Kessler Investment Group LLC Decreases Stock Position in Marsh & McLennan Companies, Inc. (NYSE:MMC)

Kessler Investment Group LLC reduced its position in Marsh & McLennan Companies, Inc. (NYSE:MMC) by 6.4% in the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The fund owned 2,337 shares of the financial services provider’s stock after selling 159 shares during the period. Kessler Investment Group LLC’s holdings in Marsh & McLennan Companies were worth $496,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

A number of other large investors have also added to or reduced their stakes in the stock. FMR LLC grew its position in Marsh & McLennan Companies by 2.5% in the 3rd quarter. FMR LLC now owns 21,445,110 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $4,784,190,000 after purchasing an additional 518,185 shares during the period. Geode Capital Management LLC grew its position in Marsh & McLennan Companies by 2.2% in the 3rd quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC now owns 11,905,431 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $2,648,304,000 after purchasing an additional 251,361 shares during the period. Parnassus Investments LLC grew its position in Marsh & McLennan Companies by 2.0% in the 3rd quarter. Parnassus Investments LLC now owns 4,274,880 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $953,683,000 after purchasing an additional 85,754 shares during the period. JPMorgan Chase & Co. grew its position in Marsh & McLennan Companies by 4.8% in the 3rd quarter. JPMorgan Chase & Co. now owns 3,999,771 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $892,309,000 after purchasing an additional 184,239 shares during the period. Finally, Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. grew its position in Marsh & McLennan Companies by 1.1% in the 3rd quarter. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. now owns 2,703,862 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $603,205,000 after purchasing an additional 30,367 shares during the period. Institutional investors own 87.99% of the company’s stock.

Marsh & McLennan Companies Stock Down 0.9 %

MMC opened at $228.95 on Friday. The firm has a 50-day simple moving average of $216.71 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $221.90. Marsh & McLennan Companies, Inc. has a 52 week low of $196.17 and a 52 week high of $235.50. The company has a market capitalization of $112.44 billion, a PE ratio of 27.95, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.35 and a beta of 0.96. The company has a quick ratio of 1.14, a current ratio of 1.13 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.44.

Marsh & McLennan Companies (NYSE:MMC) last released its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, January 30th. The financial services provider reported $1.87 EPS for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $1.75 by $0.12. Marsh & McLennan Companies had a net margin of 16.60% and a return on equity of 32.60%. Analysts forecast that Marsh & McLennan Companies, Inc. will post 9.54 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Marsh & McLennan Companies Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, February 14th. Investors of record on Thursday, January 30th were issued a $0.815 dividend. This represents a $3.26 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 1.42%. The ex-dividend date was Thursday, January 30th. Marsh & McLennan Companies’s payout ratio is 39.80%.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

MMC has been the subject of a number of recent research reports. 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. Wells Fargo & Company boosted their price objective on shares of Marsh & McLennan Companies from $212.00 to $223.00 and gave the company an “equal weight” rating in a research report on Friday, January 31st. Raymond James reissued an “outperform” rating and set a $250.00 price objective (up previously from $240.00) on shares of Marsh & McLennan Companies in a research report on Thursday, February 6th. UBS Group boosted their price objective on shares of Marsh & McLennan Companies from $255.00 to $259.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research report on Tuesday, October 22nd. Finally, Roth Mkm boosted their price objective on shares of Marsh & McLennan Companies from $220.00 to $230.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a research report on Friday, October 18th. Two research analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, ten have given a hold rating and four have given a buy rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the stock currently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and an average target price of $230.44.

Marsh & McLennan Companies Company Profile

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.