Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. $AJG Shares Bought by NEOS Investment Management LLC

Key Points

• NEOS Investment Management increased its AJG stake by 13.8% in the second quarter, bringing its holdings to 41,756 shares valued at approximately $9.6 million. Institutional investors collectively own 85.53% of the company.
• Arthur J. Gallagher reported quarterly EPS of $2.84, slightly exceeding estimates, while revenue rose 24.3% year over year to $3.95 billion. Analysts maintain a “Moderate Buy” consensus with an average price target of $290.28.
• The company declared a quarterly dividend of $0.70 per share, equal to an annualized $2.80 and a 1.1% yield; meanwhile, company insiders sold 27,500 shares worth about $7.3 million over the past three months.

NEOS Investment Management LLC lifted its stake in shares of Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. (NYSE:AJG - Free Report) by 13.8% during the 2nd quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The firm owned 41,756 shares of the financial services provider's stock after acquiring an additional 5,073 shares during the period. NEOS Investment Management LLC's holdings in Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. were worth $9,586,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Other institutional investors have also recently bought and sold shares of the company. Nykredit A S acquired a new position in shares of Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. in the 2nd quarter valued at $20,509,000. Tranquilli Financial Advisor LLC acquired a new position in Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. in the second quarter valued at $213,000. B. Metzler seel. Sohn & Co. AG grew its position in Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. by 52.6% during the second quarter. B. Metzler seel. Sohn & Co. AG now owns 19,123 shares of the financial services provider's stock valued at $4,390,000 after acquiring an additional 6,594 shares during the period. Natural Investments LLC increased its stake in Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. by 27.2% during the second quarter. Natural Investments LLC now owns 1,216 shares of the financial services provider's stock worth $279,000 after acquiring an additional 260 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Moore Capital Management LP purchased a new position in shares of Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. in the 2nd quarter worth about $4,248,000. 85.53% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. Price Performance

Shares of AJG stock opened at $262.24 on Friday. The firm has a fifty day simple moving average of $254.17 and a 200-day simple moving average of $227.66. The company has a market capitalization of $67.21 billion, a PE ratio of 43.49, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.59 and a beta of 0.50. Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. has a twelve month low of $190.75 and a twelve month high of $313.55. The company has a current ratio of 1.05, a quick ratio of 1.05 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.50.

Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. (NYSE:AJG - Get Free Report) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, July 30th. The financial services provider reported $2.84 EPS for the quarter, topping analysts' consensus estimates of $2.81 by $0.03. The firm had revenue of $3.95 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $4.01 billion. Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. had a net margin of 9.96% and a return on equity of 13.28%. The firm's revenue was up 24.3% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter in the previous year, the business posted $2.33 EPS. Equities research analysts anticipate that Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. will post 13.28 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. Announces Dividend

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, September 18th. Shareholders of record on Tuesday, September 8th will be paid a dividend of $0.70 per share. This represents a $2.80 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 1.1%. The ex-dividend date is Tuesday, September 8th. Arthur J. Gallagher & Co.'s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 46.43%.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. news, General Counsel Walter Bay sold 12,000 shares of the company's stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, August 24th. The stock was sold at an average price of $270.08, for a total value of $3,240,960.00. Following the transaction, the general counsel directly owned 71,292 shares of the company's stock, valued at $19,254,543.36. This represents a 14.41% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available at the SEC website. Also, VP Scott Hudson sold 12,000 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, September 2nd. The shares were sold at an average price of $264.13, for a total value of $3,169,560.00. Following the transaction, the vice president owned 90,262 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $23,840,902.06. This trade represents a 11.73% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The SEC filing for this sale provides additional information. Insiders have sold 27,500 shares of company stock worth $7,310,090 in the last three months. 1.40% of the stock is owned by insiders.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

AJG has been the topic of several research reports. Barclays raised their price target on shares of Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. from $275.00 to $292.00 and gave the company an "overweight" rating in a report on Tuesday, July 7th. Weiss Ratings raised shares of Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. from a "hold (c-)" rating to a "hold (c)" rating in a research report on Monday, July 13th. Wolfe Research lowered shares of Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. from an "outperform" rating to a "peer perform" rating in a report on Thursday, July 9th. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods upped their price target on shares of Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. from $261.00 to $271.00 and gave the stock a "market perform" rating in a research report on Friday, July 31st. Finally, Citigroup raised their price objective on Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. from $250.00 to $285.00 and gave the company a "buy" rating in a research report on Tuesday, August 4th. Fourteen analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and five have assigned a Hold rating to the company's stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the stock presently has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average price target of $290.28.

Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. 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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