WCM Investment Management LLC Sells 13,875 Shares of Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. (NYSE:AJG)

WCM Investment Management LLC lessened its stake in Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. (NYSE:AJG) by 0.6% during the fourth quarter, according to its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The firm owned 2,328,997 shares of the financial services provider’s stock after selling 13,875 shares during the quarter. Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. makes up approximately 1.6% of WCM Investment Management LLC’s portfolio, making the stock its 27th biggest holding. WCM Investment Management LLC owned 0.93% of Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. worth $662,507,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Other hedge funds also recently modified their holdings of the company. Empowered Funds LLC grew its position in shares of Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. by 11.6% during the 4th quarter. Empowered Funds LLC now owns 9,129 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $2,591,000 after purchasing an additional 949 shares in the last quarter. Wilmington Savings Fund Society FSB grew its position in shares of Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. by 104.9% during the 4th quarter. Wilmington Savings Fund Society FSB now owns 3,111 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $883,000 after purchasing an additional 1,593 shares in the last quarter. Kingsview Wealth Management LLC grew its position in shares of Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. by 13.8% during the 4th quarter. Kingsview Wealth Management LLC now owns 982 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $279,000 after purchasing an additional 119 shares in the last quarter. Apollon Wealth Management LLC grew its position in shares of Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. by 4.4% during the 4th quarter. Apollon Wealth Management LLC now owns 5,773 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $1,639,000 after purchasing an additional 245 shares in the last quarter. Finally, EULAV Asset Management grew its position in shares of Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. by 32.3% during the 4th quarter. EULAV Asset Management now owns 16,400 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $4,655,000 after purchasing an additional 4,000 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors own 85.53% of the company’s stock.

Insider Activity

In related news, Director Sherry S. Barrat sold 2,500 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred 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 sale, the director now owns 16,533 shares in the company, valued at approximately $5,031,487.89. This trade represents a 13.14 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which can be accessed through the SEC website. Also, VP Christopher E. Mead sold 2,900 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, February 3rd. The stock was sold at an average price of $302.61, for a total transaction of $877,569.00. Following the completion of the sale, the vice president now owns 14,674 shares in the company, valued at $4,440,499.14. This represents a 16.50 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Corporate insiders own 1.60% of the company’s stock.

Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. Price Performance

Shares of AJG opened at $322.42 on Friday. The stock has a market cap of $80.54 billion, a PE ratio of 49.45 and a beta of 0.77. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.63, a quick ratio of 1.06 and a current ratio of 1.51. Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. has a fifty-two week low of $230.08 and a fifty-two week high of $323.55. The firm’s 50-day simple moving average is $292.02 and its two-hundred day simple moving average is $290.26.

Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. (NYSE:AJG) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, January 30th. The financial services provider reported $2.13 earnings per share for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $2.03 by $0.10. Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. had a net margin of 12.70% and a return on equity of 16.47%. Analysts anticipate that Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. will post 11.4 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. Increases Dividend

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, March 21st. Stockholders of record on Friday, March 7th will be issued a dividend of $0.65 per share. This is a boost from Arthur J. Gallagher & Co.’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.60. The ex-dividend date is Friday, March 7th. This represents a $2.60 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 0.81%. Arthur J. Gallagher & Co.’s dividend payout ratio is presently 36.81%.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

AJG has been the subject of several research reports. Wells Fargo & Company cut their target price on shares of 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. Truist Financial upped their target price on shares of Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. from $275.00 to $290.00 and gave the stock a “hold” rating in a research report on Friday, January 31st. Barclays upped their target price on shares of Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. from $300.00 to $308.00 and gave the stock an “equal weight” rating in a research report on Thursday, November 21st. The Goldman Sachs Group downgraded shares of Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. from a “buy” rating to a “neutral” rating and set a $313.00 price target for the company. in a research note on Monday, November 25th. Finally, Royal Bank of Canada boosted their price target on shares of Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. from $320.00 to $340.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a research note on Friday, January 31st. Two equities research analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, six have issued a hold rating and six have assigned a buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat.com, the stock currently has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus target price of $307.00.

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