Renaissance Investment Group LLC Boosts Stake in Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. $AJG

Renaissance Investment Group LLC lifted its position in Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. (NYSE:AJG) by 4.8% in the second quarter, HoldingsChannel.com reports. The firm owned 43,844 shares of the financial services provider’s stock after purchasing an additional 2,000 shares during the quarter. Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. comprises about 2.0% of Renaissance Investment Group LLC’s investment portfolio, making the stock its 23rd biggest holding. Renaissance Investment Group LLC’s holdings in Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. were worth $10,065,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Several other institutional investors and hedge funds also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the business. Kemnay Advisory Services Inc. purchased a new stake in Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. during the fourth quarter valued at approximately $26,000. Axiom Investment Management LLC bought a new position in Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. during the 1st quarter valued at about $28,000. Cassaday & Co Wealth Management LLC bought a new position in Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. during the 1st quarter valued at about $29,000. Rakuten Securities Inc. lifted its stake 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. Finally, MV Capital Management Inc. purchased a new position in shares of Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. during the fourth quarter valued at approximately $34,000. Institutional investors own 85.53% of the company’s stock.

Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. Stock Performance

NYSE AJG opened at $251.72 on Friday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.50, a current ratio of 1.05 and a quick ratio of 1.06. Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. has a 1-year low of $190.75 and a 1-year high of $313.55. The company has a market cap of $64.67 billion, a PE ratio of 41.74, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.29 and a beta of 0.50. The stock’s 50 day simple moving average is $235.35 and its 200-day simple moving average is $224.59.

Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. (NYSE:AJG) last issued its earnings results on Thursday, July 30th. The financial services provider reported $2.84 EPS 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 13.28%. The business had revenue of $3.95 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $4.01 billion. During the same period in the prior year, the business earned $2.33 earnings per share. The company’s quarterly revenue was up 24.3% compared to the same quarter last year. As a group, equities research analysts anticipate that Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. will post 13.27 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. Announces Dividend

The firm also recently disclosed 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 is Tuesday, September 8th. This represents a $2.80 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 1.1%. Arthur J. Gallagher & Co.’s dividend payout ratio is currently 46.43%.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of brokerages recently issued reports on AJG. Morgan Stanley raised their price target on Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. from $240.00 to $255.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research note on Monday, July 6th. Cantor Fitzgerald increased their target price on shares of Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. from $285.00 to $300.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a report on Thursday, July 9th. Wolfe Research downgraded Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. from an “outperform” rating to a “peer perform” rating in a report on Thursday, July 9th. Royal Bank Of Canada lifted their price objective on shares of Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. from $300.00 to $310.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a research report on Friday, July 31st. Finally, UBS Group upped their target price on Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. from $291.00 to $299.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research report on Monday. Thirteen analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and five have given a Hold rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the company presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $287.65.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. news, CAO Richard C. Cary sold 3,000 shares of the firm’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 of the company’s stock, valued at $9,850,714. This trade 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 is available through the SEC website. Insiders own 1.40% of the company’s stock.

Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. Profile

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.