Benjamin F. Edwards & Company Inc. Lowers Holdings in Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. (NYSE:AJG)

Benjamin F. Edwards & Company Inc. decreased its position in Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. (NYSE:AJG) by 0.2% in the second quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the SEC. The firm owned 94,042 shares of the financial services provider’s stock after selling 183 shares during the period. Benjamin F. Edwards & Company Inc.’s holdings in Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. were worth $24,386,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Other large investors have also recently modified their holdings of the company. Gilbert & Cook Inc. boosted its position in Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. by 5.0% during the 4th quarter. Gilbert & Cook Inc. now owns 5,398 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $1,214,000 after acquiring an additional 259 shares in the last quarter. Dynamic Technology Lab Private Ltd purchased a new position in Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. in the 4th quarter worth $264,000. PNC Financial Services Group Inc. raised its stake in shares of Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. by 1.0% during the 4th quarter. PNC Financial Services Group Inc. now owns 57,686 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $12,972,000 after buying an additional 576 shares during the last quarter. UBS Group AG raised its stake in shares of Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. by 8.5% during the 4th quarter. UBS Group AG now owns 361,441 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $81,281,000 after buying an additional 28,359 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Gladstone Institutional Advisory LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. during the 4th quarter valued at about $632,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 85.53% of the company’s stock.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. news, President Thomas Joseph Gallagher sold 15,000 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on Thursday, August 8th. The shares were sold at an average price of $282.96, for a total value of $4,244,400.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the president now owns 329,099 shares in the company, valued at $93,121,853.04. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this hyperlink. In other Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. news, President Michael Robert Pesch sold 7,100 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on Friday, September 13th. The shares were sold at an average price of $296.20, for a total value of $2,103,020.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the president now owns 33,267 shares in the company, valued at $9,853,685.40. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this hyperlink. Also, President Thomas Joseph Gallagher sold 15,000 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Thursday, August 8th. The shares were sold at an average price of $282.96, for a total transaction of $4,244,400.00. Following the completion of the sale, the president now directly owns 329,099 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $93,121,853.04. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Over the last quarter, insiders sold 37,145 shares of company stock worth $10,629,900. Corporate insiders own 1.60% of the company’s stock.

Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. Stock Performance

Shares of AJG stock opened at $282.18 on Friday. The company has a current ratio of 1.04, a quick ratio of 1.04 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.67. The firm has a fifty day moving average price of $285.38 and a 200 day moving average price of $262.49. The company has a market cap of $61.66 billion, a P/E ratio of 57.12, a PEG ratio of 2.47 and a beta of 0.72. Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. has a 12 month low of $218.63 and a 12 month high of $301.04.

Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. (NYSE:AJG) last issued its earnings results on Thursday, July 25th. The financial services provider reported $2.26 EPS for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $2.24 by $0.02. The firm had revenue of $2.73 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $2.77 billion. Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. had a net margin of 10.41% and a return on equity of 19.25%. The company’s revenue was up 14.3% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter in the previous year, the firm posted $1.90 earnings per share. Sell-side analysts predict that Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. will post 10.16 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. Announces Dividend

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, September 20th. Investors of record on Friday, September 6th will be paid a dividend of $0.60 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, September 6th. This represents a $2.40 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 0.85%. Arthur J. Gallagher & Co.’s payout ratio is currently 48.58%.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several research firms recently issued reports on AJG. Wells Fargo & Company lifted their price objective on Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. from $282.00 to $301.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a report on Friday, July 26th. BMO Capital Markets boosted their target price on Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. from $275.00 to $295.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a report on Friday, July 26th. TD Cowen lifted their price target on shares of Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. from $273.00 to $288.00 and gave the company a “hold” rating in a research report on Tuesday, August 13th. Truist Financial lifted their price target on shares of Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. from $255.00 to $265.00 and gave the company a “hold” rating in a research report on Friday, July 26th. Finally, Keefe, Bruyette & Woods lifted their price target on shares of Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. from $241.00 to $252.00 and gave the company an “underperform” rating in a research report on Friday, July 26th. Three equities research analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, eight have issued a hold rating and five have assigned a buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat.com, the stock presently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $278.47.

About Arthur J. Gallagher & Co.

Arthur J. Gallagher & Co, together with its subsidiaries, provides insurance and reinsurance brokerage, consulting, and third-party property/casualty claims settlement and administration services to entities and individuals worldwide. It operates in Brokerage and Risk Management segments. The Brokerage segment offers retail and wholesale insurance and reinsurance brokerage services; assists retail brokers and other non-affiliated brokers in the placement of specialized and hard-to-place insurance; and acts as a brokerage wholesaler, managing general agent, and managing general underwriter for distributing specialized insurance coverages to underwriting enterprises.