Mizuho Markets Cayman LP Buys New Shares in Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. $AJG

Mizuho Markets Cayman LP bought a new stake in shares of Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. (NYSE:AJG - Free Report) in the 4th quarter, according to its most recent filing with the SEC. The institutional investor bought 13,165 shares of the financial services provider's stock, valued at approximately $3,407,000.

Other large investors have also recently bought and sold shares of the company. Physician Wealth Advisors Inc. raised its stake in Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. by 870.0% during the 3rd quarter. Physician Wealth Advisors Inc. now owns 97 shares of the financial services provider's stock valued at $30,000 after purchasing an additional 87 shares during the last quarter. Rakuten Securities Inc. raised its stake in Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. by 650.0% during the 2nd quarter. Rakuten Securities Inc. now owns 105 shares of the financial services provider's stock valued at $34,000 after purchasing an additional 91 shares during the last quarter. Financial Life Planners acquired a new position in Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. during the 3rd quarter valued at $39,000. Westside Investment Management Inc. raised its stake in Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. by 100.0% during the 3rd quarter. Westside Investment Management Inc. now owns 136 shares of the financial services provider's stock valued at $42,000 after purchasing an additional 68 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Thurston Springer Miller Herd & Titak Inc. raised its stake in Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. by 668.2% during 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 purchasing an additional 147 shares during the last quarter. 85.53% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Insider Activity

In other news, 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 value of $908,480.00. Following the sale, the vice president owned 19,306 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $4,384,778.72. This represents a 17.16% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through the SEC website. Also, VP Scott R. Hudson sold 3,800 shares of the company's stock in a transaction dated Friday, March 6th. The stock was sold at an average price of $227.57, for a total transaction of $864,766.00. Following the completion of the sale, the vice president directly owned 85,920 shares in the company, valued at approximately $19,552,814.40. The trade was a 4.24% decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale is available in the SEC filing. 1.40% of the stock is currently owned by corporate insiders.

Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. Trading Down 1.2%

Shares of Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. stock opened at $204.89 on Friday. The company's fifty day moving average price is $211.64 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $232.49. 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 52-week low of $190.75 and a 52-week high of $351.23. The firm has a market capitalization of $52.64 billion, a PE ratio of 33.15, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.05 and a beta of 0.54.

Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. (NYSE:AJG - Get Free Report) last posted its earnings results on Thursday, April 30th. The financial services provider reported $4.47 earnings per share 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 business had revenue of $4.71 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $4.73 billion. During the same quarter in the prior year, the firm earned $3.67 EPS. The firm's quarterly revenue was up 29.0% compared to the same quarter last year. On average, analysts expect that Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. will post 13.22 EPS for the current year.

Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. Dividend Announcement

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

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several equities research analysts have issued reports on the stock. Wells Fargo & Company lowered their price target on shares of Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. from $273.00 to $266.00 and set an "overweight" rating on the stock in a report on Thursday, April 9th. Citigroup raised shares of Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. from a "neutral" rating to a "buy" rating and lowered their price target for the company from $280.00 to $250.00 in a report on Wednesday, May 6th. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods lowered their price target on shares of Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. from $246.00 to $235.00 and set a "market perform" rating on the stock in a report on Friday, May 1st. Barclays boosted their price target 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. Finally, Jefferies Financial Group lowered their price target on shares of Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. from $283.00 to $280.00 and set a "hold" rating on the stock in a report on Monday, February 2nd. Eleven analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and eight have given a Hold rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the stock currently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus price target of $264.00.

About Arthur J. Gallagher & Co.

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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