Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. $AJG Shares Sold by Sterling Capital Management LLC

Sterling Capital Management LLC cut its holdings in Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. (NYSE:AJG) by 86.5% during the first quarter, HoldingsChannel reports. The firm owned 841 shares of the financial services provider’s stock after selling 5,408 shares during the period. Sterling Capital Management LLC’s holdings in Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. were worth $182,000 as of its most recent filing with the SEC.

Several other large investors have also modified their holdings of AJG. Kemnay Advisory Services Inc. purchased a new stake in shares of Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. during the 4th quarter worth $26,000. Rakuten Securities Inc. boosted its stake in shares of Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. by 650.0% during the 2nd quarter. Rakuten Securities Inc. now owns 105 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $34,000 after acquiring an additional 91 shares in the last quarter. Financial Life Planners purchased a new position in Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. in the 3rd quarter valued at approximately $39,000. MV Capital Management Inc. purchased a new stake in Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. during the fourth quarter worth $34,000. Finally, Prosperity Bancshares Inc acquired a new position in shares of Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. during the 4th quarter worth $42,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 85.53% of the company’s stock.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. news, CAO Richard C. Cary sold 3,000 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, June 2nd. The shares were sold at an average price of $206.00, for a total transaction of $618,000.00. Following the transaction, 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 document filed with the SEC, which is accessible through this hyperlink. 1.40% of the stock is currently owned by corporate insiders.

Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. Trading Up 1.5%

Shares of AJG stock traded up $3.83 during mid-day trading on Tuesday, hitting $253.60. 118,778 shares of the company’s stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 2,152,081. The stock has a market cap of $65.15 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 41.04, a PEG ratio of 1.28 and a beta of 0.50. The stock has a 50-day simple moving average of $212.84 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $225.61. Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. has a fifty-two week low of $190.75 and a fifty-two week high of $316.89. 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 results on Thursday, April 30th. The financial services provider reported $4.47 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $4.43 by $0.04. The firm had revenue of $4.71 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $4.73 billion. Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. had a return on equity of 12.83% and a net margin of 10.76%.The firm’s quarterly revenue was up 29.0% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period last year, the company earned $3.67 EPS. Equities analysts expect that Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. will post 13.23 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. Dividend Announcement

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, June 19th. Investors of record on Friday, June 5th were given a dividend of $0.70 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Friday, June 5th. This represents a $2.80 annualized dividend and a yield of 1.1%. Arthur J. Gallagher & Co.’s dividend payout ratio is 45.31%.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several equities analysts have weighed in on AJG shares. Barclays restated an “overweight” rating and set a $292.00 target price on shares of Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. in a report on Tuesday. Morgan Stanley increased their price target on shares of Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. from $240.00 to $255.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research report on Monday. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods lifted their price objective on Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. from $235.00 to $242.00 and gave the stock a “market perform” rating in a research report on Thursday, June 18th. Citigroup raised Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. from a “neutral” rating to a “buy” rating and reduced their target price for the company from $280.00 to $250.00 in a research note on Wednesday, May 6th. Finally, Mizuho dropped their price target on Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. from $260.00 to $259.00 and set an “outperform” rating for the company in a research report on Monday, April 13th. Thirteen investment analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and six have assigned a Hold rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $266.00.

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.