Chevy Chase Trust Holdings LLC Purchases 1,922 Shares of Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. $AJG

Key Points

• Chevy Chase Trust Holdings LLC increased its stake in Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. by 1.4%, acquiring an additional 1,922 shares to reach a total of 135,370 shares valued at $43.3 million.
• Arthur J. Gallagher recently reported a quarterly earnings per share of $2.33, which missed analysts' expectations, although revenue increased 16% year-over-year, totaling $3.18 billion.
• The company announced a quarterly dividend of $0.65 per share, reflecting an annualized dividend yield of 0.9% and a payout ratio of 36.93%.

Chevy Chase Trust Holdings LLC lifted its stake in Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. (NYSE:AJG - Free Report) by 1.4% in the 2nd quarter, according to its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The institutional investor owned 135,370 shares of the financial services provider's stock after purchasing an additional 1,922 shares during the period. Chevy Chase Trust Holdings LLC owned 0.05% of Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. worth $43,335,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Several other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also recently modified their holdings of AJG. Janney Montgomery Scott LLC increased its stake in shares of Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. by 5.7% in the 1st quarter. Janney Montgomery Scott LLC now owns 31,772 shares of the financial services provider's stock worth $10,969,000 after purchasing an additional 1,727 shares in the last quarter. Sowell Financial Services LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. in the 1st quarter worth $618,000. Cornerstone Wealth Management LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. in the 1st quarter worth $239,000. CWA Asset Management Group LLC increased its stake in shares of Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. by 22.5% in the 1st quarter. CWA Asset Management Group LLC now owns 1,125 shares of the financial services provider's stock worth $388,000 after purchasing an additional 207 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Johnson Investment Counsel Inc. increased its stake in shares of Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. by 13.9% in the 1st quarter. Johnson Investment Counsel Inc. now owns 1,716 shares of the financial services provider's stock worth $592,000 after purchasing an additional 210 shares in the last quarter. 85.53% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. Trading Up 0.2%

Shares of Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. stock opened at $280.70 on Friday. The firm has a market cap of $71.97 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 39.87 and a beta of 0.73. The business has a 50-day moving average price of $299.55 and a 200-day moving average price of $314.07. The company has a quick ratio of 1.36, a current ratio of 1.36 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.52. Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. has a twelve month low of $275.56 and a twelve month high of $351.23.

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

Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. Dividend Announcement

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, September 19th. Stockholders of record on Friday, September 5th were given a dividend of $0.65 per share. The ex-dividend date was Friday, September 5th. This represents a $2.60 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 0.9%. Arthur J. Gallagher & Co.'s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 36.93%.

Insider Transactions at Arthur J. Gallagher & Co.

In other news, CFO Douglas K. Howell sold 8,000 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction dated Monday, September 22nd. The stock was sold at an average price of $299.54, for a total transaction of $2,396,320.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief financial officer owned 100,777 shares in the company, valued at $30,186,742.58. This trade represents a 7.35% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available at the SEC website. Also, VP Scott R. Hudson sold 12,855 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction dated Monday, September 8th. The shares were sold at an average price of $297.60, for a total value of $3,825,648.00. Following the transaction, the vice president owned 85,920 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $25,569,792. The trade was a 13.01% decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last 90 days, insiders have sold 29,855 shares of company stock valued at $8,916,928. Company insiders own 1.60% of the company's stock.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several equities research analysts have recently commented on AJG shares. Weiss Ratings restated a "buy (b-)" rating on shares of Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. in a research note on Wednesday, October 8th. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods increased their price target on Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. from $288.00 to $298.00 and gave the stock a "market perform" rating in a research note on Friday, September 19th. Erste Group Bank reiterated a "hold" rating on shares of Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. in a research note on Wednesday, July 23rd. Wall Street Zen upgraded Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. from a "sell" rating to a "hold" rating in a research note on Friday, September 5th. Finally, Cantor Fitzgerald upgraded Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. to a "strong-buy" rating in a research note on Wednesday, August 13th. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, seven have assigned a Buy rating and eight have given a Hold rating to the company's stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the company presently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus price target of $331.43.

Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. 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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