Maryland State Retirement & Pension System Purchases 833 Shares of Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. $AJG

Key Points

• The Maryland State Retirement & Pension System increased its stake in Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. by 7.2%, owning a total of 12,326 shares worth approximately $3,946,000.
• Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. reported earnings of $2.33 per share, slightly below expectations of $2.36, while revenues rose to $3.18 billion, reflecting a 16% increase compared to the previous year.
• The company declared a quarterly dividend of $0.65, with a current dividend yield of 0.9% and a payout ratio of 36.93%.

Maryland State Retirement & Pension System grew its position in shares of Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. (NYSE:AJG - Free Report) by 7.2% in the second quarter, according to its most recent filing with the SEC. The fund owned 12,326 shares of the financial services provider's stock after acquiring an additional 833 shares during the quarter. Maryland State Retirement & Pension System's holdings in Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. were worth $3,946,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

A number of other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also recently modified their holdings of the company. Checchi Capital Advisers LLC boosted its position in Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. by 1.1% during the first quarter. Checchi Capital Advisers LLC now owns 2,899 shares of the financial services provider's stock valued at $1,001,000 after purchasing an additional 31 shares in the last quarter. Menard Financial Group LLC boosted its position in Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. by 0.8% during the first quarter. Menard Financial Group LLC now owns 3,812 shares of the financial services provider's stock valued at $1,289,000 after purchasing an additional 32 shares in the last quarter. Allen Capital Group LLC boosted its position in Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. by 2.1% during the first quarter. Allen Capital Group LLC now owns 1,603 shares of the financial services provider's stock valued at $553,000 after purchasing an additional 33 shares in the last quarter. CVA Family Office LLC boosted its position in Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. by 34.3% during the first quarter. CVA Family Office LLC now owns 133 shares of the financial services provider's stock valued at $46,000 after purchasing an additional 34 shares in the last quarter. Finally, SeaCrest Wealth Management LLC boosted its position in Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. by 2.3% during the second quarter. SeaCrest Wealth Management LLC now owns 1,542 shares of the financial services provider's stock valued at $494,000 after purchasing an additional 34 shares in the last quarter. 85.53% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. Trading Down 1.6%

Shares of NYSE:AJG opened at $302.07 on Friday. Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. has a 52-week low of $275.56 and a 52-week high of $351.23. The stock has a market cap of $77.45 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 42.91 and a beta of 0.73. The company has a quick ratio of 1.36, a current ratio of 1.36 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.52. The business has a 50-day moving average price of $298.75 and a 200-day moving average price of $316.03.

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

Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. Announces Dividend

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

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several equities research analysts have weighed in on AJG shares. Wells Fargo & Company raised their price target on Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. from $365.00 to $366.00 and gave the stock an "overweight" rating in a report on Wednesday. Weiss Ratings reissued a "buy (b-)" rating on shares of Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. in a report on Wednesday. Wall Street Zen raised Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. from a "sell" rating to a "hold" rating in a report on Friday, September 5th. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods raised their price target on Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. from $288.00 to $298.00 and gave the stock a "market perform" rating in a report on Friday, September 19th. Finally, Erste Group Bank reissued a "hold" rating on shares of Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. in a report on Wednesday, July 23rd. One analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, seven have given a Buy rating and eight have given a Hold rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. currently has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average price target of $331.43.

Insider Activity

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

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.

This instant news alert was generated by narrative science technology and financial data from MarketBeat in order to provide readers with the fastest and most accurate reporting. This story was reviewed by MarketBeat's editorial team prior to publication. Please send any questions or comments about this story to contact@marketbeat.com.