James Investment Research Inc. Decreases Stock Holdings in Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. (NYSE:AJG)

James Investment Research Inc. reduced its position in Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. (NYSE:AJG) by 1.1% during the first quarter, according to its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The firm owned 26,606 shares of the financial services provider’s stock after selling 283 shares during the quarter. Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. accounts for approximately 1.2% of James Investment Research Inc.’s holdings, making the stock its 21st biggest holding. James Investment Research Inc.’s holdings in Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. were worth $9,185,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Several other large investors have also modified their holdings of AJG. HWG Holdings LP purchased a new position in shares of Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. during the first quarter valued at $25,000. MRP Capital Investments LLC acquired a new stake in Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. in the fourth quarter worth about $28,000. New Age Alpha Advisors LLC boosted its holdings in Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. by 81.7% in the fourth quarter. New Age Alpha Advisors LLC now owns 109 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $31,000 after acquiring an additional 49 shares in the last quarter. Centennial Bank AR acquired a new stake in Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. in the first quarter worth about $38,000. Finally, Johnson Financial Group Inc. boosted its holdings in Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. by 205.4% in the fourth quarter. Johnson Financial Group Inc. now owns 113 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $34,000 after acquiring an additional 76 shares in the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 85.53% of the company’s stock.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other news, Director David S. Johnson sold 1,000 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Friday, May 16th. The stock was sold at an average price of $342.04, for a total transaction of $342,040.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the director directly owned 45,323 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $15,502,278.92. This represents a 2.16% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through this link. Also, insider Susan E. Pietrucha sold 13,500 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Monday, May 19th. The shares were sold at an average price of $344.13, for a total value of $4,645,755.00. Following the completion of the sale, the insider directly owned 11,941 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $4,109,256.33. This trade represents a 53.06% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders have sold a total of 25,000 shares of company stock worth $8,528,080 in the last quarter. 1.30% of the stock is owned by company insiders.

Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. Price Performance

AJG stock opened at $308.07 on Wednesday. The company has a current ratio of 1.44, a quick ratio of 1.44 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.56. The company has a market capitalization of $78.90 billion, a PE ratio of 44.58 and a beta of 0.71. Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. has a 12-month low of $267.00 and a 12-month high of $351.23. The business’s fifty day moving average price is $326.78 and its 200 day moving average price is $321.04.

Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. (NYSE:AJG) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, May 1st. The financial services provider reported $3.67 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $3.57 by $0.10. The firm had revenue of $3.69 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $3.85 billion. Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. had a return on equity of 14.83% and a net margin of 14.39%. The company’s quarterly revenue was up 14.5% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter in the previous year, the business earned $3.45 EPS. On average, sell-side analysts anticipate that Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. will post 11.54 EPS for the current year.

Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. Dividend Announcement

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, June 20th. Shareholders of record on Friday, June 6th were issued a dividend of $0.65 per share. The ex-dividend date was Friday, June 6th. This represents a $2.60 annualized dividend and a yield of 0.84%. Arthur J. Gallagher & Co.’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 37.63%.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

AJG has been the subject of several research analyst reports. Jefferies Financial Group reduced their price objective on Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. from $266.00 to $265.00 and set a “hold” rating for the company in a research note on Friday, April 11th. Redburn Atlantic initiated 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. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods boosted their price objective on Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. from $326.00 to $330.00 and gave the company a “market perform” rating in a research report on Wednesday, July 9th. Wells Fargo & Company lowered their price target on Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. from $372.00 to $371.00 and set an “overweight” rating on the stock in a research note on Monday, June 9th. Finally, Barclays lowered their price target on Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. from $346.00 to $327.00 and set an “equal weight” rating on the stock in a research note on Monday, July 7th. Two analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, seven have given a hold rating and five have assigned a buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the company has a consensus rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $318.21.

About Arthur J. Gallagher & Co.

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.