Shell Asset Management Co. Has $1.28 Million Holdings in Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. $AJG

Shell Asset Management Co. lowered its stake in shares of Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. (NYSE:AJG) by 38.7% in the third quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the SEC. The fund owned 4,125 shares of the financial services provider’s stock after selling 2,609 shares during the period. Shell Asset Management Co.’s holdings in Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. were worth $1,278,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Other institutional investors and hedge funds have also recently modified their holdings of the company. HighTower Advisors LLC boosted its position in shares of Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. by 14.5% during the third quarter. HighTower Advisors LLC now owns 66,340 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $20,567,000 after buying an additional 8,401 shares during the last quarter. Aberdeen Group plc lifted its stake in Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. by 33.4% during the 3rd quarter. Aberdeen Group plc now owns 186,425 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $56,992,000 after acquiring an additional 46,629 shares in the last quarter. Assetmark Inc. boosted its holdings in Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. by 80.6% during the 3rd quarter. Assetmark Inc. now owns 73,272 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $22,695,000 after acquiring an additional 32,705 shares during the last quarter. Public Sector Pension Investment Board grew its stake in shares of Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. by 35.4% in the 3rd quarter. Public Sector Pension Investment Board now owns 71,304 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $22,086,000 after acquiring an additional 18,637 shares in the last quarter. Finally, ICW Investment Advisors LLC bought a new position in shares of Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. during the third quarter valued at about $205,000. 85.53% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. Stock Up 1.7%

AJG stock opened at $208.22 on Monday. The stock has a fifty day moving average of $249.37 and a 200-day moving average of $270.59. Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. has a fifty-two week low of $195.00 and a fifty-two week high of $351.23. The company has a market capitalization of $53.47 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 33.86, a PEG ratio of 1.13 and a beta of 0.66. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.52, a quick ratio of 1.06 and a current ratio of 1.06.

Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. (NYSE:AJG) last released its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, January 29th. The financial services provider reported $2.38 EPS for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $2.35 by $0.03. Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. had a net margin of 11.84% and a return on equity of 12.13%. The business had revenue of $3.57 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $3.61 billion. During the same period in the prior year, the firm earned $1.12 earnings per share. The company’s revenue was up 33.9% compared to the same quarter last year. As a group, equities research analysts predict that Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. will post 11.54 earnings per share for the current year.

Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. Increases Dividend

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, March 20th. Stockholders of record on Friday, March 6th will be issued a $0.70 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, March 6th. This is an increase from Arthur J. Gallagher & Co.’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.65. This represents a $2.80 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 1.3%. Arthur J. Gallagher & Co.’s dividend payout ratio is 42.28%.

Insider Buying and Selling

In related news, CAO Richard C. Cary sold 6,000 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, November 18th. The shares were sold at an average price of $261.00, for a total transaction of $1,566,000.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief accounting officer owned 50,668 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $13,224,348. The trade was a 10.59% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through the SEC website. Also, General Counsel Walter D. Bay sold 15,850 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, December 19th. The stock was sold at an average price of $255.00, for a total transaction of $4,041,750.00. Following the completion of the sale, the general counsel owned 79,549 shares in the company, valued at $20,284,995. This represents a 16.61% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The SEC filing for this sale provides additional information. Insiders have sold a total of 32,100 shares of company stock valued at $8,243,865 in the last ninety days. 1.30% of the stock is owned by company insiders.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several research firms have commented on AJG. Mizuho set a $277.00 target price on shares of Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. in a research report on Wednesday, January 14th. Wells Fargo & Company dropped their price target on Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. from $311.00 to $298.00 and set an “overweight” rating on the stock in a report on Friday, January 30th. Weiss Ratings restated a “hold (c+)” rating on shares of Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. in a research note on Monday, December 29th. Morgan Stanley set a $300.00 target price on Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. in a research note on Friday, December 19th. Finally, Barclays reduced their price target on shares of Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. from $250.00 to $247.00 and set an “underweight” rating for the company in a research report on Thursday, January 8th. Six analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, twelve have given a Hold rating and one has assigned a Sell rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the stock currently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and a consensus target price of $284.12.

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.