NewEdge Advisors LLC Sells 4,865 Shares of Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. $AJG

NewEdge Advisors LLC reduced its holdings in Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. (NYSE:AJG) by 11.3% in the first quarter, HoldingsChannel.com reports. The institutional investor owned 38,225 shares of the financial services provider’s stock after selling 4,865 shares during the period. NewEdge Advisors LLC’s holdings in Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. were worth $8,279,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Other hedge funds have also recently made changes to their positions in the company. First Nebraska Trust Co bought a new stake in Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. during the first quarter worth approximately $2,946,000. Carlson Capital L.P. purchased a new position in shares of Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. in the 1st quarter worth approximately $347,000. Allen Capital Group LLC increased its position in shares of Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. by 14.0% during the 1st quarter. Allen Capital Group LLC now owns 2,161 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $468,000 after purchasing an additional 266 shares during the last quarter. Glenmede Trust Co. NA raised its holdings in Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. by 166.2% during the 1st quarter. Glenmede Trust Co. NA now owns 25,700 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $5,566,000 after buying an additional 16,044 shares during the period. Finally, Axiom Investment Management LLC bought a new stake in Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. in the first quarter worth $28,000. 85.53% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. Stock Performance

Shares of NYSE:AJG opened at $247.59 on Monday. The firm’s 50 day simple moving average is $236.28 and its 200-day simple moving average is $224.52. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.50, a quick ratio of 1.05 and a current ratio of 1.05. Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. has a one year low of $190.75 and a one year high of $313.55. The firm has a market cap of $63.46 billion, a PE ratio of 41.06, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.28 and a beta of 0.50.

Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. (NYSE:AJG) last posted its earnings results on Thursday, July 30th. The financial services provider reported $2.84 EPS for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $2.81 by $0.03. The business had revenue of $3.95 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $4.01 billion. Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. had a net margin of 9.96% and a return on equity of 13.28%. The company’s revenue for the quarter was up 24.3% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter last year, the firm posted $2.33 EPS. As a group, equities analysts predict that Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. will post 13.27 EPS for the current year.

Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. Dividend Announcement

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, September 18th. Investors of record on Tuesday, September 8th will be given a dividend of $0.70 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Tuesday, September 8th. This represents a $2.80 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 1.1%. Arthur J. Gallagher & Co.’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 46.43%.

Insider Transactions at Arthur J. Gallagher & Co.

In other Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. news, CAO Richard C. Cary sold 3,000 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, June 2nd. The shares were sold at an average price of $206.00, for a total value of $618,000.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief accounting officer directly owned 47,819 shares in the company, valued at approximately $9,850,714. The trade was a 5.90% 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. 1.40% of the stock is owned by company insiders.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several equities analysts recently commented on AJG shares. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods upped their price target on shares of Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. from $261.00 to $271.00 and gave the company a “market perform” rating in a report on Friday, July 31st. Weiss Ratings upgraded Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. from a “hold (c-)” rating to a “hold (c)” rating in a research report on Monday, July 13th. Morgan Stanley increased their price target on Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. from $240.00 to $255.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a report on Monday, July 6th. Mizuho raised their price target on Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. from $287.00 to $300.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a research note on Friday, July 31st. Finally, Jefferies Financial Group raised Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating and upped their price objective for the company from $235.00 to $265.00 in a research report on Thursday, June 11th. Thirteen research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and five have given a Hold rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the company presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $287.65.

Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. Company Profile

Arthur J. Gallagher & Co is a global insurance brokerage and risk management firm headquartered in Rolling Meadows, Illinois. Founded in 1927 by Arthur J. Gallagher, the company has grown from a regional broker into an international professional services organization that arranges insurance, provides consulting and designs risk-transfer solutions for commercial, industrial, public sector and individual clients.

The company’s core activities include property and casualty insurance brokerage, employee benefits consulting and administration, and a range of risk management services.