Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. $AJG Stock Holdings Increased by Dimensional Fund Advisors LP

Key Points

• Dimensional Fund Advisors LP has increased its holdings in Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. by 1.0%, now owning 736,167 shares valued at approximately $254.12 million.
• Wall Street analysts have mixed opinions on AJG, with price targets ranging from $322.00 to $373.00 and a consensus rating of "Hold" based on multiple assessments.
• Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. announced a quarterly dividend of $0.65 per share, representing an annualized dividend yield of 0.9% and a payout ratio of 36.93%.

Dimensional Fund Advisors LP raised its holdings in shares of Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. (NYSE:AJG - Free Report) by 1.0% in the first quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 736,167 shares of the financial services provider's stock after purchasing an additional 7,257 shares during the quarter. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP owned 0.29% of Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. worth $254,121,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Several other hedge funds also recently made changes to their positions in the company. Vanguard Group Inc. grew its position in shares of Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. by 2.5% in the 1st quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 30,411,264 shares of the financial services provider's stock worth $10,499,185,000 after acquiring an additional 739,130 shares in the last quarter. JPMorgan Chase & Co. grew its position in shares of Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. by 38.3% in the 1st quarter. JPMorgan Chase & Co. now owns 17,372,745 shares of the financial services provider's stock worth $5,997,767,000 after acquiring an additional 4,815,007 shares in the last quarter. Brown Advisory Inc. grew its position 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 acquiring an additional 260,533 shares in the last quarter. Northern Trust Corp grew its position in shares of Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. by 25.6% in the 4th quarter. Northern Trust Corp now owns 2,355,301 shares of the financial services provider's stock worth $668,552,000 after acquiring an additional 480,193 shares in the last quarter. Finally, WCM Investment Management LLC grew its position in shares of Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. by 0.3% in the 1st quarter. WCM Investment Management LLC now owns 2,336,591 shares of the financial services provider's stock worth $796,217,000 after acquiring an additional 7,594 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 85.53% of the company's stock.

Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. Stock Performance

Shares of NYSE AJG traded down $2.5550 during mid-day trading on Friday, hitting $302.8250. The company had a trading volume of 1,165,433 shares, compared to its average volume of 1,790,757. The stock has a market cap of $77.64 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 43.01 and a beta of 0.68. Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. has a 12 month low of $274.25 and a 12 month high of $351.23. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.52, a current ratio of 1.36 and a quick ratio of 1.36. The firm's 50 day simple moving average is $306.50 and its two-hundred day simple moving average is $322.35.

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

Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. Dividend Announcement

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

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several research analysts have recently commented on AJG shares. Citigroup started coverage on Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. in a research report on Wednesday, August 13th. They issued a "neutral" rating and a $317.00 target price for the company. Piper Sandler lifted their target price on Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. from $352.00 to $372.00 and gave the stock an "overweight" rating in a research report on Friday, August 1st. UBS Group cut their price target on Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. from $345.00 to $322.00 and set a "neutral" rating on the stock in a report on Monday, August 4th. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods raised their price target on Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. from $326.00 to $330.00 and gave the stock a "market perform" rating in a report on Wednesday, July 9th. Finally, Erste Group Bank reissued a "hold" rating on shares of Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. in a report on Wednesday, July 23rd. One research analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, five have assigned a Buy rating, nine have assigned a Hold rating and one has given a Sell rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the company has an average rating of "Hold" and a consensus target price of $331.07.

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.