Stonehage Fleming Financial Services Holdings Ltd Increases Holdings in Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. $AJG

Key Points

• Stonehage Fleming Financial Services Holdings Ltd increased its stake in Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. by 1.4% during Q2, now owning approximately 460,359 shares valued at $147.37 million.
• Brokerages have varied opinions on Arthur J. Gallagher & Co., with price targets ranging from $317.00 to $352.00 and a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy".
• Insider transactions revealed significant share sales, with VP Scott R. Hudson and CFO Douglas K. Howell selling shares, indicating potential changes in management confidence.

Stonehage Fleming Financial Services Holdings Ltd increased its holdings in shares of Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. (NYSE:AJG - Free Report) by 1.4% in the second quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The firm owned 460,359 shares of the financial services provider's stock after purchasing an additional 6,139 shares during the period. Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. accounts for about 4.3% of Stonehage Fleming Financial Services Holdings Ltd's holdings, making the stock its 14th biggest holding. Stonehage Fleming Financial Services Holdings Ltd owned approximately 0.18% of Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. worth $147,370,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission.

A number of other institutional investors have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the business. Vanguard Group Inc. boosted its position in Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. by 2.5% during the 1st quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 30,411,264 shares of the financial services provider's stock worth $10,499,185,000 after purchasing an additional 739,130 shares during the period. JPMorgan Chase & Co. boosted its position in Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. by 38.3% during the 1st quarter. JPMorgan Chase & Co. now owns 17,372,745 shares of the financial services provider's stock worth $5,997,767,000 after purchasing an additional 4,815,007 shares during the period. Wellington Management Group LLP lifted its holdings in Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. by 4.9% in the 1st quarter. Wellington Management Group LLP now owns 2,959,673 shares of the financial services provider's stock worth $1,021,798,000 after buying an additional 137,354 shares in the last quarter. Northern Trust Corp lifted its holdings in Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. by 0.4% in the 1st quarter. Northern Trust Corp now owns 2,364,759 shares of the financial services provider's stock worth $816,409,000 after buying an additional 9,458 shares in the last quarter. Finally, WCM Investment Management LLC lifted its holdings in Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. by 0.3% in the 1st quarter. WCM Investment Management LLC now owns 2,336,591 shares of the financial services provider's stock worth $796,217,000 after buying an additional 7,594 shares in the last quarter. 85.53% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of brokerages have commented on AJG. UBS Group boosted their price objective on shares of Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. from $322.00 to $329.00 and gave the stock a "neutral" rating in a report on Friday, September 19th. Erste Group Bank reiterated a "hold" rating on shares of Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. in a report on Wednesday, July 23rd. Piper Sandler cut their price objective on shares of Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. from $352.00 to $340.00 and set an "overweight" rating on the stock in a report on Thursday, October 2nd. Cantor Fitzgerald upgraded shares of Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. to a "strong-buy" rating in a report on Wednesday, August 13th. Finally, Citigroup began coverage on shares of Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. in a report on Wednesday, August 13th. They issued a "neutral" rating and a $317.00 price objective on the stock. One research analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, seven have assigned a Buy rating and eight have given a Hold rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat, the stock presently has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus price target of $331.43.

Insider Activity

In related news, VP Scott R. Hudson sold 12,855 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Monday, September 8th. The shares were sold at an average price of $297.60, for a total transaction of $3,825,648.00. Following the sale, the vice president owned 85,920 shares in the company, valued at $25,569,792. This represents a 13.01% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this hyperlink. Also, CFO Douglas K. Howell sold 8,000 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Monday, September 22nd. The stock was sold at an average price of $299.54, for a total transaction of $2,396,320.00. Following the sale, the chief financial officer owned 100,777 shares in the company, valued at approximately $30,186,742.58. This trade represents a 7.35% decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last quarter, insiders have sold 29,855 shares of company stock worth $8,916,928. 1.60% of the stock is owned by company insiders.

Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. Stock Performance

Shares of AJG stock opened at $301.75 on Friday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.52, a quick ratio of 1.36 and a current ratio of 1.36. Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. has a one year low of $275.56 and a one year high of $351.23. The company's 50-day simple moving average is $299.11 and its 200-day simple moving average is $315.64. The stock has a market capitalization of $77.37 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 42.86 and a beta of 0.73.

Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. (NYSE:AJG - Get Free Report) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, July 31st. The financial services provider reported $2.33 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 company had revenue of $3.18 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $3.20 billion. During the same period in the previous year, the business posted $2.29 EPS. The business's revenue for the quarter was up 16.0% on a year-over-year basis. Equities analysts anticipate that Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. will post 11.54 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. Announces Dividend

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

Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. Company 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.

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