Marsh & McLennan Companies (NYSE:MMC) Shares Gap Down – Here’s Why

Marsh & McLennan Companies, Inc. (NYSE:MMC) gapped down prior to trading on Thursday . The stock had previously closed at $231.32, but opened at $218.77. Marsh & McLennan Companies shares last traded at $220.03, with a volume of 915,195 shares traded.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of equities research analysts have issued reports on the company. Redburn Atlantic initiated coverage on Marsh & McLennan Companies in a research note on Tuesday, March 25th. They issued a “buy” rating and a $281.00 price target for the company. Barclays lifted their target price on Marsh & McLennan Companies from $246.00 to $249.00 and gave the company an “equal weight” rating in a research note on Friday, April 11th. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods upped their price target on Marsh & McLennan Companies from $210.00 to $220.00 and gave the stock an “underperform” rating in a research note on Wednesday, April 9th. Raymond James reissued an “outperform” rating and issued a $250.00 target price (up previously from $240.00) on shares of Marsh & McLennan Companies in a report on Thursday, February 6th. Finally, Jefferies Financial Group raised their target price on shares of Marsh & McLennan Companies from $237.00 to $244.00 and gave the company a “hold” rating in a research note on Friday, April 11th. Two investment analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, nine have given a hold rating and five have issued a buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat, Marsh & McLennan Companies currently has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus target price of $237.75.

Marsh & McLennan Companies Price Performance

The company has a market capitalization of $109.70 billion, a PE ratio of 27.17, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.70 and a beta of 0.85. 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 firm’s 50 day simple moving average is $233.27 and its 200 day simple moving average is $224.81.

Marsh & McLennan Companies (NYSE:MMC) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, April 17th. The financial services provider reported $3.06 earnings per share for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $3.02 by $0.04. Marsh & McLennan Companies had a net margin of 16.60% and a return on equity of 32.60%. The company had revenue of $6.70 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $7.08 billion. During the same period in the prior year, the company posted $2.89 EPS. As a group, research analysts anticipate that Marsh & McLennan Companies, Inc. will post 9.61 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Marsh & McLennan Companies Announces Dividend

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, May 15th. Investors of record on Thursday, April 3rd will be paid a $0.815 dividend. This represents a $3.26 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 1.46%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Thursday, April 3rd. Marsh & McLennan Companies’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 39.80%.

Insider Activity

In related news, CEO Dean Michael Klisura sold 7,121 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Monday, March 10th. The stock was sold at an average price of $234.97, for a total transaction of $1,673,221.37. Following the transaction, the chief executive officer now directly owns 20,935 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $4,919,096.95. This represents a 25.38 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available at this link. Also, VP Stacy Mills sold 1,317 shares of Marsh & McLennan Companies stock in a transaction dated Monday, March 10th. The shares were sold at an average price of $234.97, for a total value of $309,455.49. Following the transaction, the vice president now owns 2,923 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $686,817.31. The trade was a 31.06 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last quarter, insiders sold 69,634 shares of company stock worth $16,244,986. 0.30% of the stock is currently owned by corporate insiders.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Marsh & McLennan Companies

Large investors have recently bought and sold shares of the business. Access Financial Services Inc. increased its holdings in Marsh & McLennan Companies by 19.4% in the 1st quarter. Access Financial Services Inc. now owns 6,870 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $1,676,000 after acquiring an additional 1,114 shares in the last quarter. Bank Pictet & Cie Europe AG boosted its holdings in Marsh & McLennan Companies by 20.9% in the 1st quarter. Bank Pictet & Cie Europe AG now owns 211,674 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $51,655,000 after buying an additional 36,643 shares during the last quarter. Tuttle Capital Management LLC raised its holdings in shares of Marsh & McLennan Companies by 40.1% during the first quarter. Tuttle Capital Management LLC now owns 2,530 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $617,000 after acquiring an additional 724 shares during the last quarter. Brighton Jones LLC boosted its stake in shares of Marsh & McLennan Companies by 15.6% in the first quarter. Brighton Jones LLC now owns 10,105 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $2,466,000 after acquiring an additional 1,367 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Exchange Traded Concepts LLC increased its position in shares of Marsh & McLennan Companies by 50.9% during the first quarter. Exchange Traded Concepts LLC now owns 22,766 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $5,556,000 after purchasing an additional 7,680 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 87.99% of the company’s stock.

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.