Stratos Wealth Partners LTD. Trims Stock Holdings in Marsh & McLennan Companies, Inc. (NYSE:MMC)

Stratos Wealth Partners LTD. decreased its holdings in Marsh & McLennan Companies, Inc. (NYSE:MMC) by 34.3% during the first quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The firm owned 2,007 shares of the financial services provider’s stock after selling 1,050 shares during the period. Stratos Wealth Partners LTD.’s holdings in Marsh & McLennan Companies were worth $490,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission.

A number of other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also bought and sold shares of the business. M&T Bank Corp increased its holdings in Marsh & McLennan Companies by 2.8% during the 1st quarter. M&T Bank Corp now owns 46,639 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $11,381,000 after purchasing an additional 1,280 shares during the period. Stratos Wealth Advisors LLC increased its stake in shares of Marsh & McLennan Companies by 4.9% during the first quarter. Stratos Wealth Advisors LLC now owns 1,768 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $432,000 after buying an additional 83 shares during the period. Geneva Partners LLC purchased a new position in Marsh & McLennan Companies during the 1st quarter valued at about $4,673,000. Walter Public Investments Inc. increased its position in Marsh & McLennan Companies by 5.5% during the 1st quarter. Walter Public Investments Inc. now owns 119,126 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $29,070,000 after purchasing an additional 6,184 shares during the period. Finally, Ninety One SA PTY Ltd purchased a new position in Marsh & McLennan Companies during the first quarter valued at approximately $795,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 87.99% of the company’s stock.

Marsh & McLennan Companies Price Performance

NYSE:MMC opened at $213.62 on Tuesday. Marsh & McLennan Companies, Inc. has a one year low of $207.21 and a one year high of $248.00. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.32, a quick ratio of 1.14 and a current ratio of 1.14. The firm has a market cap of $105.25 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 26.18, a PEG ratio of 2.59 and a beta of 0.80. The firm’s fifty day moving average is $222.44 and its two-hundred day moving average is $224.83.

Marsh & McLennan Companies (NYSE:MMC) last released its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, April 17th. The financial services provider reported $3.06 EPS for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $3.02 by $0.04. The business had revenue of $6.70 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $7.08 billion. Marsh & McLennan Companies had a return on equity of 32.19% and a net margin of 16.13%. During the same quarter in the prior year, the firm posted $2.89 EPS. Research analysts expect that Marsh & McLennan Companies, Inc. will post 9.61 EPS for the current year.

Marsh & McLennan Companies Increases Dividend

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, August 15th. Stockholders of record on Thursday, July 24th will be given a dividend of $0.90 per share. This is a positive change from Marsh & McLennan Companies’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.82. The ex-dividend date is Thursday, July 24th. This represents a $3.60 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 1.69%. Marsh & McLennan Companies’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 44.12%.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of brokerages have recently issued reports on MMC. Barclays cut their price target on Marsh & McLennan Companies from $249.00 to $233.00 and set an “equal weight” rating on the stock in a report on Monday, July 7th. UBS Group lifted their target price on Marsh & McLennan Companies from $259.00 to $261.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research note on Wednesday, April 9th. Wells Fargo & Company lifted their price objective on shares of Marsh & McLennan Companies from $228.00 to $229.00 and gave the stock an “equal weight” rating in a research report on Thursday, July 10th. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods cut their price objective on shares of Marsh & McLennan Companies from $215.00 to $214.00 and set an “underperform” rating on the stock in a research report on Wednesday, July 9th. Finally, Jefferies Financial Group boosted their target price on Marsh & McLennan Companies from $237.00 to $244.00 and gave the stock a “hold” rating in a research note on Friday, April 11th. Two equities research analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, seven have assigned a hold rating and five have assigned a buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the company presently has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus target price of $240.50.

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.