Eastern Bank Increases Position in Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. $AJG

Eastern Bank increased its position in Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. (NYSE:AJG) by 1,737.6% in the third quarter, HoldingsChannel.com reports. The fund owned 12,312 shares of the financial services provider’s stock after buying an additional 11,642 shares during the period. Eastern Bank’s holdings in Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. were worth $3,814,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC).

Several other large investors have also added to or reduced their stakes in AJG. J.Safra Asset Management Corp raised its stake in shares of Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. by 209.1% in the second quarter. J.Safra Asset Management Corp now owns 102 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $32,000 after purchasing an additional 69 shares during the last quarter. Rakuten Securities Inc. raised its position in Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. by 650.0% during the 2nd quarter. Rakuten Securities Inc. now owns 105 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $34,000 after buying an additional 91 shares during the last quarter. Steph & Co. acquired a new stake in Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. during the 2nd quarter valued at approximately $40,000. Central Pacific Bank Trust Division boosted its holdings in shares of Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. by 40.6% in the 3rd quarter. Central Pacific Bank Trust Division now owns 135 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $42,000 after acquiring an additional 39 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Salomon & Ludwin LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. in the second quarter worth $45,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 85.53% of the company’s stock.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In related news, CAO Richard C. Cary sold 6,000 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, November 18th. The shares were sold at an average price of $261.00, for a total value of $1,566,000.00. Following the transaction, the chief accounting officer directly owned 50,668 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $13,224,348. This trade represents a 10.59% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through the SEC website. Also, General Counsel Walter D. Bay sold 15,850 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, December 19th. The shares were sold at an average price of $255.00, for a total value of $4,041,750.00. Following the transaction, the general counsel directly owned 79,549 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $20,284,995. The trade was a 16.61% decrease in their position. The SEC filing for this sale provides additional information. Over the last quarter, insiders have sold 32,100 shares of company stock valued at $8,243,865. 1.30% of the stock is owned by company insiders.

Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. Stock Performance

Shares of AJG stock opened at $256.71 on Wednesday. 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 $236.34 and a 12-month high of $351.23. The business’s 50 day moving average is $253.40 and its two-hundred day moving average is $281.92. The company has a market capitalization of $65.92 billion, a P/E ratio of 38.37 and a beta of 0.67.

Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. (NYSE:AJG) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, October 30th. The financial services provider reported $2.32 EPS for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $2.51 by ($0.19). Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. had a net margin of 13.58% and a return on equity of 11.98%. The business had revenue of $3.33 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $3.34 billion. During the same quarter last year, the firm earned $2.26 earnings per share. The firm’s quarterly revenue was up 20.2% compared to the same quarter last year. Analysts expect that Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. will post 11.54 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. Dividend Announcement

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, December 19th. Shareholders of record on Friday, December 5th were issued a dividend of $0.65 per share. This represents a $2.60 annualized dividend and a yield of 1.0%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Friday, December 5th. Arthur J. Gallagher & Co.’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 38.86%.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

AJG has been the topic of several recent research reports. Citigroup lowered their price target on shares of Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. from $330.00 to $277.00 and set a “neutral” rating on the stock in a report on Monday, November 3rd. Evercore ISI lowered their target price on Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. from $353.00 to $334.00 and set an “outperform” rating on the stock in a research note on Wednesday, December 17th. Piper Sandler lowered Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. from an “overweight” rating to a “neutral” rating and dropped their target price for the stock from $276.00 to $272.00 in a report on Wednesday, January 7th. BMO Capital Markets downgraded Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. from an “outperform” rating to a “market perform” rating and decreased their price target for the company from $289.00 to $275.00 in a report on Tuesday. Finally, Wells Fargo & Company dropped their price objective on shares of Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. from $328.00 to $311.00 and set an “overweight” rating on the stock in a research note on Tuesday. One analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, seven have issued a Buy rating, eleven have given a Hold rating and one has given a Sell rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat, the company presently has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $295.33.

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.