Annex Advisory Services LLC Lowers Stock Position in Marsh & McLennan Companies, Inc. $MRSH

Annex Advisory Services LLC lessened its stake in shares of Marsh & McLennan Companies, Inc. (NYSE:MRSH) by 54.2% in the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The firm owned 44,117 shares of the financial services provider’s stock after selling 52,239 shares during the quarter. Annex Advisory Services LLC’s holdings in Marsh & McLennan Companies were worth $8,185,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Other hedge funds also recently bought and sold shares of the company. Numerai GP LLC lifted its position in shares of Marsh & McLennan Companies by 966.2% during the third quarter. Numerai GP LLC now owns 37,220 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $7,501,000 after purchasing an additional 33,729 shares in the last quarter. Rockland Trust Co. lifted its position in shares of Marsh & McLennan Companies by 801.6% during the third quarter. Rockland Trust Co. now owns 12,073 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $2,433,000 after purchasing an additional 10,734 shares in the last quarter. Barclays PLC lifted its position in shares of Marsh & McLennan Companies by 41.7% during the third quarter. Barclays PLC now owns 2,202,372 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $443,844,000 after purchasing an additional 647,987 shares in the last quarter. Navera Investment Management Ltd. lifted its position in shares of Marsh & McLennan Companies by 7.0% during the third quarter. Navera Investment Management Ltd. now owns 1,623,960 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $327,303,000 after purchasing an additional 105,954 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Bridges Investment Management Inc. lifted its position in shares of Marsh & McLennan Companies by 4.4% during the third quarter. Bridges Investment Management Inc. now owns 76,196 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $15,356,000 after purchasing an additional 3,177 shares in the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 87.99% of the company’s stock.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several brokerages recently weighed in on MRSH. Morgan Stanley reduced their target price on shares of Marsh & McLennan Companies from $195.00 to $190.00 and set an “equal weight” rating on the stock in a report on Monday, April 6th. Royal Bank Of Canada reiterated a “sector perform” rating and issued a $200.00 price objective on shares of Marsh & McLennan Companies in a research report on Friday, January 30th. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods lowered their price objective on shares of Marsh & McLennan Companies from $206.00 to $200.00 and set a “market perform” rating on the stock in a research report on Tuesday, April 7th. Bank of America decreased their target price on shares of Marsh & McLennan Companies from $181.00 to $174.00 and set an “underperform” rating on the stock in a research report on Tuesday. Finally, Mizuho cut their price target on Marsh & McLennan Companies from $199.00 to $193.00 and set a “neutral” rating for the company in a research note on Monday. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, five have assigned a Buy rating, ten have issued a Hold rating and one has given a Sell rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat, the company currently has an average rating of “Hold” and an average target price of $205.13.

Marsh & McLennan Companies Trading Down 0.0%

Shares of MRSH stock opened at $172.84 on Wednesday. Marsh & McLennan Companies, Inc. has a twelve month low of $164.89 and a twelve month high of $238.12. The company has a 50-day moving average price of $172.97. The company has a quick ratio of 1.10, a current ratio of 1.10 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.20. The firm has a market cap of $83.68 billion, a P/E ratio of 20.50, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.37 and a beta of 0.75.

Marsh & McLennan Companies (NYSE:MRSH) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, January 29th. The financial services provider reported $2.12 EPS for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.97 by $0.15. The company had revenue of $6.60 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $6.52 billion. Marsh & McLennan Companies had a net margin of 15.42% and a return on equity of 31.60%. The company’s quarterly revenue was up 8.7% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter in the prior year, the company posted $1.87 EPS. As a group, research analysts predict that Marsh & McLennan Companies, Inc. will post 9.61 earnings per share for the current year.

Marsh & McLennan Companies Dividend Announcement

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, May 15th. Shareholders of record on Thursday, April 9th will be given a $0.90 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Thursday, April 9th. This represents a $3.60 annualized dividend and a yield of 2.1%. Marsh & McLennan Companies’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 42.70%.

Insider Transactions at Marsh & McLennan Companies

In other Marsh & McLennan Companies news, CEO John Q. Doyle sold 16,655 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, March 4th. The shares were sold at an average price of $183.30, for a total value of $3,052,861.50. Following the completion of the sale, the chief executive officer owned 116,811 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $21,411,456.30. This trade represents a 12.48% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through the SEC website. 0.38% of the stock is owned by company insiders.

About Marsh & McLennan Companies

Marsh & McLennan Companies (NYSE: MMC) is a global professional services firm headquartered in New York City that provides advice and solutions in the areas of risk, strategy and people. Founded in 1905, the company has grown into a diversified group of businesses focused on insurance brokerage and risk management, reinsurance, human capital and investment consulting, and management consulting. Its long history and scale position it as a prominent adviser to corporations, governments and other institutions seeking to manage risk and optimize human and financial capital.

The firm operates through several well-known subsidiaries and business units that specialize in distinct services.