Benjamin Edwards Inc. Increases Stock Position in Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. $AJG

Key Points

• Benjamin Edwards Inc. boosted its stake in Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. (NYSE:AJG) by 25.0% in Q4 to 162,213 shares, representing about $41.99 million (≈0.06% of the company) per its latest 13F filing.
• AJG beat Q1 EPS expectations ($4.47 vs. $4.43) with revenue up ~29% YoY; management reiterated ~6% organic growth for FY2026, raised the AssuredPartners synergy target to $300M by early 2028, and the board declared a $0.70 quarterly dividend.
• Market reaction is mixed—some analysts trimmed price targets and Keefe Bruyette moved to "market perform," and there has been insider selling—while institutional ownership remains high at roughly 85.5%, which may keep volatility elevated.

Benjamin Edwards Inc. boosted its position in Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. (NYSE:AJG - Free Report) by 25.0% during the 4th quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The institutional investor owned 162,213 shares of the financial services provider's stock after purchasing an additional 32,494 shares during the quarter. Benjamin Edwards Inc. owned about 0.06% of Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. worth $41,988,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC).

A number of other hedge funds have also recently made changes to their positions in the company. CX Institutional boosted its position in shares of 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 acquiring an additional 36 shares during the last quarter. D.A. Davidson & CO. boosted its position in shares of 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 valued at $908,000 after acquiring an additional 38 shares during the last quarter. Citizens Financial Group Inc. RI raised its position in shares of 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 valued at $1,226,000 after buying an additional 38 shares in the last quarter. IFP Advisors Inc raised its position in shares of Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. by 1.4% during the 3rd quarter. IFP Advisors Inc now owns 3,064 shares of the financial services provider's stock valued at $949,000 after buying an additional 41 shares in the last quarter. Finally, AMG National Trust Bank raised its position in shares of Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. by 2.7% during the 3rd quarter. AMG National Trust Bank now owns 1,616 shares of the financial services provider's stock valued at $501,000 after buying an additional 42 shares in the last quarter. 85.53% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. News Roundup

Here are the key news stories impacting Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. this week:

• Positive Sentiment: Q1 results: EPS of $4.47 beat the consensus ($4.43); revenue rose ~29% YoY and commissions & fees increased ~28%, with Risk Management margin expansion and eight closed deals. This supports earnings momentum. Arthur J. Gallagher Q1 Earnings Beat
• Positive Sentiment: Management guidance and M&A synergies: Gallagher reiterated ~6% organic growth for FY2026 and raised the AssuredPartners synergy target to $300M by early 2028 — a signal of expected cost/revenue benefits from recent deals. AssuredPartners synergy target rises
• Positive Sentiment: Dividend reaffirmed: Board declared a $0.70 quarterly dividend (record June 5, payable June 19), providing an income element that can support investor interest.
• Neutral Sentiment: Mixed beats vs. consensus: While EPS topped estimates, revenue was roughly in line or slightly below some street estimates (~$4.71B vs varying ~$4.73–4.8B forecasts), leaving some ambiguity on top‑line momentum. Q1 in line with expectations
• Neutral Sentiment: Earnings call/transcript available: Management commentary (on productivity, automation/AI plans and integration of recent acquisitions) will be key for near‑term sentiment; read the call transcript for details. Earnings call transcript
• Negative Sentiment: Analyst action: Keefe, Bruyette & Woods cut its price target from $246 to $235 and moved to a "market perform" rating, adding a note of caution despite upside to the new target. Keefe Bruyette price target cut
• Negative Sentiment: Pre‑earnings de‑risking and insider sales: The stock saw earlier intraday weakness as some investors trimmed positions ahead of the report; documented insider selling and large institutional rebalances may keep volatility elevated. Pre-earnings de-risking analysis

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several analysts have recently weighed in on AJG shares. UBS Group lowered 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. Barclays raised their price objective on shares of Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. from $262.00 to $275.00 and gave the company an "overweight" rating in a research report on Wednesday, April 8th. Wells Fargo & Company lowered their price objective on shares of Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. from $273.00 to $266.00 and set an "overweight" rating on the stock in a research report on Thursday, April 9th. Citigroup raised 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. Finally, BMO Capital Markets upgraded shares of Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. from a "market perform" rating to an "outperform" rating and raised their price objective for the company from $275.00 to $278.00 in a research report on Tuesday, March 24th. Ten equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and nine have given a Hold rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat, Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. presently has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus price target of $271.82.

Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. Stock Performance

Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. stock opened at $208.00 on Friday. The company has a current ratio of 1.06, a quick ratio of 1.06 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.52. The firm has a 50-day moving average of $217.24 and a 200-day moving average of $239.97. The firm has a market cap of $53.48 billion, a P/E ratio of 33.66, a P/E/G ratio of 1.04 and a beta of 0.54. Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. has a 1-year low of $195.00 and a 1-year high of $351.23.

Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. (NYSE:AJG - Get Free Report) last posted its earnings results on Thursday, April 30th. The financial services provider reported $4.47 earnings per share for the quarter, topping analysts' consensus estimates 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 12.91%. Arthur J. Gallagher & Co.'s revenue for the quarter was up 29.0% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period in the prior year, the business posted $3.67 earnings per share. Sell-side analysts expect that Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. will post 13.19 EPS for the current 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 issued a $0.70 dividend. The ex-dividend date is Friday, June 5th. This represents a $2.80 annualized dividend and a yield of 1.3%. Arthur J. Gallagher & Co.'s payout ratio is 45.53%.

Insider Buying and Selling at Arthur J. Gallagher & Co.

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

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.

This instant news alert was generated by narrative science technology and financial data from MarketBeat in order to provide readers with the fastest reporting and unbiased coverage. Please send any questions or comments about this story to contact@marketbeat.com.