Sumitomo Mitsui DS Asset Management Company Ltd Increases Holdings in Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. (NYSE:AJG)

Sumitomo Mitsui DS Asset Management Company Ltd boosted its stake in shares of Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. (NYSE:AJG) by 23.5% in the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the SEC. The firm owned 28,055 shares of the financial services provider’s stock after buying an additional 5,333 shares during the quarter. Sumitomo Mitsui DS Asset Management Company Ltd’s holdings in Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. were worth $7,963,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

A number of other large investors have also added to or reduced their stakes in the stock. Catalina Capital Group LLC grew its position in shares of Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. by 1.0% during the 4th quarter. Catalina Capital Group LLC now owns 3,380 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $959,000 after acquiring an additional 35 shares during the period. W Advisors LLC grew its holdings in Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. by 2.4% during the third quarter. W Advisors LLC now owns 1,514 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $426,000 after purchasing an additional 36 shares during the period. Greenleaf Trust increased its position in Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. by 1.1% in the fourth quarter. Greenleaf Trust now owns 3,310 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $940,000 after buying an additional 36 shares during the last quarter. Covenant Partners LLC raised its stake in shares of Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. by 0.7% in the third quarter. Covenant Partners LLC now owns 5,326 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $1,499,000 after buying an additional 38 shares during the period. Finally, Disciplined Investments LLC lifted its position in shares of Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. by 0.7% during the 3rd quarter. Disciplined Investments LLC now owns 5,849 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $1,635,000 after buying an additional 38 shares during the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 85.53% of the company’s stock.

Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. Stock Up 0.8 %

AJG stock opened at $322.42 on Friday. Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. has a 1-year low of $230.08 and a 1-year high of $323.55. The stock has a market cap of $80.54 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 49.45 and a beta of 0.77. The company has a current ratio of 1.51, a quick ratio of 1.06 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.63. The company’s 50 day moving average is $291.82 and its 200 day moving average is $289.91.

Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. (NYSE:AJG) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, January 30th. The financial services provider reported $2.13 earnings per share for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $2.03 by $0.10. Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. had a net margin of 12.70% and a return on equity of 16.47%. Sell-side analysts predict that Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. will post 11.53 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. Increases Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, March 21st. Investors of record on Friday, March 7th will be issued a dividend of $0.65 per share. This represents a $2.60 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 0.81%. This is a boost from Arthur J. Gallagher & Co.’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.60. The ex-dividend date is Friday, March 7th. Arthur J. Gallagher & Co.’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 36.81%.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other news, Director Sherry S. Barrat sold 2,500 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, February 3rd. The shares were sold at an average price of $304.33, for a total value of $760,825.00. Following the completion of the sale, the director now directly owns 16,533 shares in the company, valued at approximately $5,031,487.89. The trade was a 13.14 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. Also, VP Christopher E. Mead sold 2,900 shares of the stock in a transaction on Monday, February 3rd. The shares were sold at an average price of $302.61, for a total transaction of $877,569.00. Following the transaction, the vice president now directly owns 14,674 shares in the company, valued at approximately $4,440,499.14. This represents a 16.50 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. 1.60% of the stock is currently owned by corporate insiders.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of brokerages recently issued reports on AJG. The Goldman Sachs Group cut Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. from a “buy” rating to a “neutral” rating and set a $313.00 price objective on the stock. in a research note on Monday, November 25th. Piper Sandler raised shares of Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. from a “neutral” rating to an “overweight” rating and boosted their price target for the company from $285.00 to $315.00 in a research report on Wednesday, January 8th. Royal Bank of Canada lifted their price objective on shares of Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. from $320.00 to $340.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a research note on Friday, January 31st. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods increased their target price on Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. from $286.00 to $295.00 and gave the stock a “market perform” rating in a research report on Friday, January 31st. Finally, Truist Financial boosted their price objective on Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. from $275.00 to $290.00 and gave the company a “hold” rating in a research note on Friday, January 31st. Two equities research analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, six have issued a hold rating and six have given a buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat.com, the company presently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and an average price target of $307.00.

About Arthur J. Gallagher & Co.

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 business segments: Brokerage, Risk Management, and Corporate. The Brokerage segment consists of retail and wholesale insurance brokerage operations.