Mizuho Securities USA LLC Sells 2,644 Shares of Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. (NYSE:AJG)

Mizuho Securities USA LLC decreased its holdings in Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. (NYSE:AJG) by 15.7% in the third quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The firm owned 14,207 shares of the financial services provider’s stock after selling 2,644 shares during the period. Mizuho Securities USA LLC’s holdings in Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. were worth $3,997,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Other institutional investors and hedge funds also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Janus Henderson Group PLC raised its position in shares of Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. by 180.6% during the first quarter. Janus Henderson Group PLC now owns 1,228,266 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $307,076,000 after buying an additional 790,467 shares during the last quarter. The Manufacturers Life Insurance Company grew its stake in Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. by 219.6% during the second quarter. The Manufacturers Life Insurance Company now owns 1,043,769 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $270,660,000 after acquiring an additional 717,221 shares in the last quarter. Principal Financial Group Inc. lifted its stake in Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. by 231.2% in the 3rd quarter. Principal Financial Group Inc. now owns 885,796 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $249,237,000 after purchasing an additional 618,362 shares in the last quarter. Massachusetts Financial Services Co. MA boosted its holdings in shares of Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. by 13.6% during the 3rd quarter. Massachusetts Financial Services Co. MA now owns 3,196,992 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $899,538,000 after purchasing an additional 383,130 shares during the last quarter. Finally, International Assets Investment Management LLC grew its position in shares of Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. by 29,927.4% during the third quarter. International Assets Investment Management LLC now owns 232,412 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $65,394,000 after purchasing an additional 231,638 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors own 85.53% of the company’s stock.

Insider Buying and Selling at Arthur J. Gallagher & Co.

In other news, CFO Douglas K. Howell sold 7,000 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on Thursday, September 19th. The stock was sold at an average price of $284.68, for a total transaction of $1,992,760.00. Following the transaction, the chief financial officer now directly owns 75,963 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $21,625,146.84. This represents a 8.44 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is accessible through this hyperlink. Also, President Michael Robert Pesch sold 7,100 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction on Friday, September 13th. The stock was sold at an average price of $296.20, for a total value of $2,103,020.00. Following the transaction, the president now owns 33,267 shares in the company, valued at approximately $9,853,685.40. This trade represents a 17.59 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last 90 days, insiders have sold 23,900 shares of company stock valued at $6,892,280. 1.60% of the stock is currently owned by corporate insiders.

Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. Stock Up 2.5 %

Shares of AJG opened at $303.27 on Friday. The firm has a market capitalization of $66.54 billion, a P/E ratio of 57.77, a P/E/G ratio of 2.49 and a beta of 0.72. Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. has a 12-month low of $218.63 and a 12-month high of $303.67. The firm has a fifty day moving average price of $288.42 and a 200-day moving average price of $276.31. The company has a current ratio of 1.06, a quick ratio of 1.06 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.64.

Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. (NYSE:AJG) last issued its earnings results on Thursday, October 24th. The financial services provider reported $2.26 EPS for the quarter, hitting analysts’ consensus estimates of $2.26. Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. had a net margin of 10.40% and a return on equity of 19.12%. The business had revenue of $2.77 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $2.78 billion. During the same period in the prior year, the firm earned $2.00 EPS. The company’s revenue for the quarter was up 12.8% compared to the same quarter last year. Equities research analysts expect that Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. will post 10.11 earnings per share for the current year.

Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. Announces Dividend

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, December 20th. Shareholders of record on Friday, December 6th will be issued a dividend of $0.60 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, December 6th. This represents a $2.40 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 0.79%. Arthur J. Gallagher & Co.’s dividend payout ratio is currently 45.71%.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of research firms recently commented on AJG. Jefferies Financial Group boosted their target price on Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. from $269.00 to $274.00 and gave the stock a “hold” rating in a research report on Wednesday, October 9th. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods increased their target price on Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. from $241.00 to $252.00 and gave the company an “underperform” rating in a research report on Friday, July 26th. Bank of America boosted their price target on shares of Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. from $271.00 to $293.00 and gave the stock an “underperform” rating in a research report on Thursday, October 10th. Wells Fargo & Company lifted their price objective on shares of Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. from $309.00 to $315.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research note on Thursday, October 10th. Finally, Truist Financial upped their target price on shares of Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. from $265.00 to $275.00 and gave the company a “hold” rating in a research report on Friday, September 20th. Three investment analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, seven have assigned a hold rating and four have issued a buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat, the stock currently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $289.71.

About Arthur J. Gallagher & Co.

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.