Marsh & McLennan Companies, Inc.

Consolidated Q2 revenue increased 6% to $7.4 billion, or 5% on an underlying basis. Adjusted operating income grew 5% to $2.2 billion, adjusted operating margin was 29.3%, GAAP EPS was $2.63, and adjusted EPS was $2.96, up 9% year over year. For the first six months, underlying revenue growth was 4%, adjusted operating income rose 7% to $4.6 billion, adjusted operating margin was 30.5%, and adjusted EPS increased 8% to $6.25. By segment, RIS revenue was $4.8 billion in Q2, up 4% reported / 3% underlying; Guy Carpenter revenue was $664 million, down 2%; Consulting revenue was $2.6 billion, up 10% reported / 8% underlying. Mercer’s assets under management were $846 billion, up 16% sequentially and 26% year over year. Fiduciary interest income was $88 million, down $11 million year over year. The company now expects to deploy approximately $5.5 billion of capital in 2026, up from $5 billion previously, and expects a 2026 adjusted effective tax rate of 24.5% to 25.5%.

John Doyle framed the quarter as solid and said demand for the firm’s advice and capabilities remained strong. He emphasized Thrive as the core strategic program, focused on brand unification, adding sales capacity, expanding capabilities, and using AI to drive growth, productivity, and efficiency. He was upbeat on the new Marsh brand, the accelerated transition of Guy Carpenter and Mercer to Marsh in September, and new AI-enabled offerings such as Marsh Risk Companion, Coverage Intelligence, Atlas, and LenWork.

Mark McGivney said the quarter reflected diversification and strong execution, with consolidated revenue of $7.4 billion, adjusted operating income of $2.2 billion, and adjusted EPS of $2.96. He highlighted RIS margin of 35.3% and Consulting margin of 20.5%, while noting Guy Carpenter’s weaker revenue was driven by declining property reinsurance rates. On capital allocation, he said cash was $1.7 billion, total debt was $20.6 billion, quarter uses of cash totaled $1.4 billion, and year-to-date uses were $2.7 billion including dividends, acquisitions, and share repurchases. He said Thrive remains on track to deliver $400 million of total savings with about $500 million of charges, and that interest expense was $250 million in Q2, with a similar level expected in Q3.

Analysts focused on the gap between pricing pressure and growth, especially at Marsh Risk and Guy Carpenter. Management said Marsh Risk benefited from strong new business, added production talent, and broad-based growth across regions and specialties, while Guy Carpenter was hit by a steep drop in property cat pricing and some market consolidation. Questions also centered on AI economics, producer hiring, margin expansion, capital deployment, and M&A; management said LenWork is a lower-cost in-house model for most tasks, producer hiring remains strong, margin improvement is still expected for 2026, and M&A remained active but disciplined amid wider bid-ask gaps.