Principal Financial Group Inc. Has $733.15 Million Stock Holdings in Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. $AJG

Key Points

• Principal Financial Group cut its stake in Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. by 1.2% in Q4, selling 33,843 shares and now owning 2,832,943 shares valued at $733.15 million (about 1.10% of the company).
• Arthur J. Gallagher reported quarterly EPS of $4.47 (beat by $0.04) on $4.71 billion in revenue, up 29% year‑over‑year, and declared a $0.70 quarterly dividend (annualized $2.80, yield 1.4%).
• The stock is heavily institutionally owned (about 85.5%), and analysts have an average rating of "Moderate Buy" with a mean price target of $271.82 versus the recent share price near $207.

Principal Financial Group Inc. cut its stake in shares of Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. (NYSE:AJG - Free Report) by 1.2% in the 4th quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the SEC. The fund owned 2,832,943 shares of the financial services provider's stock after selling 33,843 shares during the period. Principal Financial Group Inc. owned 1.10% of Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. worth $733,151,000 as of its most recent filing with the SEC.

Several other large investors have also recently bought and sold shares of the stock. Caprock Group LLC bought a new position in shares of Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. during the third quarter worth about $9,877,000. JPMorgan Chase & Co. raised its position in shares of Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. by 19.6% during the third quarter. JPMorgan Chase & Co. now owns 20,338,533 shares of the financial services provider's stock worth $6,299,674,000 after acquiring an additional 3,330,205 shares during the last quarter. Banco Bilbao Vizcaya Argentaria S.A. grew its stake in Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. by 10.2% during the third quarter. Banco Bilbao Vizcaya Argentaria S.A. now owns 65,889 shares of the financial services provider's stock worth $20,398,000 after purchasing an additional 6,090 shares during the period. Cincinnati Financial Corp acquired a new stake in Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. during the third quarter worth approximately $42,824,000. Finally, Factory Mutual Insurance Co. grew its stake in Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. by 241.4% during the third quarter. Factory Mutual Insurance Co. now owns 49,500 shares of the financial services provider's stock worth $15,332,000 after purchasing an additional 35,000 shares during the period. 85.53% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

AJG has been the subject of several recent analyst reports. Jefferies Financial Group decreased their target price on Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. from $283.00 to $280.00 and set a "hold" rating for the company in a research note on Monday, February 2nd. BMO Capital Markets raised Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. from a "market perform" rating to an "outperform" rating and raised their target price for the stock from $275.00 to $278.00 in a research note on Tuesday, March 24th. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods decreased their target price on Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. from $246.00 to $235.00 and set a "market perform" rating for the company in a research note on Friday. Cantor Fitzgerald reaffirmed a "neutral" rating on shares of Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. in a research note on Friday, January 30th. Finally, Piper Sandler decreased their target price on Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. from $226.00 to $211.00 and set a "neutral" rating for the company in a research note on Friday. Ten investment analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and nine have assigned a Hold rating to the company. According to MarketBeat.com, Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. presently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average price target of $271.82.

Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. Trading Down 0.5%

Shares of Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. stock opened at $207.03 on Tuesday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.51, a quick ratio of 1.06 and a current ratio of 1.06. Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. has a 52 week low of $195.00 and a 52 week high of $351.23. The stock has a 50 day moving average price of $217.24 and a two-hundred day moving average price of $239.52. The stock has a market capitalization of $53.23 billion, a PE ratio of 33.50, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.04 and a beta of 0.54.

Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. (NYSE:AJG - Get Free Report) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, April 30th. The financial services provider reported $4.47 EPS for the quarter, beating analysts' consensus estimates of $4.43 by $0.04. Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. had a return on equity of 12.83% and a net margin of 10.76%.The firm had revenue of $4.71 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $4.73 billion. During the same quarter last year, the firm posted $3.67 earnings per share. The company's revenue for the quarter was up 29.0% compared to the same quarter last year. As a group, equities analysts anticipate that Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. will post 13.19 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. Announces Dividend

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

Insider Buying and Selling

In other Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. news, VP Christopher E. Mead sold 4,000 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, March 5th. The stock was sold at an average price of $227.12, for a total value of $908,480.00. Following the completion of the sale, the vice president owned 19,306 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $4,384,778.72. This trade represents a 17.16% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is accessible through this hyperlink. Also, VP Scott R. Hudson sold 3,800 shares of Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, March 6th. The shares were sold at an average price of $227.57, for a total value of $864,766.00. Following the transaction, 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. Company 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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