Artisan Partners Limited Partnership Takes $622.94 Million Position in Marsh & McLennan Companies, Inc. $MRSH

Artisan Partners Limited Partnership bought a new stake in shares of Marsh & McLennan Companies, Inc. (NYSE:MRSH) during the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The institutional investor bought 3,357,826 shares of the financial services provider’s stock, valued at approximately $622,944,000. Marsh & McLennan Companies comprises about 0.9% of Artisan Partners Limited Partnership’s holdings, making the stock its 26th biggest position.

A number of other hedge funds have also recently modified their holdings of the business. Vanguard Group Inc. grew its stake in shares of Marsh & McLennan Companies by 0.8% during the fourth quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 46,589,633 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $8,643,309,000 after buying an additional 387,100 shares during the last quarter. State Street Corp bought a new position in Marsh & McLennan Companies in the fourth quarter worth approximately $4,057,682,000. Capital International Investors bought a new position in Marsh & McLennan Companies in the fourth quarter worth approximately $3,482,557,000. Capital World Investors grew its stake in Marsh & McLennan Companies by 0.5% in the third quarter. Capital World Investors now owns 17,702,898 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $3,567,410,000 after purchasing an additional 92,767 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Wellington Management Group LLP grew its stake in Marsh & McLennan Companies by 9.1% in the third quarter. Wellington Management Group LLP now owns 15,091,478 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $3,041,386,000 after purchasing an additional 1,260,434 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors own 87.99% of the company’s stock.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other Marsh & McLennan Companies news, CEO John Q. Doyle sold 16,656 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on Tuesday, June 2nd. The stock was sold at an average price of $161.71, for a total transaction of $2,693,441.76. Following the completion of the sale, the chief executive officer owned 116,811 shares in the company, valued at $18,889,506.81. This represents a 12.48% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at the SEC website. The transaction was executed under a pre-arranged Rule 10b5-1 trading plan. 0.38% of the stock is currently owned by corporate insiders.

Marsh & McLennan Companies Stock Performance

Marsh & McLennan Companies stock opened at $166.67 on Wednesday. The company has a quick ratio of 1.11, a current ratio of 1.11 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.28. The firm has a market cap of $80.52 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 20.83, a P/E/G ratio of 2.42 and a beta of 0.62. Marsh & McLennan Companies, Inc. has a twelve month low of $156.60 and a twelve month high of $220.32.

Marsh & McLennan Companies (NYSE:MRSH) last posted its earnings results on Thursday, April 16th. The financial services provider reported $3.29 earnings per share for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $3.21 by $0.08. The company had revenue of $7.30 billion during the quarter. Marsh & McLennan Companies had a return on equity of 31.87% and a net margin of 14.26%.The business’s quarterly revenue was up 7.6% compared to the same quarter last year. On average, equities analysts forecast that Marsh & McLennan Companies, Inc. will post 10.38 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

MRSH has been the topic of several research analyst reports. UBS Group dropped their price objective on Marsh & McLennan Companies from $230.00 to $203.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a research note on Tuesday, June 9th. Morgan Stanley dropped their price objective on Marsh & McLennan Companies from $195.00 to $190.00 and set an “equal weight” rating on the stock in a research note on Monday, April 6th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. dropped their price objective on Marsh & McLennan Companies from $226.00 to $206.00 and set an “overweight” rating on the stock in a research note on Thursday, April 9th. Weiss Ratings cut Marsh & McLennan Companies from a “hold (c)” rating to a “hold (c-)” rating in a research note on Monday, May 11th. Finally, Citigroup raised Marsh & McLennan Companies from a “neutral” rating to a “buy” rating and set a $200.00 price objective on the stock in a research note on Wednesday, May 6th. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, six have assigned a Buy rating, ten have assigned a Hold rating and one has assigned a Sell rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the company currently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and a consensus target price of $200.19.

Marsh & McLennan Companies Profile

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.