Argo Wealth Advisory LLC Purchases New Stake in Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. $AJG

Key Points

• Argo Wealth Advisory LLC purchased a new position of 9,255 shares of Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. (≈$2.395 million), representing about 1.4% of Argo's portfolio and its 26th largest holding.
• Equity analysts have a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" on AJG with a consensus target price of $273.94 (10 Buy ratings and 9 Hold ratings).
• AJG reported quarterly EPS of $2.38, beating estimates by $0.03, and revenue of $3.57 billion (up 33.9% year-over-year) though slightly below consensus.

Argo Wealth Advisory LLC purchased a new position in shares of Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. (NYSE:AJG - Free Report) in the 4th quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the SEC. The firm purchased 9,255 shares of the financial services provider's stock, valued at approximately $2,395,000. Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. comprises about 1.4% of Argo Wealth Advisory LLC's investment portfolio, making the stock its 26th largest holding.

Several other hedge funds have also added to or reduced their stakes in the company. CX Institutional grew its holdings in Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. by 2.1% during the 3rd quarter. CX Institutional now owns 1,782 shares of the financial services provider's stock valued at $552,000 after purchasing an additional 36 shares in the last quarter. D.A. Davidson & CO. grew its holdings in Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. by 1.3% during the 3rd quarter. D.A. Davidson & CO. now owns 2,930 shares of the financial services provider's stock worth $908,000 after acquiring an additional 38 shares in the last quarter. Citizens Financial Group Inc. RI grew its holdings in Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. by 1.0% during the 3rd quarter. Citizens Financial Group Inc. RI now owns 3,958 shares of the financial services provider's stock worth $1,226,000 after acquiring an additional 38 shares in the last quarter. Central Pacific Bank Trust Division grew its holdings in Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. by 40.6% during the 3rd quarter. Central Pacific Bank Trust Division now owns 135 shares of the financial services provider's stock worth $42,000 after acquiring an additional 39 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Syntegra Private Wealth Group LLC lifted its position in shares of Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. by 3.3% in the 3rd quarter. Syntegra Private Wealth Group LLC now owns 1,248 shares of the financial services provider's stock worth $387,000 after buying an additional 40 shares during the last quarter. 85.53% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several brokerages recently weighed in on AJG. Needham & Company LLC set a $272.00 price objective on shares of Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. in a research report on Thursday, December 18th. Wall Street Zen upgraded shares of Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. from a "sell" rating to a "hold" rating in a research report on Saturday, February 21st. Royal Bank Of Canada began coverage on shares of Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. in a research report on Tuesday, March 17th. They issued an "outperform" rating and a $260.00 price objective on the stock. UBS Group cut their price objective on shares of Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. from $285.00 to $283.00 and set a "neutral" rating on the stock in a research report on Monday, February 2nd. Finally, Citigroup lifted their price objective on shares of Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. from $277.00 to $280.00 and gave the company a "neutral" rating in a research report on Monday, February 2nd. Ten equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and nine have issued a Hold rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat, the company currently has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus target price of $273.94.

Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. Stock Performance

Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. stock opened at $224.21 on Friday. The firm's 50 day simple moving average is $216.73 and its 200-day simple moving average is $246.62. The company has a market cap of $57.65 billion, a P/E ratio of 36.46, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.11 and a beta of 0.68. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.52, a current ratio of 1.06 and a quick ratio of 1.06. Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. has a fifty-two week low of $195.00 and a fifty-two week high of $351.23.

Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. (NYSE:AJG - Get Free Report) last released its earnings results on Thursday, January 29th. The financial services provider reported $2.38 earnings per share for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $2.35 by $0.03. Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. had a net margin of 11.84% and a return on equity of 12.13%. The business had revenue of $3.57 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $3.61 billion. During the same period last year, the firm posted $1.12 earnings per share. The firm's quarterly revenue was up 33.9% compared to the same quarter last year. As a group, equities research analysts predict that Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. will post 11.54 EPS for the current year.

Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. Increases Dividend

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, March 20th. Shareholders of record on Friday, March 6th were paid a $0.70 dividend. This represents a $2.80 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 1.2%. This is a boost from Arthur J. Gallagher & Co.'s previous quarterly dividend of $0.65. The ex-dividend date was Friday, March 6th. Arthur J. Gallagher & Co.'s dividend payout ratio is presently 45.53%.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. news, VP Christopher E. Mead sold 4,000 shares of Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, March 5th. The shares were sold at an average price of $227.12, for a total value of $908,480.00. Following the completion of the sale, the vice president directly owned 19,306 shares in the company, valued at $4,384,778.72. The trade was a 17.16% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through the SEC website. Also, VP Scott R. Hudson sold 3,800 shares of the business's stock in a transaction on Friday, March 6th. The stock was sold at an average price of $227.57, for a total transaction of $864,766.00. Following the completion of the sale, the vice president owned 85,920 shares of the company's stock, valued at $19,552,814.40. The trade was a 4.24% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The SEC filing for this sale provides additional information. 1.40% of the stock is owned by insiders.

Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. Company Profile

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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