Kentucky Retirement Systems Cuts Stock Holdings in Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. (NYSE:AJG)

Kentucky Retirement Systems cut its holdings in shares of Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. (NYSE:AJG) by 1.4% during the fourth quarter, Holdings Channel.com reports. The firm owned 15,056 shares of the financial services provider’s stock after selling 208 shares during the period. Kentucky Retirement Systems’ holdings in Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. were worth $4,274,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Other institutional investors also recently bought and sold shares of the company. Valley National Advisers Inc. bought a new position in Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. in the fourth quarter worth about $25,000. Pin Oak Investment Advisors Inc. raised its stake in shares of Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. by 543.8% during the 3rd quarter. Pin Oak Investment Advisors Inc. now owns 103 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $28,000 after acquiring an additional 87 shares in the last quarter. Rakuten Securities Inc. lifted its position in Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. by 580.0% during 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 last quarter. E Fund Management Hong Kong Co. Ltd. acquired a new stake in Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. in the fourth quarter valued at approximately $35,000. Finally, Financial Life Planners purchased a new position in Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. in the fourth quarter worth $36,000. 85.53% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. Stock Performance

NYSE AJG opened at $325.28 on Friday. The firm has a market capitalization of $82.85 billion, a P/E ratio of 49.89 and a beta of 0.77. The stock has a 50-day simple moving average of $297.14 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $293.00. 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 $329.60.

Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. (NYSE:AJG) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, January 30th. The financial services provider reported $2.13 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates 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, equities analysts forecast that Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. will post 11.54 earnings per share for the current year.

Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. Increases Dividend

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, March 21st. Investors of record on Friday, March 7th will be given a dividend of $0.65 per share. This represents a $2.60 annualized dividend and a yield of 0.80%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, March 7th. This is a positive change from Arthur J. Gallagher & Co.’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.60. Arthur J. Gallagher & Co.’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 36.81%.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of research firms have recently weighed in on AJG. Piper Sandler raised Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. from a “neutral” rating to an “overweight” rating and raised their price objective for the stock from $285.00 to $315.00 in a research report on Wednesday, January 8th. BMO Capital Markets boosted their price target on Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. from $312.00 to $325.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a research note on Tuesday, November 12th. Truist Financial upped their price objective on shares of Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. from $275.00 to $290.00 and gave the company a “hold” rating in a report on Friday, January 31st. The Goldman Sachs Group cut shares of Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. from a “buy” rating to a “neutral” rating and set a $313.00 target price for the company. in a research note on Monday, November 25th. Finally, Barclays raised their price target on shares of Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. from $300.00 to $308.00 and gave the stock an “equal weight” rating in a report on Thursday, November 21st. Two analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, six have given a hold rating and six have issued a buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the company presently has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $307.00.

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

In related news, VP Christopher E. Mead sold 2,900 shares of Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. stock in a transaction dated Monday, February 3rd. The stock was sold at an average price of $302.61, for a total value of $877,569.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the vice president now owns 14,674 shares in the company, valued at $4,440,499.14. The trade was a 16.50 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at the SEC website. Also, Director David S. Johnson sold 325 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, February 12th. The stock was sold at an average price of $322.06, for a total value of $104,669.50. Following the transaction, the director now owns 44,783 shares in the company, valued at $14,422,812.98. This represents a 0.72 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Over the last quarter, insiders sold 15,725 shares of company stock valued at $4,972,964. Corporate insiders own 1.60% of the company’s stock.

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.