RFG Advisory LLC Reduces Position in Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. $AJG

RFG Advisory LLC trimmed its holdings in shares of Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. (NYSE:AJG) by 37.2% during the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the SEC. The fund owned 4,839 shares of the financial services provider’s stock after selling 2,871 shares during the quarter. RFG Advisory LLC’s holdings in Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. were worth $1,252,000 as of its most recent filing with the SEC.

Other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also modified their holdings of the company. Caprock Group LLC bought a new stake in Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. in the third quarter valued at about $9,877,000. JPMorgan Chase & Co. increased its holdings in Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. by 19.6% in the third quarter. JPMorgan Chase & Co. now owns 20,338,533 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $6,299,674,000 after buying an additional 3,330,205 shares during the last quarter. Banco Bilbao Vizcaya Argentaria S.A. increased its holdings in Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. by 10.2% in the third quarter. Banco Bilbao Vizcaya Argentaria S.A. now owns 65,889 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $20,398,000 after buying an additional 6,090 shares during the last quarter. Cincinnati Financial Corp bought a new stake in Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. in the third quarter valued at about $42,824,000. Finally, Factory Mutual Insurance Co. boosted its stake in Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. by 241.4% in the third quarter. Factory Mutual Insurance Co. now owns 49,500 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $15,332,000 after acquiring an additional 35,000 shares during the period. 85.53% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. Stock Performance

Shares of NYSE AJG opened at $198.71 on Friday. The company has a current ratio of 1.06, a quick ratio of 1.06 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.51. The stock has a 50 day simple moving average of $216.40 and a 200-day simple moving average of $237.75. The company has a market cap of $51.09 billion, a PE ratio of 32.15, a P/E/G ratio of 1.03 and a beta of 0.54. Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. has a 12-month low of $194.15 and a 12-month high of $351.23.

Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. (NYSE:AJG) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, April 30th. The financial services provider reported $4.47 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $4.43 by $0.04. The business had revenue of $4.71 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $4.73 billion. Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. had a return on equity of 12.83% and a net margin of 10.76%.The business’s revenue was up 29.0% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period in the previous year, the firm posted $3.67 earnings per share. On average, equities research analysts forecast that Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. will post 13.18 EPS for the current year.

Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. Announces Dividend

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, June 19th. Stockholders of record on Friday, June 5th will be given a dividend of $0.70 per share. The ex-dividend date is Friday, June 5th. This represents a $2.80 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 1.4%. Arthur J. Gallagher & Co.’s payout ratio is currently 45.31%.

Insider Buying and Selling at Arthur J. Gallagher & Co.

In other Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. news, VP Christopher E. Mead sold 4,000 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on Thursday, March 5th. The stock was sold at an average price of $227.12, for a total value of $908,480.00. Following the transaction, the vice president owned 19,306 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $4,384,778.72. This represents a 17.16% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this hyperlink. Also, VP Scott R. Hudson sold 3,800 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on Friday, March 6th. The shares were sold at an average price of $227.57, for a total value of $864,766.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the vice president directly owned 85,920 shares in the company, valued at $19,552,814.40. This represents a 4.24% decrease in their position. Additional details regarding this sale are available in the official SEC disclosure. 1.40% of the stock is currently owned by corporate insiders.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of equities analysts have commented on AJG shares. Barclays lifted their target price on Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. from $262.00 to $275.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research note on Wednesday, April 8th. Piper Sandler decreased their target price on Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. from $226.00 to $211.00 and set a “neutral” rating for the company in a research note on Friday, May 1st. Wall Street Zen upgraded Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. from a “sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Saturday, February 21st. BMO Capital Markets upgraded Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. from a “market perform” rating to an “outperform” rating and lifted their target price for the company from $275.00 to $278.00 in a research note on Tuesday, March 24th. Finally, Mizuho decreased their target price on Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. from $260.00 to $259.00 and set an “outperform” rating for the company in a research note on Monday, April 13th. Eleven equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and eight have issued a Hold rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $268.00.

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.