Smithbridge Asset Management Inc. DE Has $16.85 Million Stake in Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. $AJG

Smithbridge Asset Management Inc. DE boosted its position in shares of Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. (NYSE:AJG) by 102.5% during the 4th quarter, HoldingsChannel reports. The fund owned 65,094 shares of the financial services provider’s stock after buying an additional 32,950 shares during the quarter. Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. makes up approximately 1.4% of Smithbridge Asset Management Inc. DE’s investment portfolio, making the stock its 26th biggest holding. Smithbridge Asset Management Inc. DE’s holdings in Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. were worth $16,846,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Other hedge funds have also recently bought and sold shares of the company. Jump Financial LLC bought a new position in Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. during the 2nd quarter valued at about $2,825,000. Qube Research & Technologies Ltd bought a new position in Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. in the 2nd quarter valued at $3,429,000. Treasurer of the State of North Carolina raised its holdings in shares of Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. by 5.3% in the second quarter. Treasurer of the State of North Carolina now owns 118,467 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $37,924,000 after buying an additional 5,947 shares during the last quarter. Peapack Gladstone Financial Corp increased its position in Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. by 2,919.2% in the 2nd quarter. Peapack Gladstone Financial Corp now owns 19,987 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $6,398,000 after acquiring an additional 19,325 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Armistice Capital LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. in the second quarter valued at approximately $412,000. 85.53% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. Price Performance

Shares of AJG opened at $220.25 on Thursday. The company’s 50-day moving average is $210.83 and its 200-day moving average is $228.34. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.51, a current ratio of 1.06 and a quick ratio of 1.06. The firm has a market capitalization of $56.58 billion, a PE ratio of 35.64, a PEG ratio of 1.10 and a beta of 0.52. Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. has a fifty-two week low of $190.75 and a fifty-two week high of $327.34.

Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. (NYSE:AJG) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, April 30th. The financial services provider reported $4.47 EPS for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $4.43 by $0.04. Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. had a net margin of 10.76% and a return on equity of 12.83%. The business had revenue of $4.71 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $4.73 billion. During the same quarter in the prior year, the business earned $3.67 EPS. Arthur J. Gallagher & Co.’s quarterly revenue was up 29.0% on a year-over-year basis. Equities analysts forecast that Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. will post 13.27 EPS for the current year.

Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. Announces Dividend

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, June 19th. Investors of record on Friday, June 5th will be issued a dividend of $0.70 per share. This represents a $2.80 annualized dividend and a yield of 1.3%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, June 5th. Arthur J. Gallagher & Co.’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 45.31%.

Insider Transactions at Arthur J. Gallagher & Co.

In other Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. news, CAO Richard C. Cary sold 3,000 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on Tuesday, June 2nd. The stock was sold at an average price of $206.00, for a total value of $618,000.00. Following the transaction, the chief accounting officer directly owned 47,819 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $9,850,714. This represents a 5.90% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available through this hyperlink. 1.40% of the stock is owned by company insiders.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of analysts recently commented on the company. Morgan Stanley lowered their price objective on Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. from $265.00 to $240.00 and set an “overweight” rating for the company in a research report on Thursday, May 21st. Barclays raised their price target on Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. from $262.00 to $275.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research report on Wednesday, April 8th. BMO Capital Markets raised Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. from a “market perform” rating to an “outperform” rating and increased their target price for the company from $275.00 to $278.00 in a research note on Tuesday, March 24th. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods cut their target price on Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. from $246.00 to $235.00 and set a “market perform” rating on the stock in a research note on Friday, May 1st. Finally, Jefferies Financial Group raised Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a research report on Thursday. Thirteen equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and six have assigned a Hold rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the company has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $264.59.

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.