Meiji Yasuda Life Insurance Co Increases Holdings in Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. $AJG

Meiji Yasuda Life Insurance Co increased its holdings in shares of Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. (NYSE:AJG) by 27.6% in the 2nd quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 10,443 shares of the financial services provider’s stock after purchasing an additional 2,260 shares during the quarter. Meiji Yasuda Life Insurance Co’s holdings in Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. were worth $2,397,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Several other institutional investors and hedge funds also recently added to or reduced their stakes in AJG. Kemnay Advisory Services Inc. purchased a new stake in Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. during the 4th quarter valued at approximately $26,000. Axiom Investment Management LLC purchased a new position in shares of Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. in the first quarter worth $28,000. Cassaday & Co Wealth Management LLC bought a new position in shares of Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. during the first quarter worth $29,000. MV Capital Management Inc. bought a new position in shares of Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. during the fourth quarter worth $34,000. Finally, Rakuten Securities Inc. grew its stake in Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. by 650.0% during the second quarter. Rakuten Securities Inc. now owns 105 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $34,000 after acquiring an additional 91 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors own 85.53% of the company’s stock.

Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. Stock Performance

Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. stock opened at $267.43 on Friday. The company’s 50-day moving average price is $249.63 and its 200-day moving average price is $225.78. The company has a quick ratio of 1.05, a current ratio of 1.05 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.50. The company has a market cap of $68.54 billion, a PE ratio of 44.35, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.64 and a beta of 0.50. Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. has a twelve month low of $190.75 and a twelve month high of $313.55.

Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. (NYSE:AJG) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, July 30th. The financial services provider reported $2.84 EPS for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $2.81 by $0.03. The firm had revenue of $3.95 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $4.01 billion. Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. had a net margin of 9.96% and a return on equity of 13.28%. The firm’s revenue for the quarter was up 24.3% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter last year, the firm earned $2.33 EPS. On average, equities research analysts forecast that Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. will post 13.28 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. Dividend Announcement

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, September 18th. Stockholders of record on Tuesday, September 8th will be paid a $0.70 dividend. This represents a $2.80 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 1.0%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Tuesday, September 8th. Arthur J. Gallagher & Co.’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 46.43%.

Insider Transactions at Arthur J. Gallagher & Co.

In related news, VP Christopher E. Mead sold 3,500 shares of the stock in a transaction on Wednesday, August 19th. The stock was sold at an average price of $257.02, for a total transaction of $899,570.00. Following the sale, the vice president owned 22,223 shares in the company, valued at approximately $5,711,755.46. This represents a 13.61% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is accessible through this hyperlink. Also, CAO Richard C. Cary sold 3,000 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction on Tuesday, June 2nd. The stock was sold at an average price of $206.00, for a total value of $618,000.00. Following the completion of the sale, the chief accounting officer owned 47,819 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $9,850,714. This represents a 5.90% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The SEC filing for this sale provides additional information. In the last 90 days, insiders sold 18,500 shares of company stock worth $4,758,530. 1.40% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several research analysts have commented on the stock. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods increased their price objective on shares of Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. from $261.00 to $271.00 and gave the company a “market perform” rating in a report on Friday, July 31st. Barclays lifted their target price on Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. from $275.00 to $292.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a report on Tuesday, July 7th. Weiss Ratings raised Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. from a “hold (c-)” rating to a “hold (c)” rating in a research note on Monday, July 13th. Argus lifted their price objective on Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. from $267.00 to $300.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research note on Monday, August 17th. Finally, Jefferies Financial Group raised Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating and upped their price objective for the stock from $235.00 to $265.00 in a report on Thursday, June 11th. Fourteen equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and five have given a Hold rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat, Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $290.28.

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.