Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. (NYSE:AJG) Stock Holdings Boosted by Blair William & Co. IL

Key Points

• Blair William & Co. IL increased its holdings in Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. by 6.3%, owning 98,349 shares valued at approximately $33.95 million.
• Arthur J. Gallagher reported a Q2 2023 EPS of $2.33, which fell short of analysts' estimates by $0.03, while revenue increased by 16% year-over-year.
• The company plans to distribute a $0.65 quarterly dividend on September 19th, resulting in an annualized yield of 0.9% and a payout ratio of 36.93%.

Blair William & Co. IL lifted its position in Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. (NYSE:AJG - Free Report) by 6.3% during the first quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the SEC. The institutional investor owned 98,349 shares of the financial services provider's stock after buying an additional 5,850 shares during the period. Blair William & Co. IL's holdings in Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. were worth $33,954,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Several other institutional investors have also modified their holdings of the company. Capital International Investors raised its position in Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. by 3.1% in the fourth quarter. Capital International Investors now owns 10,067,647 shares of the financial services provider's stock worth $2,857,737,000 after acquiring an additional 305,876 shares in the last quarter. Capital World Investors grew its stake in shares of Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. by 30.4% in the 4th quarter. Capital World Investors now owns 8,199,413 shares of the financial services provider's stock worth $2,327,403,000 after purchasing an additional 1,910,471 shares during the last quarter. Brown Advisory Inc. raised its holdings in shares of Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. by 9.7% in the 4th quarter. Brown Advisory Inc. now owns 2,957,633 shares of the financial services provider's stock worth $839,524,000 after purchasing an additional 260,533 shares in the last quarter. Winslow Capital Management LLC acquired a new stake in Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. during the fourth quarter valued at approximately $719,489,000. Finally, Northern Trust Corp boosted its holdings in Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. by 25.6% during the fourth quarter. Northern Trust Corp now owns 2,355,301 shares of the financial services provider's stock worth $668,552,000 after buying an additional 480,193 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 85.53% of the company's stock.

Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. Stock Performance

AJG stock opened at $284.06 on Monday. The firm has a 50 day simple moving average of $318.00 and a 200 day simple moving average of $323.05. Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. has a 52 week low of $274.25 and a 52 week high of $351.23. The stock has a market cap of $72.75 billion, a P/E ratio of 40.35 and a beta of 0.68. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.52, a quick ratio of 1.44 and a current ratio of 1.36.

Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. (NYSE:AJG - Get Free Report) last released its earnings results on Thursday, July 31st. The financial services provider reported $2.33 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing analysts' consensus estimates of $2.36 by ($0.03). Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. had a return on equity of 13.17% and a net margin of 14.54%. The company had revenue of $3.18 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $3.20 billion. During the same quarter in the previous year, the company earned $2.29 EPS. The firm's quarterly revenue was up 16.0% compared to the same quarter last year. Research analysts anticipate that Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. will post 11.54 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. Announces Dividend

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, September 19th. Shareholders of record on Friday, September 5th will be given a $0.65 dividend. This represents a $2.60 annualized dividend and a yield of 0.9%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, September 5th. Arthur J. Gallagher & Co.'s dividend payout ratio is presently 36.93%.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In related news, insider Susan E. Pietrucha sold 13,500 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, May 19th. The shares were sold at an average price of $344.13, for a total transaction of $4,645,755.00. Following the transaction, the insider owned 11,941 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $4,109,256.33. This trade represents a 53.06% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through the SEC website. Also, VP Scott R. Hudson sold 10,500 shares of Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, May 21st. The shares were sold at an average price of $337.17, for a total transaction of $3,540,285.00. Following the completion of the sale, the vice president owned 91,175 shares of the company's stock, valued at $30,741,474.75. This trade represents a 10.33% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders have sold a total of 25,000 shares of company stock valued at $8,528,080 in the last three months. Insiders own 1.30% of the company's stock.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of brokerages have recently commented on AJG. Piper Sandler increased their price objective on Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. from $352.00 to $372.00 and gave the company an "overweight" rating in a research report on Friday. Barclays reduced their target price on Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. from $346.00 to $327.00 and set an "equal weight" rating for the company in a report on Monday, July 7th. Wells Fargo & Company lifted their price target on Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. from $371.00 to $373.00 and gave the stock an "overweight" rating in a research note on Friday. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods upped their price objective on shares of Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. from $326.00 to $330.00 and gave the company a "market perform" rating in a research note on Wednesday, July 9th. Finally, Erste Group Bank reiterated a "hold" rating on shares of Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. in a report on Wednesday, July 23rd. One analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, seven have issued a hold rating and five have given a buy rating to the company's stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. currently has an average rating of "Hold" and an average price target of $329.75.

Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. Company Profile

Arthur J. Gallagher & Co engages in the provision of insurance brokerage, reinsurance brokerage, consulting, and third-party claims settlement and administration services. It operates through the following segments: Brokerage, Risk Management, and Corporate. The Brokerage segment consists of retail and wholesale insurance brokerage operations.

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