Baltimore Washington Financial Advisors Inc. Boosts Stock Holdings in Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. (NYSE:AJG)

Baltimore Washington Financial Advisors Inc. lifted its holdings in Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. (NYSE:AJG) by 13.7% in the 4th quarter, according to its most recent filing with the SEC. The firm owned 51,745 shares of the financial services provider’s stock after purchasing an additional 6,248 shares during the period. Baltimore Washington Financial Advisors Inc.’s holdings in Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. were worth $14,688,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Several other institutional investors also recently bought and sold shares of AJG. Valley National Advisers Inc. bought a new stake in shares of Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. in the 4th quarter valued at about $25,000. Pin Oak Investment Advisors Inc. boosted its stake in Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. by 543.8% in the third quarter. Pin Oak Investment Advisors Inc. now owns 103 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $28,000 after acquiring an additional 87 shares in the last quarter. Quarry LP purchased a new position in Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. in the second quarter worth $29,000. Rakuten Securities Inc. increased its position in shares of Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. by 580.0% during the third quarter. Rakuten Securities Inc. now owns 102 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $29,000 after purchasing an additional 87 shares in the last quarter. Finally, E Fund Management Hong Kong Co. Ltd. acquired a new stake in shares of Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. in the 4th quarter worth $35,000. 85.53% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. Stock Up 2.4 %

Shares of AJG opened at $309.05 on Tuesday. The company has a market capitalization of $77.20 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 47.40 and a beta of 0.77. Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. has a 52 week low of $230.08 and a 52 week high of $316.72. The stock’s 50-day moving average price is $291.66 and its 200-day moving average price is $288.94. The company has a quick ratio of 1.06, a current ratio of 1.51 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.63.

Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. (NYSE:AJG) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, January 30th. The financial services provider reported $2.13 EPS for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $2.03 by $0.10. Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. had a net margin of 12.70% and a return on equity of 16.47%. On average, sell-side analysts predict that Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. will post 11.53 EPS for the current year.

Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. Increases Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, March 21st. Shareholders of record on Friday, March 7th will be given a $0.65 dividend. The ex-dividend date is Friday, March 7th. This represents a $2.60 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 0.84%. This is an increase from Arthur J. Gallagher & Co.’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.60. Arthur J. Gallagher & Co.’s dividend payout ratio is 36.81%.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of equities research analysts have commented on AJG shares. Piper Sandler upgraded Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. from a “neutral” rating to an “overweight” rating and increased their price target for the company from $285.00 to $315.00 in a research note on Wednesday, January 8th. Jefferies Financial Group increased their price objective on shares of Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. from $269.00 to $274.00 and gave the company a “hold” rating in a research report on Wednesday, October 9th. Royal Bank of Canada boosted their target price on shares of Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. from $320.00 to $340.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a research report on Friday. BMO Capital Markets lifted their price objective on shares of Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. from $312.00 to $325.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a research note on Tuesday, November 12th. Finally, Keefe, Bruyette & Woods upped their target price on Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. from $286.00 to $295.00 and gave the company a “market perform” rating in a research report on Friday. Two equities research analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, six have given a hold rating and six have issued a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat, Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. has a consensus rating of “Hold” and an average target price of $307.00.

Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. Company Profile

Arthur J. Gallagher & Co engages in the provision of insurance brokerage, reinsurance brokerage, consulting, and third-party claims settlement and administration services. It operates through the following business segments: Brokerage, Risk Management, and Corporate. The Brokerage segment consists of retail and wholesale insurance brokerage operations.