Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. $AJG Shares Acquired by Wealth Enhancement Advisory Services LLC

Wealth Enhancement Advisory Services LLC raised its stake in Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. (NYSE:AJG) by 31.6% during the 3rd quarter, Holdings Channel.com reports. The institutional investor owned 78,522 shares of the financial services provider’s stock after acquiring an additional 18,861 shares during the period. Wealth Enhancement Advisory Services LLC’s holdings in Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. were worth $24,327,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Other hedge funds have also modified their holdings of the company. Tritonpoint Wealth LLC boosted its holdings in shares of Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. by 1.1% in the second quarter. Tritonpoint Wealth LLC now owns 3,222 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $1,032,000 after buying an additional 35 shares during the period. D.A. Davidson & CO. lifted its holdings in shares of Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. by 1.2% in the second quarter. D.A. Davidson & CO. now owns 2,892 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $926,000 after purchasing an additional 35 shares in the last quarter. Parkside Financial Bank & Trust grew its holdings in shares of Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. by 6.5% during the second quarter. Parkside Financial Bank & Trust now owns 570 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $182,000 after buying an additional 35 shares in the last quarter. Dorsey & Whitney Trust CO LLC grew its stake in Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. by 1.4% during the 2nd quarter. Dorsey & Whitney Trust CO LLC now owns 2,623 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $840,000 after acquiring an additional 35 shares in the last quarter. Finally, CX Institutional lifted its position in shares of Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. by 2.1% in the third quarter. CX Institutional now owns 1,782 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $552,000 after purchasing an additional 36 shares in the last quarter. 85.53% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other news, VP Michael Robert Pesch acquired 4,000 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Monday, November 3rd. The shares were acquired at an average cost of $247.12 per share, for a total transaction of $988,480.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the vice president owned 41,849 shares in the company, valued at approximately $10,341,724.88. This trade represents a 10.57% increase in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is accessible through the SEC website. Also, CAO Richard C. Cary sold 6,000 shares of Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. stock in a transaction on Tuesday, November 18th. The stock was sold at an average price of $261.00, for a total transaction of $1,566,000.00. Following the sale, the chief accounting officer owned 50,668 shares in the company, valued at $13,224,348. This represents a 10.59% decrease in their position. Additional details regarding this sale are available in the official SEC disclosure. Insiders have sold 32,100 shares of company stock valued at $8,243,865 in the last quarter. 1.60% of the stock is currently owned by insiders.

Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. Price Performance

NYSE AJG opened at $250.15 on Thursday. Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. has a 1 year low of $236.34 and a 1 year high of $351.23. The company has a fifty day simple moving average of $254.00 and a 200 day simple moving average of $279.57. The company has a current ratio of 1.06, a quick ratio of 1.06 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.52. The company has a market cap of $64.24 billion, a P/E ratio of 37.39 and a beta of 0.67.

Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. (NYSE:AJG) last released its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, October 30th. The financial services provider reported $2.32 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $2.51 by ($0.19). The firm 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 13.58% and a return on equity of 11.98%. The firm’s revenue was up 20.2% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter last year, the company earned $2.26 earnings per share. On average, sell-side analysts predict that Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. will post 11.54 EPS for the current year.

Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. Dividend Announcement

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, December 19th. Stockholders of record on Friday, December 5th were given a dividend of $0.65 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Friday, December 5th. This represents a $2.60 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 1.0%. Arthur J. Gallagher & Co.’s dividend payout ratio is currently 38.86%.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of brokerages have issued reports on AJG. Wells Fargo & Company decreased their target price on shares of Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. from $328.00 to $311.00 and set an “overweight” rating for the company in a research note on Tuesday, January 13th. Piper Sandler cut Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. from an “overweight” rating to a “neutral” rating and reduced their price objective for the company from $276.00 to $272.00 in a research report on Wednesday, January 7th. TD Cowen reaffirmed a “buy” rating on shares of Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. in a research report on Friday, October 31st. Wolfe Research set a $289.00 price target on Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a report on Wednesday, December 17th. Finally, Mizuho set a $277.00 price objective on Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. in a report on Wednesday, January 14th. Seven investment analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, twelve have assigned a Hold rating and one has issued a Sell rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. presently has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $290.50.

About Arthur J. Gallagher & Co.

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.