Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. $AJG Shares Acquired by Sigma Investment Counselors Inc.

Sigma Investment Counselors Inc. increased its stake in Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. (NYSE:AJG) by 3.8% during the second quarter, HoldingsChannel.com reports. The fund owned 32,980 shares of the financial services provider’s stock after buying an additional 1,217 shares during the period. Sigma Investment Counselors Inc.’s holdings in Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. were worth $10,557,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

A number of other hedge funds have also modified their holdings of AJG. HWG Holdings LP purchased a new position in shares of Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. during the first quarter valued at $25,000. AlphaQuest LLC purchased a new position in shares of Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. during the first quarter valued at $33,000. Saudi Central Bank purchased a new position in shares of Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. during the first quarter valued at $34,000. J.Safra Asset Management Corp grew its holdings in shares of Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. by 209.1% during the second quarter. J.Safra Asset Management Corp now owns 102 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $32,000 after buying an additional 69 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Centennial Bank AR purchased a new position in shares of Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. during the first quarter valued at $38,000. 85.53% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. Stock Up 0.2%

Shares of Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. stock opened at $280.70 on Friday. The firm has a market cap of $71.97 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 39.87 and a beta of 0.73. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.52, a current ratio of 1.36 and a quick ratio of 1.36. Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. has a 52-week low of $275.56 and a 52-week high of $351.23. The stock has a 50-day simple moving average of $299.55 and a 200-day simple moving average of $313.86.

Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. (NYSE:AJG) last released its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, July 31st. The financial services provider reported $2.33 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $2.36 by ($0.03). The company had revenue of $3.18 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $3.20 billion. Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. had a return on equity of 13.17% and a net margin of 14.54%.The business’s revenue was up 16.0% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter last year, the company posted $2.29 EPS. On average, equities research analysts expect that Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. will post 11.54 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. Dividend Announcement

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, September 19th. Stockholders of record on Friday, September 5th were paid a dividend of $0.65 per share. This represents a $2.60 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 0.9%. The ex-dividend date was Friday, September 5th. Arthur J. Gallagher & Co.’s dividend payout ratio is 36.93%.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of research analysts have recently weighed in on the company. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods lifted their price target on Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. from $288.00 to $298.00 and gave the company a “market perform” rating in a report on Friday, September 19th. Weiss Ratings reiterated a “buy (b-)” rating on shares of Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. in a report on Wednesday, October 8th. UBS Group boosted their target price on Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. from $322.00 to $329.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a research note on Friday, September 19th. Barclays cut their price target on Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. from $346.00 to $327.00 and set an “equal weight” rating for the company in a research note on Monday, July 7th. Finally, The Goldman Sachs Group began coverage on Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. in a report on Wednesday, September 3rd. They set a “buy” rating and a $344.00 price target for the company. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, seven have issued a Buy rating and eight have issued a Hold rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $331.43.

Insider Activity

In related news, VP Scott R. Hudson sold 12,855 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated Monday, September 8th. The stock was sold at an average price of $297.60, for a total transaction of $3,825,648.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the vice president owned 85,920 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $25,569,792. The trade was a 13.01% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this hyperlink. Also, CFO Douglas K. Howell sold 8,000 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated Monday, September 22nd. The stock was sold at an average price of $299.54, for a total value of $2,396,320.00. Following the transaction, the chief financial officer directly owned 100,777 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $30,186,742.58. This represents a 7.35% decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last quarter, insiders have sold 29,855 shares of company stock valued at $8,916,928. 1.60% of the stock is currently owned by corporate insiders.

About Arthur J. Gallagher & Co.

Arthur J. Gallagher & Co engages in the provision of insurance brokerage, reinsurance brokerage, consulting, and third-party claims settlement and administration services. It operates through the following segments: Brokerage, Risk Management, and Corporate. The Brokerage segment consists of retail and wholesale insurance brokerage operations.