Czech National Bank Buys 3,138 Shares of Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. $AJG

Czech National Bank raised its stake in Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. (NYSE:AJG) by 4.5% during the second quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The fund owned 73,124 shares of the financial services provider’s stock after acquiring an additional 3,138 shares during the period. Czech National Bank’s holdings in Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. were worth $16,787,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

A number of other institutional investors have also recently made changes to their positions in AJG. Kemnay Advisory Services Inc. bought a new stake in shares of Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. in the fourth quarter worth approximately $26,000. Rakuten Securities Inc. boosted its position in 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 worth $34,000 after purchasing an additional 91 shares during the last quarter. Axiom Investment Management LLC bought a new stake in shares of Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. during the 1st quarter valued at about $28,000. MV Capital Management Inc. purchased a new stake in shares of Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. during the 4th quarter valued at about $34,000. Finally, Cassaday & Co Wealth Management LLC bought a new position in shares of Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. in the 1st quarter worth approximately $29,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 85.53% of the company’s stock.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several research analysts have weighed in on the stock. Citigroup increased their price target on shares of Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. from $250.00 to $285.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research report on Tuesday. Cantor Fitzgerald lifted their price target on shares of Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. from $285.00 to $300.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a report on Thursday, July 9th. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods increased their price objective on shares of Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. from $261.00 to $271.00 and gave the stock a “market perform” rating in a research note on Friday, July 31st. Jefferies Financial Group upgraded shares of Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating and raised their price objective for the company from $235.00 to $265.00 in a research report on Thursday, June 11th. Finally, Weiss Ratings raised shares of Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. from a “hold (c-)” rating to a “hold (c)” rating in a report on Monday, July 13th. Thirteen equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and five have given a Hold rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat, Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $287.65.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. news, CAO Richard C. Cary sold 3,000 shares of the stock in a transaction on Tuesday, June 2nd. The shares were sold at an average price of $206.00, for a total transaction of $618,000.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief accounting officer owned 47,819 shares in the company, valued at $9,850,714. This trade represents a 5.90% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this link. 1.40% of the stock is owned by company insiders.

Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. Trading Down 1.7%

Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. stock opened at $247.59 on Friday. Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. has a 1 year low of $190.75 and a 1 year high of $313.55. The firm’s 50 day moving average price is $236.28 and its 200-day moving average price is $224.75. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.50, a current ratio of 1.05 and a quick ratio of 1.06. The stock has a market cap of $63.46 billion, a P/E ratio of 41.06, a PEG ratio of 1.30 and a beta of 0.50.

Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. (NYSE:AJG) last posted its earnings results on Thursday, July 30th. The financial services provider reported $2.84 earnings per share for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $2.81 by $0.03. Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. had a net margin of 9.96% and a return on equity of 13.28%. The company had revenue of $3.95 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $4.01 billion. During the same period last year, the company posted $2.33 earnings per share. Arthur J. Gallagher & Co.’s quarterly revenue was up 24.3% on a year-over-year basis. On average, equities analysts predict that Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. will post 13.27 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, September 18th. Investors of record on Tuesday, September 8th will be issued a $0.70 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Tuesday, September 8th. This represents a $2.80 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 1.1%. Arthur J. Gallagher & Co.’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 46.43%.

About Arthur J. Gallagher & Co.

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.