North Dakota State Investment Board Acquires New Position in Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. $AJG

Key Points

• North Dakota State Investment Board opened a new position in Arthur J. Gallagher & Co., buying 8,694 shares worth about $2.25 million in the fourth quarter.
• Institutional ownership remains dominant, with hedge funds and other institutional investors holding 85.53% of the stock. Several large firms, including Vanguard and JPMorgan Chase, also increased their stakes.
• The company reported better-than-expected quarterly EPS of $4.47, though revenue slightly missed estimates. Arthur J. Gallagher also announced a quarterly dividend of $0.70 per share, payable June 19, for a 1.4% yield.

North Dakota State Investment Board acquired a new stake in shares of Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. (NYSE:AJG - Free Report) during the 4th quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the SEC. The institutional investor acquired 8,694 shares of the financial services provider's stock, valued at approximately $2,250,000.

Several other institutional investors also recently bought and sold shares of the company. Vanguard Group Inc. grew its position 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 purchasing an additional 217,136 shares during the last quarter. JPMorgan Chase & Co. grew its position in Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. by 19.6% during the 3rd 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 during the last quarter. Capital World Investors lifted its stake in Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. by 0.9% during the 3rd quarter. Capital World Investors now owns 11,783,119 shares of the financial services provider's stock valued at $3,649,477,000 after acquiring an additional 101,298 shares during the period. State Street Corp lifted its stake in Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. by 1.4% during the 3rd quarter. State Street Corp now owns 10,891,080 shares of the financial services provider's stock valued at $3,373,403,000 after acquiring an additional 147,587 shares during the period. Finally, Capital International Investors lifted its stake in Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. by 0.6% during the 3rd quarter. Capital International Investors now owns 7,194,743 shares of the financial services provider's stock valued at $2,228,156,000 after acquiring an additional 45,256 shares during the period. 85.53% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Insider Activity at Arthur J. Gallagher & Co.

In other news, VP Christopher E. Mead sold 4,000 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, March 5th. The shares were sold at an average price of $227.12, for a total value of $908,480.00. Following the transaction, the vice president owned 19,306 shares in the company, valued at $4,384,778.72. This represents a 17.16% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this link. Also, VP Scott R. Hudson sold 3,800 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on 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 transaction, the vice president owned 85,920 shares in the company, valued at $19,552,814.40. This trade represents a 4.24% decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale is available in the SEC filing. 1.40% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several equities analysts have issued reports on the stock. Jefferies Financial Group lowered their target price on shares of Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. from $283.00 to $280.00 and set a "hold" rating on the stock in a research note on Monday, February 2nd. Mizuho lowered their target price on shares of Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. from $260.00 to $259.00 and set an "outperform" rating on the stock in a research note on Monday, April 13th. Wells Fargo & Company lowered their target price on shares of Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. from $273.00 to $266.00 and set an "overweight" rating on the stock in a research note on Thursday, April 9th. Citigroup upgraded shares of Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. from a "neutral" rating to a "buy" rating and lowered their target price for the company from $280.00 to $250.00 in a research note on Wednesday, May 6th. Finally, UBS Group lowered their target price on shares of Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. from $285.00 to $283.00 and set a "neutral" rating on the stock in a research note on Monday, February 2nd. 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 data from MarketBeat.com, Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus price target of $268.00.

Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. Price Performance

Shares of NYSE:AJG opened at $207.30 on Tuesday. The firm's 50 day moving average price is $212.61 and its 200-day moving average price is $233.80. Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. has a twelve month low of $190.75 and a twelve month high of $351.23. 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 stock has a market capitalization of $53.26 billion, a PE ratio of 33.54, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.02 and a beta of 0.54.

Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. (NYSE:AJG - Get Free Report) last issued its quarterly earnings data 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 firm had revenue of $4.71 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $4.73 billion. During the same quarter in the prior year, the business earned $3.67 EPS. The business's quarterly revenue was up 29.0% on a year-over-year basis. Equities research analysts expect that Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. will post 13.22 EPS for the current year.

Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, June 19th. Stockholders of record on Friday, June 5th will be paid a $0.70 dividend. 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 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.

Want to see what other hedge funds are holding AJG? Visit HoldingsChannel.com to get the latest 13F filings and insider trades for Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. (NYSE:AJG - Free Report).

This instant news alert was generated by narrative science technology and financial data from MarketBeat in order to provide readers with the fastest reporting and unbiased coverage. Please send any questions or comments about this story to contact@marketbeat.com.