Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. $AJG Shares Acquired by Nixon Peabody Trust Co.

Key Points

• Nixon Peabody Trust Co. sharply increased its stake in Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. by 1,881.1% in the fourth quarter, ending with 34,155 shares valued at about $8.84 million.
• AJG reported better-than-expected quarterly earnings of $4.47 per share, while revenue rose 29% year over year to $4.71 billion; analysts still expect about 13.22 EPS for the current fiscal year.
• The company declared a quarterly dividend of $0.70 per share, payable June 19, for an annualized yield of 1.4%, even as the stock traded down about 1.2% and several analysts trimmed price targets.

Nixon Peabody Trust Co. grew its holdings in Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. (NYSE:AJG - Free Report) by 1,881.1% during the 4th quarter, according to its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The fund owned 34,155 shares of the financial services provider's stock after acquiring an additional 32,431 shares during the period. Nixon Peabody Trust Co.'s holdings in Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. were worth $8,839,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Other institutional investors have also recently made changes to their positions in the company. Physician Wealth Advisors Inc. boosted its holdings in Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. by 870.0% in the third quarter. Physician Wealth Advisors Inc. now owns 97 shares of the financial services provider's stock valued at $30,000 after purchasing an additional 87 shares during the last quarter. Rakuten Securities Inc. raised its stake in shares of Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. by 650.0% during the 2nd quarter. Rakuten Securities Inc. now owns 105 shares of the financial services provider's stock valued at $34,000 after buying an additional 91 shares during the last quarter. Financial Life Planners acquired a new position in shares of Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. in the 3rd quarter valued at about $39,000. Westside Investment Management Inc. boosted its stake in shares of Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. by 100.0% in the third quarter. Westside Investment Management Inc. now owns 136 shares of the financial services provider's stock worth $42,000 after buying an additional 68 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Thurston Springer Miller Herd & Titak Inc. grew its holdings in Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. by 668.2% during the fourth quarter. Thurston Springer Miller Herd & Titak Inc. now owns 169 shares of the financial services provider's stock worth $44,000 after acquiring an additional 147 shares during the period. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 85.53% of the company's stock.

Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. Trading Down 1.2%

Shares of NYSE:AJG opened at $204.89 on Friday. The business's 50 day moving average price is $211.64 and its 200-day moving average price is $232.49. Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. has a 1 year low of $190.75 and a 1 year high of $351.23. The firm has a market capitalization of $52.64 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 33.15, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.05 and a beta of 0.54. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.51, a current ratio of 1.06 and a quick ratio of 1.06.

Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. (NYSE:AJG - Get Free Report) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, April 30th. The financial services provider reported $4.47 EPS for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $4.43 by $0.04. The company had revenue of $4.71 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $4.73 billion. Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. had a net margin of 10.76% and a return on equity of 12.83%. The firm's revenue was up 29.0% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter in the previous year, the firm earned $3.67 EPS. On average, equities research analysts forecast that Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. will post 13.22 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. Announces Dividend

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, June 19th. Investors of record on Friday, June 5th will be given a dividend of $0.70 per share. This represents a $2.80 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 1.4%. The ex-dividend date is Friday, June 5th. Arthur J. Gallagher & Co.'s dividend payout ratio is 45.31%.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

AJG has been the subject of a number of analyst reports. Truist Financial decreased their price target on Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. from $235.00 to $225.00 and set a "hold" rating for the company in a report on Friday, May 1st. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods cut their target price on shares of Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. from $246.00 to $235.00 and set a "market perform" rating for the company in a report on Friday, May 1st. Barclays boosted their target price on shares of Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. from $262.00 to $275.00 and gave the company an "overweight" rating in a research note on Wednesday, April 8th. 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. Finally, Morgan Stanley cut their price objective on shares of Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. from $265.00 to $240.00 and set an "overweight" rating for the company in a report on Thursday. Eleven analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and eight have given a Hold rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat, Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. currently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average price target of $264.00.

Insider Transactions at Arthur J. Gallagher & Co.

In related news, VP Christopher E. Mead sold 4,000 shares of Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. stock in a transaction dated Thursday, March 5th. The stock was sold at an average price of $227.12, for a total value of $908,480.00. Following the sale, the vice president directly owned 19,306 shares in the company, valued at approximately $4,384,778.72. The trade was a 17.16% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is accessible through this hyperlink. Also, VP Scott R. Hudson sold 3,800 shares of the business's stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, March 6th. The stock was sold at an average price of $227.57, for a total value of $864,766.00. Following the sale, the vice president owned 85,920 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $19,552,814.40. This trade represents a 4.24% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale is available in the SEC filing. Company insiders own 1.40% of the company's stock.

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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