Wendell David Associates Inc. Boosts Holdings in Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. $AJG

Wendell David Associates Inc. increased its holdings in Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. (NYSE:AJG) by 6.4% during the second quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The fund owned 15,932 shares of the financial services provider’s stock after buying an additional 957 shares during the quarter. Wendell David Associates Inc.’s holdings in Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. were worth $5,100,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Other institutional investors and hedge funds also recently made changes to their positions in the company. HWG Holdings LP purchased a new position in shares of Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. in the first quarter worth approximately $25,000. J.Safra Asset Management Corp boosted its holdings in shares of Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. by 209.1% in the second quarter. J.Safra Asset Management Corp now owns 102 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $32,000 after buying an additional 69 shares during the last quarter. AlphaQuest LLC purchased a new position in shares of Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. in the first quarter worth approximately $33,000. Saudi Central Bank purchased a new position in shares of Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. in the first quarter worth approximately $34,000. Finally, Centennial Bank AR purchased a new position in shares of Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. in the first quarter worth approximately $38,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 85.53% of the company’s stock.

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

In related news, CFO Douglas K. Howell sold 8,000 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction on Monday, September 22nd. The shares were sold at an average price of $299.54, for a total value of $2,396,320.00. Following the sale, the chief financial officer owned 100,777 shares in the company, valued at approximately $30,186,742.58. The trade was a 7.35% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is accessible through this hyperlink. Also, VP Scott R. Hudson sold 12,855 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction on 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 sale, the vice president owned 85,920 shares in the company, valued at $25,569,792. This represents a 13.01% decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders sold 29,855 shares of company stock worth $8,916,928 in the last 90 days. 1.60% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

AJG has been the topic of several analyst reports. Wells Fargo & Company lifted their price target on shares of Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. from $365.00 to $366.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a report on Wednesday, October 8th. Barclays lowered their price target on shares of Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. from $346.00 to $327.00 and set an “equal weight” rating on the stock in a report on Monday, July 7th. Citigroup initiated coverage on shares of Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. in a report on Wednesday, August 13th. They set a “neutral” rating and a $317.00 price target on the stock. Weiss Ratings reaffirmed a “buy (b-)” rating on shares of Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. in a report on Wednesday, October 8th. Finally, Piper Sandler lowered their price target on shares of Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. from $352.00 to $340.00 and set an “overweight” rating on the stock in a report on Thursday, October 2nd. One research analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, seven have assigned a Buy rating and eight have issued a Hold rating to the company. According to MarketBeat, the company presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $331.43.

Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. Price Performance

AJG stock opened at $280.70 on Friday. Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. has a one year low of $275.56 and a one year high of $351.23. The company’s fifty day moving average price is $299.55 and its 200-day moving average price is $313.86. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.52, a quick ratio of 1.36 and a current ratio of 1.36. The company has a market capitalization of $71.97 billion, a PE ratio of 39.87 and a beta of 0.73.

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

Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. Announces Dividend

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

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.