Financial Advocates Investment Management Has $1.03 Million Stock Position in Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. (NYSE:AJG)

Financial Advocates Investment Management raised its stake in Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. (NYSE:AJG) by 1.6% in the third quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The firm owned 3,647 shares of the financial services provider’s stock after purchasing an additional 59 shares during the period. Financial Advocates Investment Management’s holdings in Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. were worth $1,026,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Several other institutional investors and hedge funds also recently made changes to their positions in AJG. Janus Henderson Group PLC lifted its position in shares of Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. by 180.6% in the 1st quarter. Janus Henderson Group PLC now owns 1,228,266 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $307,076,000 after acquiring an additional 790,467 shares during the period. Capital International Investors lifted its position in Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. by 7.0% in the first quarter. Capital International Investors now owns 11,050,941 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $2,763,177,000 after purchasing an additional 727,325 shares during the period. The Manufacturers Life Insurance Company boosted its stake in Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. by 219.6% during the second quarter. The Manufacturers Life Insurance Company now owns 1,043,769 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $270,660,000 after buying an additional 717,221 shares in the last quarter. Capital World Investors increased its holdings in Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. by 9.0% in the 1st quarter. Capital World Investors now owns 4,832,060 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $1,208,208,000 after buying an additional 398,350 shares during the period. Finally, International Assets Investment Management LLC raised its stake in shares of Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. by 29,927.4% in the 3rd quarter. International Assets Investment Management LLC now owns 232,412 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $65,394,000 after buying an additional 231,638 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors own 85.53% of the company’s stock.

Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. Trading Down 0.3 %

Shares of NYSE AJG opened at $280.40 on Friday. Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. has a 1-year low of $218.63 and a 1-year high of $301.04. The company has a current ratio of 1.06, a quick ratio of 1.04 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.64. The company has a 50-day moving average of $288.69 and a two-hundred day moving average of $270.74. The company has a market cap of $61.52 billion, a PE ratio of 53.41, a P/E/G ratio of 2.42 and a beta of 0.72.

Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. (NYSE:AJG) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, October 24th. The financial services provider reported $2.26 EPS for the quarter, meeting analysts’ consensus estimates of $2.26. The firm had revenue of $2.77 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $2.78 billion. Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. had a return on equity of 19.12% and a net margin of 10.40%. The business’s quarterly revenue was up 12.8% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period last year, the company earned $2.00 EPS. As a group, equities analysts expect that Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. will post 10.13 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. Announces Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, December 20th. Investors of record on Friday, December 6th will be given a $0.60 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, December 6th. This represents a $2.40 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 0.86%. Arthur J. Gallagher & Co.’s payout ratio is 45.71%.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

AJG has been the topic of a number of analyst reports. Bank Of America (Bofa) upped their target price on shares of Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. from $255.00 to $265.00 and gave the company an “underperform” rating in a research note on Friday, July 26th. Bank of America upped their price objective on Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. from $271.00 to $293.00 and gave the company an “underperform” rating in a research note on Thursday, October 10th. Barclays initiated coverage on Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. in a research report on Wednesday, September 4th. They set an “equal weight” rating and a $300.00 target price for the company. Royal Bank of Canada increased their price objective on Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. from $310.00 to $320.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a research note on Friday, September 20th. Finally, Wells Fargo & Company boosted their target price on shares of Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. from $309.00 to $315.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research note on Thursday, October 10th. Three equities research analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, seven have issued a hold rating and four have assigned a buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat.com, Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. presently has an average rating of “Hold” and an average price target of $287.00.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other news, VP Christopher E. Mead sold 2,800 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Monday, October 28th. The shares were sold at an average price of $287.00, for a total value of $803,600.00. Following the transaction, the vice president now owns 14,674 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $4,211,438. This trade represents a 0.00 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this hyperlink. In other news, CFO Douglas K. Howell sold 7,000 shares of the stock in a transaction on Thursday, September 19th. The stock was sold at an average price of $284.68, for a total value of $1,992,760.00. Following the transaction, the chief financial officer now owns 75,963 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $21,625,146.84. This represents a 0.00 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available through this hyperlink. Also, VP Christopher E. Mead sold 2,800 shares of Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. stock in a transaction on Monday, October 28th. The stock was sold at an average price of $287.00, for a total value of $803,600.00. Following the sale, the vice president now directly owns 14,674 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $4,211,438. This trade represents a 0.00 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last three months, insiders sold 38,900 shares of company stock valued at $11,136,680. 1.60% of the stock is currently owned by insiders.

About Arthur J. Gallagher & Co.

Arthur J. Gallagher & Co, together with its subsidiaries, provides insurance and reinsurance brokerage, consulting, and third-party property/casualty claims settlement and administration services to entities and individuals worldwide. It operates in Brokerage and Risk Management segments. The Brokerage segment offers retail and wholesale insurance and reinsurance brokerage services; assists retail brokers and other non-affiliated brokers in the placement of specialized and hard-to-place insurance; and acts as a brokerage wholesaler, managing general agent, and managing general underwriter for distributing specialized insurance coverages to underwriting enterprises.