Public Employees Retirement System of Ohio Takes Position in Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. $AJG

Public Employees Retirement System of Ohio bought a new position in shares of Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. (NYSE:AJG) in the second quarter, HoldingsChannel reports. The firm bought 95,014 shares of the financial services provider’s stock, valued at approximately $21,812,000.

A number of other institutional investors have also recently bought and sold shares of the stock. Kemnay Advisory Services Inc. acquired a new stake in shares of Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. during the fourth quarter worth $26,000. Axiom Investment Management LLC acquired a new position in Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. in the 1st quarter worth $28,000. Cassaday & Co Wealth Management LLC bought a new position in Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. during the 1st quarter worth about $29,000. MV Capital Management Inc. acquired a new stake in shares of Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. in the 4th quarter valued at about $34,000. Finally, Rakuten Securities Inc. lifted its holdings in shares of Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. by 650.0% in the second quarter. Rakuten Securities Inc. now owns 105 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $34,000 after purchasing an additional 91 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors own 85.53% of the company’s stock.

Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. Trading Up 2.8%

Shares of NYSE:AJG opened at $267.43 on Friday. Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. has a 52-week low of $190.75 and a 52-week high of $313.55. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.50, a quick ratio of 1.05 and a current ratio of 1.05. The company has a market capitalization of $68.54 billion, a P/E ratio of 44.35, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.64 and a beta of 0.50. The company has a 50-day simple moving average of $249.63 and a 200 day simple moving average of $225.78.

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

Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. Announces Dividend

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

Analyst Ratings Changes

AJG has been the subject of a number of research reports. Wells Fargo & Company decreased their price objective on Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. from $299.00 to $296.00 and set an “overweight” rating for the company in a report on Monday, August 3rd. Jefferies Financial Group raised Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating and upped their price target for the stock from $235.00 to $265.00 in a research report on Thursday, June 11th. Argus raised their price target on shares of 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. UBS Group lifted their price objective on shares of Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. from $291.00 to $299.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a report on Monday, August 3rd. Finally, Piper Sandler increased their target price on shares of Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. from $276.00 to $287.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a report on Friday, July 31st. Fourteen equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and five have issued a Hold rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat.com, Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $290.28.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. news, VP Christopher E. Mead sold 3,500 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on Wednesday, August 19th. The shares were sold at an average price of $257.02, for a total value of $899,570.00. Following the transaction, the vice president directly owned 22,223 shares in the company, valued at $5,711,755.46. The trade was a 13.61% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this hyperlink. Also, CAO Richard C. Cary sold 3,000 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, June 2nd. The stock was sold at an average price of $206.00, for a total transaction of $618,000.00. Following 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 position. The SEC filing for this sale provides additional information. Insiders sold a total of 18,500 shares of company stock valued at $4,758,530 over the last ninety days. 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.