inc. Buys New Position in Marsh & McLennan Companies, Inc. $MRSH

Bridgewater Advisors Inc. purchased a new position in shares of Marsh & McLennan Companies, Inc. (NYSE:MRSH) in the 1st quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the SEC. The firm purchased 4,876 shares of the financial services provider’s stock, valued at approximately $775,000.

Other institutional investors also recently modified their holdings of the company. Solstein Capital LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Marsh & McLennan Companies during the fourth quarter worth $25,000. SHP Wealth Management bought a new stake in Marsh & McLennan Companies during the fourth quarter valued at $26,000. KERR FINANCIAL PLANNING Corp acquired a new stake in Marsh & McLennan Companies during the 4th quarter worth about $27,000. Golden State Wealth Management LLC bought a new position in shares of Marsh & McLennan Companies in the 4th quarter worth about $27,000. Finally, Pinnacle Bancorp Inc. acquired a new position in shares of Marsh & McLennan Companies in the 1st quarter valued at about $28,000. 87.99% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of brokerages have weighed in on MRSH. UBS Group lifted their target price on Marsh & McLennan Companies from $203.00 to $212.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a report on Wednesday, July 8th. Mizuho lifted their price objective on shares of Marsh & McLennan Companies from $197.00 to $201.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a research note on Wednesday. JPMorgan Chase & Co. raised their price target on shares of Marsh & McLennan Companies from $206.00 to $212.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a report on Monday, July 13th. Cantor Fitzgerald upped their price objective on shares of Marsh & McLennan Companies from $210.00 to $218.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a report on Thursday, July 9th. Finally, Keefe, Bruyette & Woods boosted their target price on Marsh & McLennan Companies from $200.00 to $203.00 and gave the company a “market perform” rating in a research report on Friday, April 17th. One research analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, five have assigned a Buy rating, eleven have issued a Hold rating and one has assigned a Sell rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the stock has an average rating of “Hold” and an average target price of $201.69.

Insider Buying and Selling at Marsh & McLennan Companies

In other news, CEO John Q. Doyle sold 16,656 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, June 2nd. The stock was sold at an average price of $161.71, for a total value of $2,693,441.76. Following the transaction, the chief executive officer owned 116,811 shares in the company, valued at $18,889,506.81. The trade was a 12.48% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this hyperlink. The transaction was executed under a pre-arranged Rule 10b5-1 trading plan. 0.38% of the stock is owned by insiders.

Marsh & McLennan Companies Trading Up 2.4%

MRSH stock opened at $180.66 on Friday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.22, a current ratio of 1.14 and a quick ratio of 1.11. The stock has a market cap of $86.21 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 22.09, a P/E/G ratio of 2.60 and a beta of 0.61. Marsh & McLennan Companies, Inc. has a 52-week low of $156.60 and a 52-week high of $213.80.

Marsh & McLennan Companies (NYSE:MRSH) last posted its earnings results on Tuesday, July 21st. The financial services provider reported $2.96 earnings per share for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $2.89 by $0.07. The company had revenue of $7.28 billion for the quarter. Marsh & McLennan Companies had a return on equity of 32.67% and a net margin of 14.24%.The business’s revenue was up 6.2% compared to the same quarter last year. On average, equities research analysts anticipate that Marsh & McLennan Companies, Inc. will post 10.41 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Marsh & McLennan Companies Increases Dividend

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, August 14th. Shareholders of record on Thursday, July 23rd will be given a dividend of $0.99 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Thursday, July 23rd. This represents a $3.96 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 2.2%. This is an increase from Marsh & McLennan Companies’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.90. Marsh & McLennan Companies’s payout ratio is 48.41%.

About Marsh & McLennan Companies

Marsh & McLennan Companies (NYSE: MMC) is a global professional services firm headquartered in New York City that provides advice and solutions in the areas of risk, strategy and people. Founded in 1905, the company has grown into a diversified group of businesses focused on insurance brokerage and risk management, reinsurance, human capital and investment consulting, and management consulting. Its long history and scale position it as a prominent adviser to corporations, governments and other institutions seeking to manage risk and optimize human and financial capital.

The firm operates through several well-known subsidiaries and business units that specialize in distinct services.