Vanguard Group Inc. Raises Position in Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. $AJG

Key Points

• Vanguard Group Inc. raised its stake in Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. by 0.7% in Q4 to 31,390,446 shares, representing about 12.22% ownership worth roughly $8.12 billion.
• AJG reported Q4 EPS of $2.38, beating estimates by $0.03, while revenue was $3.57 billion—up 33.9% year‑over‑year but slightly below analyst forecasts.
• Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. raised its quarterly dividend to $0.70 (annualized $2.80), a boost from $0.65, yielding about 1.3% with a payout ratio near 45.5%.

Vanguard Group Inc. raised its holdings in shares of Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. (NYSE:AJG - Free Report) by 0.7% in the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 31,390,446 shares of the financial services provider's stock after buying an additional 217,136 shares during the quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. owned about 12.22% of Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. worth $8,123,534,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission.

A number of other institutional investors have also added to or reduced their stakes in AJG. Concurrent Investment Advisors LLC boosted its position in shares of Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. by 31.1% during the 4th quarter. Concurrent Investment Advisors LLC now owns 10,594 shares of the financial services provider's stock valued at $2,742,000 after acquiring an additional 2,511 shares during the last quarter. Directional Asset Management purchased a new stake in Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. in the fourth quarter valued at approximately $1,271,000. Lebenthal Global Advisors LLC lifted its position in Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. by 6.1% during the fourth quarter. Lebenthal Global Advisors LLC now owns 4,256 shares of the financial services provider's stock valued at $1,101,000 after purchasing an additional 245 shares during the last quarter. Chicago Partners Investment Group LLC grew its stake in Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. by 0.5% in the 4th quarter. Chicago Partners Investment Group LLC now owns 20,913 shares of the financial services provider's stock worth $5,295,000 after buying an additional 103 shares in the last quarter. Finally, B. Metzler seel. Sohn & Co. AG increased its holdings in shares of Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. by 2.8% in the 4th quarter. B. Metzler seel. Sohn & Co. AG now owns 11,679 shares of the financial services provider's stock worth $3,022,000 after buying an additional 313 shares during the last quarter. 85.53% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. Stock Up 0.0%

Shares of NYSE:AJG opened at $215.42 on Monday. The stock has a market capitalization of $55.38 billion, a P/E ratio of 35.03, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.07 and a beta of 0.68. The stock's 50-day moving average price is $217.42 and its 200-day moving average price is $242.05. The company has a current ratio of 1.06, a quick ratio of 1.06 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.52. Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. has a 12-month low of $195.00 and a 12-month high of $351.23.

Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. (NYSE:AJG - Get Free Report) last released its earnings results on Thursday, January 29th. The financial services provider reported $2.38 earnings per share for the quarter, beating analysts' consensus estimates of $2.35 by $0.03. Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. had a return on equity of 12.13% and a net margin of 11.84%.The company had revenue of $3.57 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $3.61 billion. During the same quarter in the previous year, the company posted $1.12 EPS. Arthur J. Gallagher & Co.'s revenue for the quarter was up 33.9% on a year-over-year basis. On average, equities analysts anticipate that Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. will post 13.19 earnings per share for the current year.

Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. Increases Dividend

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, March 20th. Stockholders of record on Friday, March 6th were paid a dividend of $0.70 per share. This represents a $2.80 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 1.3%. This is a boost from Arthur J. Gallagher & Co.'s previous quarterly dividend of $0.65. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Friday, March 6th. Arthur J. Gallagher & Co.'s payout ratio is currently 45.53%.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

AJG has been the subject of a number of research analyst reports. Royal Bank Of Canada initiated coverage on shares of Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. in a report on Tuesday, March 17th. They set an "outperform" rating and a $260.00 price objective for the company. Wells Fargo & Company lowered their price target on Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. from $273.00 to $266.00 and set an "overweight" rating on the stock in a research report on Thursday, April 9th. Barclays lifted their price target on Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. from $262.00 to $275.00 and gave the stock an "overweight" rating in a research note on Wednesday, April 8th. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods reduced their price objective on Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. from $249.00 to $246.00 and set a "market perform" rating on the stock in a research report on Tuesday, April 7th. Finally, Truist Financial decreased their price objective on Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. from $271.00 to $235.00 and set a "hold" rating on the stock in a report on Wednesday, March 18th. Ten equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and nine have assigned a Hold rating to the company's stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the stock currently has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average price target of $273.94.

Insider Activity at Arthur J. Gallagher & Co.

In other Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. news, VP Christopher E. Mead sold 4,000 shares of the stock in a transaction on Thursday, March 5th. The shares were sold at an average price of $227.12, for a total transaction of $908,480.00. Following the completion of the sale, the vice president owned 19,306 shares of the company's stock, valued at $4,384,778.72. This represents a 17.16% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available at the SEC website. Also, VP Scott R. Hudson sold 3,800 shares of the firm's 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 completion of the sale, the vice president directly owned 85,920 shares in the company, valued at approximately $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 currently owned by company insiders.

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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