Geode Capital Management LLC Increases Stake in Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. $AJG

Key Points

• Geode Capital Management slightly increased its stake in Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. by 0.2% in the fourth quarter, bringing its holdings to about 6.0 million shares worth roughly $1.55 billion.
• Several other major institutional investors also boosted their positions, and 85.53% of AJG’s stock is now owned by hedge funds and other institutions.
• The company reported better-than-expected quarterly EPS of $4.47 and declared a quarterly dividend of $0.70 per share, while analysts currently rate the stock a consensus Moderate Buy with a target price of $264.

Geode Capital Management LLC raised its stake in shares of Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. (NYSE:AJG - Free Report) by 0.2% in the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The institutional investor owned 6,014,196 shares of the financial services provider's stock after buying an additional 12,190 shares during the quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC owned about 2.34% of Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. worth $1,553,238,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC).

A number of other institutional investors have also added to or reduced their stakes in the stock. Vanguard Group Inc. grew its holdings in Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. by 0.7% during the 4th quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 31,390,446 shares of the financial services provider's stock valued at $8,123,534,000 after buying an additional 217,136 shares in the last quarter. JPMorgan Chase & Co. grew its holdings in shares of Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. by 19.6% in the third quarter. JPMorgan Chase & Co. now owns 20,338,533 shares of the financial services provider's stock valued at $6,299,674,000 after purchasing an additional 3,330,205 shares in the last quarter. Capital World Investors grew its holdings in shares of Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. by 0.9% in the third quarter. Capital World Investors now owns 11,783,119 shares of the financial services provider's stock valued at $3,649,477,000 after purchasing an additional 101,298 shares in the last quarter. State Street Corp grew its holdings in shares of Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. by 1.4% in the third quarter. State Street Corp now owns 10,891,080 shares of the financial services provider's stock valued at $3,373,403,000 after purchasing an additional 147,587 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Capital International Investors grew its holdings in shares of Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. by 0.6% in the third quarter. Capital International Investors now owns 7,194,743 shares of the financial services provider's stock valued at $2,228,156,000 after purchasing an additional 45,256 shares in the last quarter. 85.53% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

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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 on Thursday, March 5th. The stock was 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. This trade represents a 17.16% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this link. Also, VP Scott R. Hudson sold 3,800 shares of Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. stock in a transaction on Friday, March 6th. The stock was sold at an average price of $227.57, for a total value of $864,766.00. Following the sale, the vice president owned 85,920 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $19,552,814.40. This trade represents a 4.24% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The SEC filing for this sale provides additional information. 1.40% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

AJG has been the subject of a number of recent research reports. Morgan Stanley cut 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 report on Thursday, May 21st. Truist Financial cut their target price on shares of Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. from $235.00 to $225.00 and set a "hold" rating for the company in a report on Friday, May 1st. Cantor Fitzgerald reissued a "neutral" rating on shares of Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. in a report on Friday, January 30th. Wells Fargo & Company cut their target price on shares of Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. from $273.00 to $266.00 and set an "overweight" rating for the company in a report on Thursday, April 9th. Finally, Barclays raised their target price on shares of Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. from $262.00 to $275.00 and gave the company an "overweight" rating in a report on Wednesday, April 8th. Eleven analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and eight have issued a Hold rating to the company's stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the stock presently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus target price of $264.00.

Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. Stock Down 0.1%

NYSE AJG opened at $202.61 on Friday. The company has a quick ratio of 1.06, a current ratio of 1.06 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.51. The company has a fifty day moving average of $211.27 and a two-hundred day moving average of $231.15. The firm has a market capitalization of $52.05 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 32.79, a PEG ratio of 1.03 and a beta of 0.54. Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. has a 52 week low of $190.75 and a 52 week high of $351.23.

Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. (NYSE:AJG - Get Free Report) last posted its quarterly earnings data 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 company had revenue of $4.71 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $4.73 billion. During the same period in the previous year, the firm earned $3.67 earnings per share. Arthur J. Gallagher & Co.'s quarterly revenue was up 29.0% compared to the same quarter last year. On average, analysts predict that Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. will post 13.26 earnings per share for the current year.

Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. Announces Dividend

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

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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