Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. (NYSE:AJG) Shares Purchased by Smartleaf Asset Management LLC

Smartleaf Asset Management LLC raised its stake in Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. (NYSE:AJG) by 27.9% in the fourth quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The firm owned 1,987 shares of the financial services provider’s stock after acquiring an additional 433 shares during the quarter. Smartleaf Asset Management LLC’s holdings in Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. were worth $565,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Other large investors also recently bought and sold shares of the company. Valley National Advisers Inc. acquired a new position in Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. in the fourth quarter valued at approximately $25,000. Rakuten Securities Inc. lifted its holdings in Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. by 580.0% in the third quarter. Rakuten Securities Inc. now owns 102 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $29,000 after acquiring an additional 87 shares during the period. Pin Oak Investment Advisors Inc. lifted its holdings in Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. by 543.8% in the third quarter. Pin Oak Investment Advisors Inc. now owns 103 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $28,000 after acquiring an additional 87 shares during the period. E Fund Management Hong Kong Co. Ltd. acquired a new position in Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. in the fourth quarter valued at approximately $35,000. Finally, Financial Life Planners acquired a new position in Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. in the fourth quarter valued at approximately $36,000. 85.53% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

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

In other news, VP Christopher E. Mead sold 2,900 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on Monday, February 3rd. The stock was sold at an average price of $302.61, for a total value of $877,569.00. Following the transaction, the vice president now owns 14,674 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $4,440,499.14. This represents a 16.50 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available at this hyperlink. Also, Director Sherry S. Barrat sold 2,500 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on Monday, February 3rd. The shares were sold at an average price of $304.33, for a total value of $760,825.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the director now directly owns 16,533 shares in the company, valued at approximately $5,031,487.89. This trade represents a 13.14 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders sold a total of 15,725 shares of company stock worth $4,972,964 in the last three months. 1.60% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of research analysts have issued reports on AJG shares. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods boosted their price target on Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. from $286.00 to $295.00 and gave the company a “market perform” rating in a report on Friday, January 31st. The Goldman Sachs Group cut Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. from a “buy” rating to a “neutral” rating and set a $313.00 price objective for the company. in a research report on Monday, November 25th. TD Cowen upgraded Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating and boosted their price objective for the company from $295.00 to $377.00 in a research report on Friday, January 10th. Wells Fargo & Company cut their price objective on Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. from $344.00 to $341.00 and set an “overweight” rating for the company in a research report on Friday, January 31st. Finally, Barclays boosted their price objective on Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. from $300.00 to $308.00 and gave the company an “equal weight” rating in a research report on Thursday, November 21st. Two investment analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, six have given a hold rating and six have issued a buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat, Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. currently has an average rating of “Hold” and an average price target of $307.00.

Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. Stock Up 1.2 %

Shares of NYSE:AJG opened at $341.70 on Tuesday. The company has a quick ratio of 1.51, a current ratio of 1.51 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.63. The business has a fifty day moving average of $304.08 and a two-hundred day moving average of $295.63. The stock has a market cap of $87.03 billion, a P/E ratio of 52.41 and a beta of 0.77. Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. has a 52-week low of $230.08 and a 52-week high of $343.21.

Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. (NYSE:AJG) last issued its earnings results on Thursday, January 30th. The financial services provider reported $2.13 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $2.03 by $0.10. Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. had a return on equity of 16.47% and a net margin of 12.70%. On average, research analysts expect 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 announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, March 21st. Shareholders of record on Friday, March 7th will be issued a $0.65 dividend. This is a boost from Arthur J. Gallagher & Co.’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.60. This represents a $2.60 annualized dividend and a yield of 0.76%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, March 7th. Arthur J. Gallagher & Co.’s dividend payout ratio is presently 39.88%.

Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. Company Profile

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 business segments: Brokerage, Risk Management, and Corporate. The Brokerage segment consists of retail and wholesale insurance brokerage operations.