SVB Wealth LLC Cuts Holdings in Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. $AJG

Key Points

• SVB Wealth LLC cut its stake in Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. by 57.3% in the fourth quarter, selling 7,095 shares and leaving it with 5,284 shares valued at about $1.37 million.
• Several other large institutions remain heavily invested in AJG, with Vanguard, JPMorgan Chase, and State Street among the biggest holders; roughly 85.53% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.
• The company posted better-than-expected quarterly earnings, announced a $0.70-per-share dividend, and analysts currently rate the stock a Moderate Buy with a consensus target price of $268.

SVB Wealth LLC trimmed its holdings in shares of Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. (NYSE:AJG - Free Report) by 57.3% in the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 5,284 shares of the financial services provider's stock after selling 7,095 shares during the period. SVB Wealth LLC's holdings in Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. were worth $1,368,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

A number of other large investors have also modified their holdings of the business. Vanguard Group Inc. raised its stake in shares of 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 worth $8,123,534,000 after buying an additional 217,136 shares in the last quarter. JPMorgan Chase & Co. raised its stake in shares of 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 worth $6,299,674,000 after buying an additional 3,330,205 shares in the last quarter. Capital World Investors raised its stake in shares of 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 worth $3,649,477,000 after buying an additional 101,298 shares in the last quarter. State Street Corp grew its holdings in shares of Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. by 1.4% in the 3rd quarter. State Street Corp now owns 10,891,080 shares of the financial services provider's stock worth $3,373,403,000 after acquiring an additional 147,587 shares during the period. Finally, Capital International Investors grew its holdings in shares of Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. by 0.6% in the 3rd quarter. Capital International Investors now owns 7,194,743 shares of the financial services provider's stock worth $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.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. news, VP Scott R. Hudson sold 3,800 shares of the stock in a transaction 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 transaction, the vice president owned 85,920 shares of the company's stock, valued at $19,552,814.40. This represents a 4.24% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available through this link. Also, VP Christopher E. Mead sold 4,000 shares of the stock in a transaction 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 transaction, the vice president directly owned 19,306 shares in the company, valued at approximately $4,384,778.72. This represents a 17.16% decrease in their position. The SEC filing for this sale provides additional information. 1.40% of the stock is currently owned by corporate insiders.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of equities research analysts recently weighed in on the company. Royal Bank Of Canada assumed coverage on Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. in a report on Tuesday, March 17th. They issued an "outperform" rating and a $260.00 price target on the stock. BMO Capital Markets upgraded Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. from a "market perform" rating to an "outperform" rating and upped their price target for the stock from $275.00 to $278.00 in a report on Tuesday, March 24th. Mizuho lowered their price target on Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. from $260.00 to $259.00 and set an "outperform" rating on the stock in a report on Monday, April 13th. Wall Street Zen upgraded Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. from a "sell" rating to a "hold" rating in a report on Saturday, February 21st. Finally, Piper Sandler lowered their price target on Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. from $226.00 to $211.00 and set a "neutral" rating on the stock in a report on Friday, May 1st. Eleven investment analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and eight have issued a Hold rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. presently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus target price of $268.00.

Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. Price Performance

Shares of NYSE:AJG opened at $198.62 on Tuesday. The business's fifty day moving average price is $215.48 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $236.62. The stock has a market cap of $51.03 billion, a PE ratio of 32.14, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.01 and a beta of 0.54. 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 one year low of $194.15 and a one year high of $351.23.

Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. (NYSE:AJG - Get Free Report) last announced its earnings results 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. The firm had revenue of $4.71 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $4.73 billion. Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. had a return on equity of 12.83% and a net margin of 10.76%.Arthur J. Gallagher & Co.'s quarterly revenue was up 29.0% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter in the prior year, the firm earned $3.67 EPS. On average, analysts forecast that Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. will post 13.18 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. Announces Dividend

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, June 19th. Shareholders of record on Friday, June 5th will be issued a dividend of $0.70 per share. This represents a $2.80 dividend on an annualized basis and a 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.

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