Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. (NYSE:AJG) Stake Lifted by Burgundy Asset Management Ltd.

Burgundy Asset Management Ltd. increased its stake in shares of Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. (NYSE:AJG) by 3.9% in the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The fund owned 601,954 shares of the financial services provider’s stock after buying an additional 22,505 shares during the quarter. Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. comprises approximately 1.7% of Burgundy Asset Management Ltd.’s holdings, making the stock its 20th largest position. Burgundy Asset Management Ltd. owned 0.24% of Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. worth $170,865,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

A number of other institutional investors have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in AJG. Vanguard Group Inc. boosted its position in Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. by 14.9% during the 4th quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 29,672,134 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $8,422,435,000 after acquiring an additional 3,851,661 shares during the period. Capital International Investors boosted its position in Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. by 3.1% during the 4th quarter. Capital International Investors now owns 10,067,647 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $2,857,737,000 after acquiring an additional 305,876 shares during the period. Capital World Investors boosted its position in Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. by 30.4% during the 4th quarter. Capital World Investors now owns 8,199,413 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $2,327,403,000 after acquiring an additional 1,910,471 shares during the period. Geode Capital Management LLC boosted its position in Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. by 14.3% during the 4th quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC now owns 6,277,993 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $1,779,248,000 after acquiring an additional 787,265 shares during the period. Finally, Norges Bank acquired a new position in Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. during the 4th quarter worth $1,421,591,000. 85.53% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. Stock Down 0.7%

Shares of Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. stock opened at $335.21 on Friday. The stock’s fifty day moving average is $331.87 and its 200-day moving average is $313.25. The firm has a market capitalization of $85.85 billion, a PE ratio of 51.41 and a beta of 0.78. The company has a quick ratio of 1.51, a current ratio of 1.51 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.63. Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. has a 12-month low of $244.60 and a 12-month high of $350.70.

Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. (NYSE:AJG) last announced its earnings results on Thursday, May 1st. The financial services provider reported $3.67 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $3.57 by $0.10. The company had revenue of $3.69 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $3.85 billion. Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. had a return on equity of 16.47% and a net margin of 12.70%. Arthur J. Gallagher & Co.’s revenue for the quarter was up 14.5% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period in the previous year, the firm earned $3.45 earnings per share. Equities analysts anticipate that Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. will post 11.54 earnings per share for the current year.

Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, June 20th. Investors of record on Friday, June 6th will be given a dividend of $0.65 per share. This represents a $2.60 annualized dividend and a yield of 0.78%. The ex-dividend date is Friday, June 6th. Arthur J. Gallagher & Co.’s payout ratio is 37.63%.

Insider Activity at Arthur J. Gallagher & Co.

In related news, Director David S. Johnson sold 1,000 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on Friday, May 16th. The stock was sold at an average price of $342.04, for a total transaction of $342,040.00. Following the transaction, the director now directly owns 45,323 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $15,502,278.92. The trade was a 2.16% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through the SEC website. Also, VP Scott R. Hudson sold 10,500 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on Wednesday, May 21st. The shares were sold at an average price of $337.17, for a total value of $3,540,285.00. Following the transaction, the vice president now directly owns 91,175 shares in the company, valued at $30,741,474.75. The trade was a 10.33% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Over the last ninety days, insiders have sold 32,510 shares of company stock valued at $11,033,341. Company insiders own 1.60% of the company’s stock.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of brokerages have issued reports on AJG. Redburn Atlantic began coverage on Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. in a research report on Tuesday, March 25th. They set a “neutral” rating and a $352.00 price target for the company. Jefferies Financial Group reduced their price target on Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. from $266.00 to $265.00 and set a “hold” rating for the company in a research report on Friday, April 11th. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods upped their price objective on Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. from $307.00 to $315.00 and gave the company a “market perform” rating in a report on Friday, May 2nd. Wells Fargo & Company upped their price objective on Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. from $370.00 to $372.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a report on Thursday, April 10th. Finally, Royal Bank of Canada upped their price objective on Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. from $320.00 to $340.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a report on Friday, January 31st. Two research analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, seven have issued a hold rating and five have issued a buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the stock currently has an average rating of “Hold” and an average price target of $318.57.

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 segments: Brokerage, Risk Management, and Corporate. The Brokerage segment consists of retail and wholesale insurance brokerage operations.