Eurizon Capital SGR S.p.A. Takes $5.13 Million Position in Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. $AJG

Key Points

• Eurizon Capital SGR disclosed a new stake in Arthur J. Gallagher & Co., buying 19,800 shares valued at about $5.13 million in the fourth quarter.
• Arthur J. Gallagher shares were up 2.4% to $205.98, while the company reported quarterly EPS of $4.47, edging past estimates even as revenue slightly missed expectations.
• The company declared a quarterly dividend of $0.70 per share, and analysts currently have a consensus rating of Moderate Buy with a target price of $264.00.

Eurizon Capital SGR S.p.A. purchased a new stake in Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. (NYSE:AJG - Free Report) in the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The fund purchased 19,800 shares of the financial services provider's stock, valued at approximately $5,127,000.

Several other institutional investors and hedge funds also recently made changes to their positions in AJG. Physician Wealth Advisors Inc. grew its holdings in shares of Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. by 870.0% in the 3rd quarter. Physician Wealth Advisors Inc. now owns 97 shares of the financial services provider's stock valued at $30,000 after buying an additional 87 shares during the period. Rakuten Securities Inc. grew its holdings in shares of Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. by 650.0% in the 2nd quarter. Rakuten Securities Inc. now owns 105 shares of the financial services provider's stock valued at $34,000 after buying an additional 91 shares during the period. Financial Life Planners acquired a new position in shares of Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. in the 3rd quarter valued at $39,000. Westside Investment Management Inc. grew its holdings in shares of Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. by 100.0% in the 3rd quarter. Westside Investment Management Inc. now owns 136 shares of the financial services provider's stock valued at $42,000 after buying an additional 68 shares during the period. Finally, Thurston Springer Miller Herd & Titak Inc. grew its holdings in shares of Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. by 668.2% in the 4th quarter. Thurston Springer Miller Herd & Titak Inc. now owns 169 shares of the financial services provider's stock valued at $44,000 after buying an additional 147 shares during the period. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 85.53% of the company's stock.

Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. Trading Up 2.4%

Shares of NYSE:AJG opened at $205.98 on Tuesday. The company's 50-day moving average price is $211.03 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $230.45. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.51, a current ratio of 1.06 and a quick ratio of 1.06. Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. has a one year low of $190.75 and a one year high of $351.23. The stock has a market capitalization of $52.92 billion, a PE ratio of 33.33, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.02 and a beta of 0.53.

Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. (NYSE:AJG - Get Free Report) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, April 30th. The financial services provider reported $4.47 EPS for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $4.43 by $0.04. Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. had a net margin of 10.76% and a return on equity of 12.83%. The firm had revenue of $4.71 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $4.73 billion. During the same period in the previous year, the firm posted $3.67 EPS. The company's revenue for the quarter was up 29.0% on a year-over-year basis. On average, equities analysts forecast that Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. will post 13.26 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, June 19th. Shareholders of record on Friday, June 5th will be given a dividend of $0.70 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, June 5th. This represents a $2.80 annualized dividend and a yield of 1.4%. Arthur J. Gallagher & Co.'s payout ratio is 45.31%.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of equities analysts recently weighed in on the stock. Morgan Stanley reduced their target price on shares of Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. from $265.00 to $240.00 and set an "overweight" rating for the company in a research note on Thursday, May 21st. Mizuho reduced their target price on shares of Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. from $260.00 to $259.00 and set an "outperform" rating for the company in a research note on Monday, April 13th. Wall Street Zen raised shares of Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. from a "sell" rating to a "hold" rating in a research note on Saturday, February 21st. BMO Capital Markets raised shares of Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. from a "market perform" rating to an "outperform" rating and upped their target price for the stock from $275.00 to $278.00 in a research note on Tuesday, March 24th. Finally, Piper Sandler reduced their target price on shares of Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. from $226.00 to $211.00 and set a "neutral" rating for the company in a research note on Friday, May 1st. Eleven investment analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and eight have assigned a Hold rating to the company's stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the company has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus target price of $264.00.

Insider Activity

In other news, VP Scott R. Hudson sold 3,800 shares of the company's stock in a transaction dated Friday, March 6th. The shares were sold at an average price of $227.57, for a total value of $864,766.00. Following the sale, the vice president directly owned 85,920 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $19,552,814.40. This represents a 4.24% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through the SEC website. Also, VP Christopher E. Mead sold 4,000 shares of the company's 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 completion of the sale, the vice president directly owned 19,306 shares in the company, valued at approximately $4,384,778.72. The trade was a 17.16% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The SEC filing for this sale provides additional information. Insiders own 1.40% of the company's stock.

Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. Company Profile

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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