Ashton Thomas Securities LLC Purchases 3,065 Shares of Marsh & McLennan Companies, Inc. (NYSE:MMC)

Ashton Thomas Securities LLC raised its holdings in shares of Marsh & McLennan Companies, Inc. (NYSE:MMC) by 544.4% in the fourth quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 3,628 shares of the financial services provider’s stock after purchasing an additional 3,065 shares during the quarter. Ashton Thomas Securities LLC’s holdings in Marsh & McLennan Companies were worth $771,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Several other institutional investors have also recently bought and sold shares of the business. Meridian Wealth Management LLC bought a new position in Marsh & McLennan Companies in the 3rd quarter valued at about $209,000. Cerity Partners LLC lifted its holdings in shares of Marsh & McLennan Companies by 32.8% in the third quarter. Cerity Partners LLC now owns 130,686 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $29,155,000 after purchasing an additional 32,312 shares in the last quarter. Kingsview Wealth Management LLC boosted its position in shares of Marsh & McLennan Companies by 7.3% during the third quarter. Kingsview Wealth Management LLC now owns 14,927 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $3,330,000 after buying an additional 1,017 shares during the last quarter. Algert Global LLC bought a new stake in Marsh & McLennan Companies during the third quarter worth $3,353,000. Finally, Swedbank AB raised its position in Marsh & McLennan Companies by 3.4% in the 3rd quarter. Swedbank AB now owns 275,694 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $61,505,000 after buying an additional 9,186 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 87.99% of the company’s stock.

Marsh & McLennan Companies Price Performance

Shares of NYSE:MMC opened at $234.82 on Tuesday. The company has a 50-day moving average price of $227.57 and a two-hundred day moving average price of $223.78. Marsh & McLennan Companies, Inc. has a twelve month low of $196.17 and a twelve month high of $241.84. 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 has a market capitalization of $115.33 billion, a PE ratio of 28.67, a P/E/G ratio of 2.70 and a beta of 0.95.

Marsh & McLennan Companies (NYSE:MMC) last released its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, January 30th. The financial services provider reported $1.87 earnings per share for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.75 by $0.12. Marsh & McLennan Companies had a net margin of 16.60% and a return on equity of 32.60%. Equities analysts forecast that Marsh & McLennan Companies, Inc. will post 9.61 EPS for the current year.

Marsh & McLennan Companies Dividend Announcement

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, May 15th. Investors of record on Thursday, April 3rd will be issued a dividend of $0.815 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Thursday, April 3rd. This represents a $3.26 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 1.39%. Marsh & McLennan Companies’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 39.80%.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several research firms have recently issued reports on MMC. JPMorgan Chase & Co. upped their target price on shares of Marsh & McLennan Companies from $230.00 to $235.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a research note on Friday, January 3rd. Evercore ISI reaffirmed an “outperform” rating and issued a $242.00 price objective on shares of Marsh & McLennan Companies in a research report on Monday, November 25th. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods dropped their target price on shares of Marsh & McLennan Companies from $214.00 to $210.00 and set an “underperform” rating on the stock in a research report on Monday, February 3rd. Raymond James reaffirmed an “outperform” rating and issued a $250.00 target price (up from $240.00) on shares of Marsh & McLennan Companies in a report on Thursday, February 6th. Finally, Wells Fargo & Company lifted their price target on Marsh & McLennan Companies from $212.00 to $223.00 and gave the stock an “equal weight” rating in a report on Friday, January 31st. Two research analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, ten have given a hold rating and four have assigned a buy rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the company currently has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus target price of $230.44.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In related news, VP Stacy Mills sold 1,317 shares of the business’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 $309,455.49. Following the completion of the transaction, the vice president now directly owns 2,923 shares in the company, valued at $686,817.31. The trade was a 31.06 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this hyperlink. Also, CEO Nicholas Mark Studer sold 49,390 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, March 12th. The shares were sold at an average price of $230.16, for a total value of $11,367,602.40. Following the completion of the sale, the chief executive officer now directly owns 28,329 shares in the company, valued at approximately $6,520,202.64. The trade was a 63.55 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders sold a total of 57,828 shares of company stock worth $13,350,279 in the last quarter. 0.30% of the stock is owned by company insiders.

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.