Y Intercept Hong Kong Ltd Acquires New Stake in Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. (NYSE:AJG)

Y Intercept Hong Kong Ltd bought a new stake in shares of Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. (NYSE:AJG) in the third quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The firm bought 34,585 shares of the financial services provider’s stock, valued at approximately $9,731,000. Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. accounts for 0.6% of Y Intercept Hong Kong Ltd’s portfolio, making the stock its 13th biggest position.

Several other institutional investors also recently bought and sold shares of the company. The Manufacturers Life Insurance Company increased its position in shares of 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 worth $270,660,000 after acquiring an additional 717,221 shares during the period. Principal Financial Group Inc. grew its stake in Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. by 231.2% during 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. FMR LLC increased its holdings in Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. by 4.9% during the 3rd quarter. FMR LLC now owns 12,305,478 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $3,462,392,000 after purchasing an additional 580,134 shares during the period. Massachusetts Financial Services Co. MA boosted its stake in shares of Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. by 13.6% in 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 buying an additional 383,130 shares during the period. 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 worth $65,394,000 after buying an additional 231,638 shares in the last quarter. 85.53% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. Stock Performance

Shares of AJG opened at $296.71 on Monday. The company’s 50 day simple moving average is $293.41 and its 200-day simple moving average is $281.07. The firm has a market cap of $65.10 billion, a PE ratio of 56.52, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.62 and a beta of 0.74. Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. has a 12-month low of $218.63 and a 12-month high of $316.72. 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 quarterly earnings data on Thursday, October 24th. The financial services provider reported $2.26 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, hitting the consensus estimate of $2.26. Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. had a net margin of 10.40% and a return on equity of 19.12%. The company had revenue of $2.77 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $2.78 billion. During the same period last year, the firm posted $2.00 EPS. Arthur J. Gallagher & Co.’s revenue for the quarter was up 12.8% on a year-over-year basis. As a group, equities analysts predict that Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. will post 10.12 EPS for the current year.

Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. Dividend Announcement

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, December 20th. Shareholders of record on Friday, December 6th will be paid a dividend of $0.60 per share. This represents a $2.40 annualized dividend and a yield of 0.81%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, December 6th. Arthur J. Gallagher & Co.’s dividend payout ratio is presently 45.71%.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In related news, VP Christopher E. Mead sold 2,800 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Monday, October 28th. The shares were sold at an average price of $287.00, for a total value of $803,600.00. Following the completion of the sale, the vice president now owns 14,674 shares in the company, valued at $4,211,438. This trade represents a 16.02 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this link. Also, President Michael Robert Pesch sold 7,100 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction that occurred 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 $9,853,685.40. The trade was a 17.59 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last ninety days, insiders sold 23,900 shares of company stock valued at $6,892,280. 1.60% of the stock is owned by company insiders.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of research analysts recently issued reports on AJG shares. Bank of America lifted 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 note on Thursday, October 10th. Wells Fargo & Company boosted their target price 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. Jefferies Financial Group raised their price target on Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. from $269.00 to $274.00 and gave the company a “hold” rating in a research note on Wednesday, October 9th. Royal Bank of Canada upped their price objective on Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. from $310.00 to $320.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a research report on Friday, September 20th. Finally, TD Cowen boosted their target price on Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. from $273.00 to $288.00 and gave the stock a “hold” rating in a research note on Tuesday, August 13th. Three analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, eight have given a hold rating and four have given a buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat, the stock currently has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $291.64.

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.