AIA Group Ltd Cuts Stake in Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. (NYSE:AJG)

AIA Group Ltd reduced its stake in shares of Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. (NYSE:AJG) by 33.0% during the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The firm owned 4,323 shares of the financial services provider’s stock after selling 2,133 shares during the period. AIA Group Ltd’s holdings in Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. were worth $972,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Other institutional investors and hedge funds have also recently bought and sold shares of the company. McGlone Suttner Wealth Management Inc. increased its position in Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. by 4.0% during the 4th quarter. McGlone Suttner Wealth Management Inc. now owns 2,286 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $514,000 after purchasing an additional 88 shares in the last quarter. Fidelis Capital Partners LLC grew its position in Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. by 3.7% in the third quarter. Fidelis Capital Partners LLC now owns 1,325 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $302,000 after acquiring an additional 47 shares in the last quarter. Mackenzie Financial Corp grew its position in Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. by 16.1% in the fourth quarter. Mackenzie Financial Corp now owns 112,087 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $25,206,000 after acquiring an additional 15,528 shares in the last quarter. Louisiana State Employees Retirement System acquired a new stake in Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. in the fourth quarter valued at approximately $2,946,000. Finally, Legato Capital Management LLC grew its position in Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. by 43.7% in the fourth quarter. Legato Capital Management LLC now owns 13,495 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $3,035,000 after acquiring an additional 4,102 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 85.53% of the company’s stock.

Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. Stock Performance

Shares of AJG opened at $236.57 on Friday. The business’s fifty day moving average price is $244.38 and its 200 day moving average price is $238.69. Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. has a 12-month low of $198.52 and a 12-month high of $256.10. The stock has a market capitalization of $51.64 billion, a PE ratio of 53.28, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.17 and a beta of 0.68. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.65, a current ratio of 1.03 and a quick ratio of 1.03.

Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. (NYSE:AJG) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, January 25th. The financial services provider reported $1.85 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $1.83 by $0.02. Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. had a return on equity of 18.49% and a net margin of 9.63%. The firm had revenue of $2.39 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $2.40 billion. During the same period last year, the business posted $1.54 earnings per share. Equities research analysts forecast that Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. will post 10.06 EPS for the current year.

Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. Increases Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, March 15th. Investors of record on Friday, March 1st were paid a dividend of $0.60 per share. The ex-dividend date was Thursday, February 29th. This is a boost from Arthur J. Gallagher & Co.’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.55. This represents a $2.40 annualized dividend and a yield of 1.01%. Arthur J. Gallagher & Co.’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 54.05%.

Insider Activity

In other news, Director David S. Johnson sold 500 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction on Tuesday, February 6th. The shares were sold at an average price of $234.04, for a total transaction of $117,020.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the director now owns 45,038 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $10,540,693.52. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is accessible through this hyperlink. In related news, Director David S. Johnson sold 500 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, February 6th. The shares were sold at an average price of $234.04, for a total value of $117,020.00. Following the completion of the sale, the director now owns 45,038 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $10,540,693.52. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through the SEC website. Also, VP Joel D. Cavaness sold 1,207 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Monday, March 18th. The stock was sold at an average price of $255.20, for a total transaction of $308,026.40. Following the completion of the sale, the vice president now directly owns 2,023 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $516,269.60. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Over the last quarter, insiders sold 29,016 shares of company stock valued at $7,176,180. 1.60% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several analysts have issued reports on AJG shares. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods lowered their price objective on shares of Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. from $246.00 to $240.00 and set an “underperform” rating for the company in a research report on Wednesday, April 10th. TD Cowen increased their price objective on shares of Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. from $249.00 to $273.00 and gave the company a “hold” rating in a research report on Tuesday, April 2nd. Truist Financial reaffirmed a “hold” rating and issued a $255.00 price objective (down previously from $280.00) on shares of Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. in a research report on Wednesday, April 10th. Jefferies Financial Group cut Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating and reduced their target price for the company from $279.00 to $233.00 in a research note on Tuesday, January 9th. Finally, Royal Bank of Canada increased their target price on Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. from $270.00 to $282.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a research note on Friday, March 22nd. One research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, six have given a hold rating and five have given a buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat.com, Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. currently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and a consensus target price of $255.23.

Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. Company Profile

Arthur J. Gallagher & Co, together with its subsidiaries, provides insurance and reinsurance brokerage, consulting, and third-party property/casualty claims settlement and administration services to entities and individuals worldwide. It operates in Brokerage and Risk Management segments. The Brokerage segment offers retail and wholesale insurance and reinsurance brokerage services; assists retail brokers and other non-affiliated brokers in the placement of specialized and hard-to-place insurance; and acts as a brokerage wholesaler, managing general agent, and managing general underwriter for distributing specialized insurance coverages to underwriting enterprises.