Findlay Park Partners LLP Trims Holdings in Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. $AJG

Findlay Park Partners LLP cut its holdings in Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. (NYSE:AJG) by 19.5% in the 2nd quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The fund owned 944,101 shares of the financial services provider’s stock after selling 228,100 shares during the period. Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. makes up 3.1% of Findlay Park Partners LLP’s portfolio, making the stock its 8th largest position. Findlay Park Partners LLP owned 0.37% of Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. worth $302,226,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Other hedge funds and other institutional investors also recently modified their holdings of the company. J.Safra Asset Management Corp increased its stake in Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. by 209.1% in the 2nd quarter. J.Safra Asset Management Corp now owns 102 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $32,000 after purchasing an additional 69 shares during the period. AlphaQuest LLC bought a new stake in Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. during the 1st quarter valued at $33,000. Saudi Central Bank purchased a new stake in Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. during the 1st quarter valued at $34,000. SouthState Corp bought a new stake in Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. in the 1st quarter worth $39,000. Finally, Steph & Co. purchased a new position in shares of Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. in the second quarter valued at about $40,000. Institutional investors own 85.53% of the company’s stock.

Insider Activity at Arthur J. Gallagher & Co.

In related news, CFO Douglas K. Howell sold 8,000 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, September 22nd. The shares were sold at an average price of $299.54, for a total value of $2,396,320.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief financial officer directly owned 100,777 shares in the company, valued at $30,186,742.58. The trade was a 7.35% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at the SEC website. Also, VP Scott R. Hudson sold 12,855 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, September 8th. The shares were sold at an average price of $297.60, for a total value of $3,825,648.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the vice president directly owned 85,920 shares in the company, valued at $25,569,792. This trade represents a 13.01% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The SEC filing for this sale provides additional information. Insiders have sold 37,105 shares of company stock valued at $10,796,353 over the last ninety days. Corporate insiders own 1.60% of the company’s stock.

Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. Stock Performance

Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. stock opened at $248.72 on Thursday. The company has a quick ratio of 1.36, a current ratio of 1.36 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.52. The stock’s 50 day moving average is $277.86 and its 200 day moving average is $300.25. Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. has a twelve month low of $239.47 and a twelve month high of $351.23. The company has a market capitalization of $63.87 billion, a P/E ratio of 35.33 and a beta of 0.71.

Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. (NYSE:AJG) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, October 30th. The financial services provider reported $2.32 earnings per share for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $2.51 by ($0.19). The company had revenue of $3.33 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $3.34 billion. Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. had a net margin of 14.54% and a return on equity of 13.17%. Arthur J. Gallagher & Co.’s revenue was up 20.2% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter in the previous year, the business earned $2.26 earnings per share. On average, equities research analysts predict that Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. will post 11.54 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. Dividend Announcement

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, December 19th. Stockholders of record on Friday, December 5th will be paid a $0.65 dividend. This represents a $2.60 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 1.0%. The ex-dividend date is Friday, December 5th. Arthur J. Gallagher & Co.’s dividend payout ratio is currently 38.86%.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several research firms recently issued reports on AJG. Wells Fargo & Company raised their target price on Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. from $365.00 to $366.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research note on Wednesday, October 8th. UBS Group lifted their price objective on Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. from $322.00 to $329.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a research report on Friday, September 19th. Citigroup dropped their price target on Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. from $330.00 to $277.00 and set a “neutral” rating for the company in a research note on Monday, November 3rd. Wall Street Zen lowered shares of Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. from a “hold” rating to a “sell” rating in a report on Saturday, November 1st. Finally, Cowen reissued a “buy” rating on shares of Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. in a research note on Friday, October 31st. One research analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, eight have issued a Buy rating, eight have given a Hold rating and one has issued a Sell rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat, the stock presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $316.33.

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.