Marsh & McLennan Q2 Earnings Beat on Risk and Insurance Strength

Core Insights - Marsh & McLennan Companies, Inc. (MMC) reported second-quarter 2025 adjusted earnings per share of $2.72, exceeding the Zacks Consensus Estimate by 2.3% and reflecting an 11% year-over-year increase [1][9] - Consolidated revenues reached $6.97 billion, marking a 12% year-over-year improvement and a 4% increase on an underlying basis, also surpassing the consensus mark by 0.8% [1][9] Financial Performance - Total operating expenses rose 12.4% year over year to $5.1 billion, driven by increased compensation and benefits costs [3] - Adjusted operating income improved 14% year over year to $2.06 billion, beating the estimate of $2.05 billion, with an adjusted operating margin of 29.5%, up 50 basis points year over year [4] Segment Performance Risk and Insurance Services - Revenues for this segment were $4.63 billion, a 15% year-over-year increase and 4% on an underlying basis, beating the Zacks Consensus Estimate by 0.4% [4] - Adjusted operating income for Risk and Insurance Services advanced 15.7% year over year to $1.6 billion, exceeding the consensus mark by 2.5% [4] - Marsh's revenues within this segment rose 18% year over year to $3.8 billion, while Guy Carpenter's revenues increased 5% year over year to $677 million [5][6] Consulting - The Consulting unit's revenues grew 7% year over year to $2.37 billion, surpassing the Zacks Consensus Estimate by 1.3% [7] - Adjusted operating income for Consulting climbed 9.4% year over year to $479 million, although it missed the consensus mark by 2.6% [7] - Mercer, a unit within Consulting, reported a 9% year-over-year revenue increase to $1.5 billion, beating the consensus estimate by 2.8% [8] Financial Position - As of June 30, 2025, Marsh & McLennan had cash and cash equivalents of $1.7 billion, down from $2.4 billion at the end of 2024, while total assets increased to $58.6 billion [11] - Long-term debt decreased to $19 billion from $19.4 billion, and total equity rose to $16 billion from $13.5 billion at the end of 2024 [11] Capital Deployment - In the second quarter, Marsh & McLennan repurchased 1.4 million shares for $300 million [13]