Marsh & McLennan Companies (NYSE:MMC) Price Target Raised to $223.00

Marsh & McLennan Companies (NYSE:MMC) had its target price upped by Wells Fargo & Company from $212.00 to $223.00 in a research note issued to investors on Friday,Benzinga reports. The brokerage currently has an equal weight rating on the financial services provider’s stock.

A number of other research firms also recently commented on MMC. Jefferies Financial Group increased their price objective on Marsh & McLennan Companies from $219.00 to $222.00 and gave the company a “hold” rating in a report on Wednesday, October 9th. Barclays increased their price objective on Marsh & McLennan Companies from $236.00 to $246.00 and gave the company an “equal weight” rating in a report on Thursday, November 21st. Bank of America upped their target price on Marsh & McLennan Companies from $248.00 to $250.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a research report on Thursday, October 10th. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods upped their target price on Marsh & McLennan Companies from $212.00 to $214.00 and gave the company an “underperform” rating in a research report on Friday, January 10th. Finally, Evercore ISI reissued an “outperform” rating and issued a $242.00 target price on shares of Marsh & McLennan Companies in a research report on Monday, November 25th. Two research analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, ten have issued a hold rating and three have given 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 $229.40.

Marsh & McLennan Companies Price Performance

Shares of NYSE MMC opened at $216.90 on Friday. The stock’s 50-day moving average is $217.65 and its two-hundred day moving average is $221.40. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.89, a current ratio of 1.14 and a quick ratio of 1.14. Marsh & McLennan Companies has a 1-year low of $190.41 and a 1-year high of $235.50. The company has a market cap of $106.52 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 26.71, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.30 and a beta of 0.96.

Marsh & McLennan Companies (NYSE:MMC) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, January 30th. The financial services provider reported $1.87 earnings per share for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $1.75 by $0.12. Marsh & McLennan Companies had a return on equity of 32.65% and a net margin of 16.82%. Analysts forecast that Marsh & McLennan Companies will post 8.67 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Marsh & McLennan Companies Dividend Announcement

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, February 14th. Shareholders 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 1.50%. Marsh & McLennan Companies’s payout ratio is 40.15%.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Marsh & McLennan Companies

A number of institutional investors have recently made changes to their positions in MMC. Carmichael Hill & Associates Inc. raised its holdings in shares of Marsh & McLennan Companies by 85.7% in the third quarter. Carmichael Hill & Associates Inc. now owns 130 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $29,000 after acquiring an additional 60 shares during the last quarter. Catalyst Capital Advisors LLC acquired a new position in shares of Marsh & McLennan Companies in the third quarter worth $31,000. Financial Life Planners acquired a new position in shares of Marsh & McLennan Companies in the fourth quarter worth $33,000. Sierra Ocean LLC acquired a new position in shares of Marsh & McLennan Companies in the fourth quarter worth $36,000. Finally, Albion Financial Group UT acquired a new position in shares of Marsh & McLennan Companies in the fourth quarter worth $38,000. 87.99% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

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.