Benjamin Edwards Inc. Has $30.42 Million Holdings in Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. $AJG

Key Points

• Benjamin Edwards Inc. reduced its Arthur J. Gallagher holdings by 15.8% in the second quarter, selling 24,813 shares and retaining 132,485 shares valued at approximately $30.42 million. Institutional investors collectively own 85.53% of AJG.
• Arthur J. Gallagher reported quarterly EPS of $2.84, exceeding estimates of $2.81, while revenue rose 24.3% year over year to $3.95 billion. The company declared a quarterly dividend of $0.70, equivalent to a 1.0% annualized yield.
• Analysts maintain a generally positive outlook, with a “Moderate Buy” consensus and an average price target of $290.28; AJG recently traded at $267.43. Company insiders sold 18,500 shares worth about $4.76 million over the past 90 days.

Benjamin Edwards Inc. cut its holdings in shares of Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. (NYSE:AJG - Free Report) by 15.8% in the 2nd quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The fund owned 132,485 shares of the financial services provider's stock after selling 24,813 shares during the period. Benjamin Edwards Inc. owned about 0.05% of Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. worth $30,421,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Several other hedge funds and other institutional investors also recently made changes to their positions in AJG. Norges Bank bought a new position in Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. during the 4th quarter worth $1,925,062,000. T. Rowe Price Investment Management Inc. increased its position in Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. by 123.5% in the 4th quarter. T. Rowe Price Investment Management Inc. now owns 5,887,538 shares of the financial services provider's stock valued at $1,523,636,000 after buying an additional 3,253,498 shares in the last quarter. Gtcr LLC acquired a new position in shares of Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. during the first quarter worth approximately $514,112,000. Bank of New York Mellon Corp acquired a new stake in shares of Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. in the 2nd quarter worth about $289,484,000. Finally, Northwestern Mutual Wealth Management Co. lifted its holdings in shares of Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. by 9,244.9% in the fourth quarter. Northwestern Mutual Wealth Management Co. now owns 1,053,636 shares of the financial services provider's stock valued at $272,670,000 after purchasing an additional 1,042,361 shares in the last quarter. 85.53% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. Trading Up 2.8%

NYSE AJG opened at $267.43 on Friday. The stock's 50 day moving average is $249.63 and its 200 day moving average is $225.78. The firm has a market capitalization of $68.54 billion, a PE ratio of 44.35, a P/E/G ratio of 1.64 and a beta of 0.50. The company has a quick ratio of 1.05, a current ratio of 1.05 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.50. Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. has a twelve month low of $190.75 and a twelve month high of $313.55.

Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. (NYSE:AJG - Get Free Report) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, July 30th. The financial services provider reported $2.84 earnings per share for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $2.81 by $0.03. Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. had a return on equity of 13.28% and a net margin of 9.96%.The company had revenue of $3.95 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $4.01 billion. During the same quarter in the prior year, the business posted $2.33 EPS. The firm's quarterly revenue was up 24.3% compared to the same quarter last year. Research analysts forecast 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. Investors of record on Tuesday, September 8th will be issued a $0.70 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Tuesday, September 8th. This represents a $2.80 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 1.0%. Arthur J. Gallagher & Co.'s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 46.43%.

Insider Activity

In other Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. news, CAO Richard C. Cary sold 3,000 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, June 2nd. The shares were sold at an average price of $206.00, for a total transaction of $618,000.00. Following the completion of the sale, the chief accounting officer directly owned 47,819 shares of the company's stock, valued at $9,850,714. This trade represents a 5.90% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available through the SEC website. Also, General Counsel Walter D. Bay sold 12,000 shares of the business's stock in a transaction dated 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 completion of the sale, the general counsel owned 71,292 shares in the company, valued at $19,254,543.36. This represents a 14.41% decrease in their ownership of the stock. Additional details regarding this sale are available in the official SEC disclosure. Insiders sold a total of 18,500 shares of company stock valued at $4,758,530 in the last 90 days. Company insiders own 1.40% of the company's stock.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several research firms have recently issued reports on AJG. Cantor Fitzgerald upped their target price on Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. from $285.00 to $300.00 and gave the company a "neutral" rating in a report on Thursday, July 9th. Royal Bank Of Canada raised their price objective on shares of Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. from $300.00 to $310.00 and gave the stock an "outperform" rating in a report on Friday, July 31st. Weiss Ratings upgraded Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. from a "hold (c-)" rating to a "hold (c)" rating in a research report on Monday, July 13th. Citigroup increased their price objective on Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. from $250.00 to $285.00 and gave the stock a "buy" rating in a research report on Tuesday, August 4th. Finally, Keefe, Bruyette & Woods raised their price objective on shares of Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. from $261.00 to $271.00 and gave the company a "market perform" rating in a research report on Friday, July 31st. Fourteen equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and five have given a Hold rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the stock currently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average target price of $290.28.

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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