Marsh & McLennan Companies, Inc. (NYSE:MMC) Stock Position Lowered by Coho Partners Ltd.

Coho Partners Ltd. lessened its position in shares of Marsh & McLennan Companies, Inc. (NYSE:MMC) by 15.6% during the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the SEC. The firm owned 385,670 shares of the financial services provider’s stock after selling 71,121 shares during the quarter. Marsh & McLennan Companies comprises approximately 3.8% of Coho Partners Ltd.’s portfolio, making the stock its 8th largest position. Coho Partners Ltd. owned about 0.08% of Marsh & McLennan Companies worth $81,920,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Other institutional investors have also recently made changes to their positions in the company. Geode Capital Management LLC raised its position in shares of Marsh & McLennan Companies by 2.2% during the 3rd quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC now owns 11,905,431 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $2,648,304,000 after buying an additional 251,361 shares during the period. Citigroup Inc. raised its position in Marsh & McLennan Companies by 4.8% in the third quarter. Citigroup Inc. now owns 508,245 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $113,384,000 after purchasing an additional 23,445 shares during the period. Kinsale Capital Group Inc. raised its position in Marsh & McLennan Companies by 16.8% in the third quarter. Kinsale Capital Group Inc. now owns 27,004 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $6,024,000 after purchasing an additional 3,880 shares during the period. Kovitz Investment Group Partners LLC raised its position in Marsh & McLennan Companies by 197.5% in the third quarter. Kovitz Investment Group Partners LLC now owns 11,116 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $2,480,000 after purchasing an additional 7,380 shares during the period. Finally, Waverton Investment Management Ltd raised its position in Marsh & McLennan Companies by 4.8% in the third quarter. Waverton Investment Management Ltd now owns 1,104,799 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $246,475,000 after purchasing an additional 50,167 shares during the period. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 87.99% of the company’s stock.

Marsh & McLennan Companies Trading Up 0.9 %

NYSE MMC opened at $231.06 on Friday. The stock has a market capitalization of $113.48 billion, a P/E ratio of 28.21, a P/E/G ratio of 2.35 and a beta of 0.96. Marsh & McLennan Companies, Inc. has a 52-week low of $195.99 and a 52-week high of $235.50. The firm has a 50-day moving average price of $216.66 and a 200 day moving average price of $221.83. 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 results 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%. Equities research analysts expect that Marsh & McLennan Companies, Inc. will post 9.54 EPS for the current year.

Marsh & McLennan Companies Dividend Announcement

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, February 14th. Investors of record on Thursday, January 30th will be given a dividend of $0.815 per share. The ex-dividend date is Thursday, January 30th. This represents a $3.26 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 1.41%. Marsh & McLennan Companies’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 39.80%.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of analysts have issued reports on MMC shares. BMO Capital Markets boosted their target price on Marsh & McLennan Companies from $217.00 to $228.00 and gave the company a “market perform” rating in a research report on Tuesday, October 22nd. Barclays boosted their price target on shares of Marsh & McLennan Companies from $236.00 to $246.00 and gave the stock an “equal weight” rating in a research note on Thursday, November 21st. UBS Group boosted their price target on shares of Marsh & McLennan Companies from $255.00 to $259.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research note on Tuesday, October 22nd. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods dropped their price target on shares of Marsh & McLennan Companies from $214.00 to $210.00 and set an “underperform” rating for the company in a research note on Monday, February 3rd. Finally, Raymond James restated an “outperform” rating and issued a $250.00 price target (up previously from $240.00) on shares of Marsh & McLennan Companies in a research note on Thursday, February 6th. Two equities research analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, ten have assigned a hold rating and four have assigned a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the stock has a consensus rating of “Hold” and a consensus target price of $230.44.

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.