Palisade Asset Management LLC Acquires New Position in Marsh & McLennan Companies, Inc. $MRSH

Palisade Asset Management LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Marsh & McLennan Companies, Inc. (NYSE:MRSH) in the third quarter, HoldingsChannel.com reports. The fund acquired 11,965 shares of the financial services provider’s stock, valued at approximately $2,043,000.

Several other institutional investors and hedge funds have also recently made changes to their positions in the company. Asset Dedication LLC purchased a new position in shares of Marsh & McLennan Companies in the first quarter worth $25,000. Quest 10 Wealth Builders Inc. boosted its position in Marsh & McLennan Companies by 95.0% during the 3rd quarter. Quest 10 Wealth Builders Inc. now owns 156 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $27,000 after buying an additional 76 shares during the period. EFG International AG purchased a new stake in Marsh & McLennan Companies during the 2nd quarter valued at $30,000. Bell Investment Advisors Inc bought a new stake in Marsh & McLennan Companies in the 2nd quarter worth $31,000. Finally, Trifecta Capital Advisors LLC purchased a new position in shares of Marsh & McLennan Companies in the second quarter valued at about $34,000. Institutional investors own 87.99% of the company’s stock.

Trending Headlines about Marsh & McLennan Companies

Here are the key news stories impacting Marsh & McLennan Companies this week:

• Positive Sentiment: Zacks Research raised its FY2027 EPS estimate to $11.39 from $11.23 and FY2028 to $12.28 from $12.13. It also nudged several quarterly forecasts higher. These revisions point to improving expectations for earnings growth, though they are one research firm’s estimates.
• Positive Sentiment: BMO Capital Markets raised MRSH to Outperform, a favorable analyst rating that may bolster investor sentiment. Read article: Marsh & McLennan Companies Raised to Outperform at BMO Capital Markets
• Positive Sentiment: A published valuation analysis says MRSH may be 27% undervalued following the AltamarCAM deal, suggesting potential upside if investors agree with its assessment. Read article: Marsh Stock May Be 27% Undervalued Following AltamarCAM Deal
• Neutral Sentiment: Marsh appointed Marcus Baker chairman and Michael Walls global head of Marine, Cargo, and Logistics. The leadership changes may be relevant to the business, but the report provides no financial details indicating an immediate earnings impact. Read article: Marsh & McLennan appoints Marcus Baker and Michael Walls
• Negative Sentiment: Zacks lowered its Q4 2026 EPS estimate to $2.15 from $2.19 and Q3 2027 to $2.19 from $2.21. Its FY2026 estimate of $10.43 also remains below the cited consensus of $10.48, indicating some near-term caution.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several equities analysts have recently commented on MRSH shares. JPMorgan Chase & Co. upped 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 note on Tuesday, October 20th. Mizuho raised their target price on Marsh & McLennan Companies from $190.00 to $200.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a research note on Monday, October 19th. BMO Capital Markets upgraded Marsh & McLennan Companies from a “market perform” rating to an “outperform” rating and boosted their price target for the company from $204.00 to $230.00 in a report on Tuesday, November 3rd. Cantor Fitzgerald upped their price target on Marsh & McLennan Companies from $212.00 to $218.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research report on Tuesday, July 21st. Finally, Citigroup raised their price target on Marsh & McLennan Companies from $200.00 to $203.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a research note on Friday, October 16th. Two analysts have rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, seven have given a Buy rating, nine have given a Hold rating and two have given a Sell rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat, the stock has a consensus rating of “Hold” and an average target price of $205.84.

Insider Activity

In other Marsh & McLennan Companies news, CEO Dean Klisura sold 4,194 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, October 23rd. The shares were sold at an average price of $200.00, for a total transaction of $838,800.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief executive officer owned 20,935 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $4,187,000. This trade represents a 16.69% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this link. The transaction was executed under a pre-arranged Rule 10b5-1 trading plan. Also, VP Stacy Mills sold 1,215 shares of Marsh & McLennan Companies stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, October 23rd. The shares were sold at an average price of $200.00, for a total transaction of $243,000.00. Following the transaction, the vice president owned 2,705 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $541,000. The trade was a 30.99% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale is available in the SEC filing. The transaction was executed under a pre-arranged Rule 10b5-1 trading plan. The sale was made to cover tax withholding obligations related to the vesting of equity awards. Insiders own 0.38% of the company’s stock.

Marsh & McLennan Companies Trading Down 2.5%

MRSH opened at $204.29 on Friday. The business has a fifty day moving average price of $183.78. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.27, a quick ratio of 1.09 and a current ratio of 1.09. The company has a market capitalization of $97.14 billion, a P/E ratio of 24.44, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.77 and a beta of 0.53. Marsh & McLennan Companies, Inc. has a 12-month low of $156.60 and a 12-month high of $214.00.

Marsh & McLennan Companies (NYSE:MRSH) last announced its earnings results on Thursday, October 15th. The financial services provider reported $2.03 EPS for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.96 by $0.07. The firm 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 business’s revenue was up 8.1% on a year-over-year basis. On average, analysts predict that Marsh & McLennan Companies, Inc. will post 10.49 EPS for the current year.

Marsh & McLennan Companies Announces Dividend

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, November 13th. Investors of record on Thursday, October 1st will be given a dividend of $0.99 per share. This represents a $3.96 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 1.9%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Thursday, October 1st. Marsh & McLennan Companies’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 47.37%.

About Marsh & McLennan Companies

Marsh & McLennan Companies, now known as Marsh, is a professional services firm focused on risk, strategy and people. Its businesses help organizations assess and manage risk, arrange insurance and reinsurance, and address workforce and organizational challenges.

The company operates through Marsh, an insurance brokerage and risk advisory business; Guy Carpenter, which specializes in reinsurance and related risk services; Mercer, which provides health, wealth and career consulting; and Oliver Wyman, a management consulting firm.