Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. (NYSE:AJG) Announces Earnings Results

Key Points

• Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. beat earnings expectations, reporting quarterly EPS of $2.84 versus the $2.81 consensus estimate. Revenue came in at $3.95 billion, below analysts’ $4.01 billion forecast.
• The company declared a quarterly dividend of $0.70 per share, equivalent to $2.80 annually and a 1.1% yield. The dividend is payable September 18 to shareholders of record on September 8.
• Analysts remain broadly positive, with 13 Buy ratings and five Holds producing a “Moderate Buy” consensus and a $280.35 average price target. AJG shares traded down $12.45 to $256.46 after the results.

Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. (NYSE:AJG - Get Free Report) posted its quarterly earnings data on Thursday. The financial services provider reported $2.84 earnings per share for the quarter, beating analysts' consensus estimates of $2.81 by $0.03, FiscalAI reports. Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. had a return on equity of 12.83% and a net margin of 10.76%.The firm had revenue of $3.95 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $4.01 billion.

Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. Price Performance

Shares of AJG traded down $12.45 during midday trading on Thursday, hitting $256.46. 1,877,754 shares of the company traded hands, compared to its average volume of 2,075,455. The stock has a market cap of $65.88 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 41.50, a PEG ratio of 1.37 and a beta of 0.50. The firm has a 50 day moving average of $229.80 and a 200-day moving average of $224.96. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.51, a quick ratio of 1.06 and a current ratio of 1.06. Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. has a 52 week low of $190.75 and a 52 week high of $313.55.

Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. Announces Dividend

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, September 18th. Shareholders of record on Tuesday, September 8th will be paid a $0.70 dividend. The ex-dividend date is Tuesday, September 8th. This represents a $2.80 annualized dividend and a yield of 1.1%. Arthur J. Gallagher & Co.'s payout ratio is presently 45.31%.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

AJG has been the subject of a number of analyst reports. Barclays increased their price objective on shares of Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. from $275.00 to $292.00 and gave the stock an "overweight" rating in a research note on Tuesday, July 7th. Piper Sandler upgraded Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. from a "neutral" rating to an "overweight" rating and increased their price target for the stock from $225.00 to $276.00 in a research note on Wednesday, July 15th. Citigroup raised Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. from a "neutral" rating to a "buy" rating and decreased their price target for the company from $280.00 to $250.00 in a report on Wednesday, May 6th. Cantor Fitzgerald increased their target price on Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. from $285.00 to $300.00 and gave the stock a "neutral" rating in a research report on Thursday, July 9th. Finally, Jefferies Financial Group raised Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. from a "hold" rating to a "buy" rating and lifted their target price for the company from $235.00 to $265.00 in a research note on Thursday, June 11th. Thirteen equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and five have assigned a Hold rating to the company's stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the stock currently has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus target price of $280.35.

Insider Activity

In other news, CAO Richard C. Cary sold 3,000 shares of Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, June 2nd. The stock was sold at an average price of $206.00, for a total value of $618,000.00. Following the sale, the chief accounting officer directly owned 47,819 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $9,850,714. The trade was a 5.90% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. Company insiders own 1.40% of the company's stock.

Institutional Trading of Arthur J. Gallagher & Co.

Several hedge funds have recently modified their holdings of AJG. Invesco Ltd. increased its position in Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. by 5.2% in the fourth quarter. Invesco Ltd. now owns 1,733,169 shares of the financial services provider's stock worth $448,527,000 after purchasing an additional 85,545 shares during the last quarter. Corient Private Wealth LLC increased its holdings in shares of Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. by 124.0% in the 4th quarter. Corient Private Wealth LLC now owns 97,571 shares of the financial services provider's stock worth $24,936,000 after buying an additional 54,017 shares during the last quarter. Mercer Global Advisors Inc. ADV increased its holdings in shares of Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. by 54.3% in the 4th quarter. Mercer Global Advisors Inc. ADV now owns 155,398 shares of the financial services provider's stock worth $40,436,000 after buying an additional 54,678 shares during the last quarter. Vident Advisory LLC raised its position in shares of Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. by 4.0% during the 4th quarter. Vident Advisory LLC now owns 65,341 shares of the financial services provider's stock valued at $16,910,000 after buying an additional 2,533 shares in the last quarter. Finally, EP Wealth Advisors LLC bought a new position in shares of Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. in the 4th quarter valued at about $833,000. 85.53% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

About Arthur J. Gallagher & Co.

Arthur J. Gallagher & Co is a global insurance brokerage and risk management firm headquartered in Rolling Meadows, Illinois. Founded in 1927 by Arthur J. Gallagher, the company has grown from a regional broker into an international professional services organization that arranges insurance, provides consulting and designs risk-transfer solutions for commercial, industrial, public sector and individual clients.

The company's core activities include property and casualty insurance brokerage, employee benefits consulting and administration, and a range of risk management services.

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