First Nebraska Trust Co Acquires Shares of 13,604 Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. $AJG

First Nebraska Trust Co bought a new position in Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. (NYSE:AJG) in the 1st quarter, Holdings Channel.com reports. The institutional investor bought 13,604 shares of the financial services provider’s stock, valued at approximately $2,946,000.

A number of other institutional investors have also added to or reduced their stakes in AJG. Kemnay Advisory Services Inc. bought a new stake in shares of Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. during the 4th quarter valued at $26,000. Axiom Investment Management LLC bought a new stake in Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. during the first quarter worth about $28,000. Cassaday & Co Wealth Management LLC purchased a new stake in Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. in the first quarter worth about $29,000. MV Capital Management Inc. bought a new position in shares of Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. during the fourth quarter valued at approximately $34,000. Finally, Rakuten Securities Inc. lifted its holdings in shares of Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. by 650.0% during the second quarter. Rakuten Securities Inc. now owns 105 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $34,000 after purchasing an additional 91 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors own 85.53% of the company’s stock.

Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. Stock Performance

Shares of NYSE AJG opened at $249.35 on Friday. The firm’s 50-day moving average price is $231.67 and its 200-day moving average price is $225.08. Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. has a 52-week low of $190.75 and a 52-week high of $313.55. The company has a market cap of $64.06 billion, a PE ratio of 41.35, a PEG ratio of 1.29 and a beta of 0.50. The company has a quick ratio of 1.06, a current ratio of 1.06 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.51.

Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. (NYSE:AJG) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, July 30th. The financial services provider reported $2.84 earnings per share for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $2.81 by $0.03. Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. had a net margin of 9.96% and a return on equity of 13.32%. The company had revenue of $3.95 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $4.01 billion. During the same quarter in the prior year, the firm earned $2.33 earnings per share. The firm’s revenue for the quarter was up 24.3% compared to the same quarter last year. As a group, analysts anticipate that Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. will post 13.22 EPS for the current year.

Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. Announces Dividend

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

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of research analysts recently weighed in on AJG shares. Piper Sandler raised their price objective on Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. from $276.00 to $287.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research report on Friday. Wolfe Research downgraded Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. from an “outperform” rating to a “peer perform” rating in a report on Thursday, July 9th. Cantor Fitzgerald raised their price target on Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. from $285.00 to $300.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a report on Thursday, July 9th. UBS Group upped their price target on shares of Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. from $250.00 to $291.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research note on Wednesday, July 8th. Finally, Mizuho raised their price objective on shares of Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. from $287.00 to $300.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a research note on Friday. Thirteen equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and five have assigned a Hold rating to the company. According to MarketBeat, the company currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $285.29.

Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. News Summary

Here are the key news stories impacting Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. this week:

• Positive Sentiment: Second-quarter adjusted earnings were $2.84 per share, exceeding the $2.81 analyst consensus and rising from $2.33 a year earlier. Revenue increased 24.3% year over year to approximately $3.95 billion, supported by acquisitions and 6% organic growth across the Brokerage and Risk Management segments. Arthur J. Gallagher quarterly earnings report
• Positive Sentiment: Analysts raised their outlooks following the earnings release. RBC lifted its price target to $310 from $300 and retained an Outperform rating, while Mizuho raised its target to $300 from $287 and also maintained Outperform. William Blair reaffirmed its Buy rating, citing cash EPS growth, resilient brokerage performance and potential upside from mergers and acquisitions. William Blair Buy rating reaffirmed
• Positive Sentiment: Gallagher repurchased roughly 900,000 shares for about $170 million during the quarter and declared a quarterly dividend of $0.70 per share, providing additional shareholder returns. Arthur J. Gallagher second-quarter results
• Neutral Sentiment: Truist raised its target to $265 but kept a Hold rating, while Keefe, Bruyette & Woods increased its target to $271 and maintained Market Perform. The mixed ratings suggest analysts see valuation and execution risks despite longer-term growth potential. Analyst price-target changes
• Negative Sentiment: Revenue fell short of the approximately $4.01 billion consensus estimate as higher expenses and lower interest income offset otherwise strong operating growth. Reported net earnings declined to $324 million from $368 million a year earlier, while reported diluted EPS fell to $1.25 from $1.40. These results likely explain why the stock has decreased despite the adjusted EPS beat. AJG second-quarter earnings analysis
• Negative Sentiment: Investors remain concerned that acquisitions are contributing more to headline growth while insurance-broker organic growth could moderate. With AJG trading at a relatively high earnings multiple, the revenue miss and profitability pressure may have prompted profit-taking after the results.

Insider Activity at Arthur J. Gallagher & Co.

In related news, CAO Richard C. Cary sold 3,000 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on Tuesday, June 2nd. The stock was sold at an average price of $206.00, for a total transaction of $618,000.00. Following the completion of the sale, the chief accounting officer owned 47,819 shares in the company, valued at approximately $9,850,714. This represents a 5.90% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through the SEC website. 1.40% of the stock is owned by insiders.

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.