Marks Group Wealth Management Inc Reduces Stock Holdings in Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. (NYSE:AJG)

Marks Group Wealth Management Inc cut its stake in Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. (NYSE:AJG) by 2.4% in the 4th quarter, according to its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 33,204 shares of the financial services provider’s stock after selling 820 shares during the quarter. Marks Group Wealth Management Inc’s holdings in Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. were worth $7,467,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

A number of other large investors have also recently modified their holdings of AJG. FMR LLC boosted its position in shares of Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. by 8.1% during the third quarter. FMR LLC now owns 9,664,117 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $2,202,742,000 after purchasing an additional 726,485 shares in the last quarter. Morgan Stanley grew its position in shares of Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. by 0.6% in the 3rd quarter. Morgan Stanley now owns 6,209,557 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $1,415,345,000 after buying an additional 34,999 shares during the period. JPMorgan Chase & Co. increased its stake in shares of Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. by 1.9% in the 3rd quarter. JPMorgan Chase & Co. now owns 5,000,975 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $1,139,872,000 after acquiring an additional 90,842 shares in the last quarter. WCM Investment Management LLC lifted its position in Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. by 0.5% during the 4th quarter. WCM Investment Management LLC now owns 2,610,081 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $583,249,000 after acquiring an additional 13,208 shares during the period. Finally, Invesco Ltd. grew its holdings in Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. by 3.6% in the third quarter. Invesco Ltd. now owns 2,572,182 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $586,277,000 after purchasing an additional 88,861 shares during the period. Institutional investors own 85.53% of the company’s stock.

Insider Activity at Arthur J. Gallagher & Co.

In other news, VP Joel D. Cavaness sold 1,207 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Monday, March 18th. The stock was sold at an average price of $255.20, for a total value of $308,026.40. Following the transaction, the vice president now owns 2,023 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $516,269.60. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this link. In related news, VP Joel D. Cavaness sold 1,207 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, March 18th. The shares were sold at an average price of $255.20, for a total value of $308,026.40. Following the completion of the sale, the vice president now directly owns 2,023 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $516,269.60. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this hyperlink. Also, Director David S. Johnson sold 500 shares of Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, February 6th. The shares were sold at an average price of $234.04, for a total transaction of $117,020.00. Following the transaction, the director now directly owns 45,038 shares in the company, valued at approximately $10,540,693.52. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Over the last three months, insiders have sold 29,016 shares of company stock worth $7,176,180. Corporate insiders own 1.60% of the company’s stock.

Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. Stock Performance

Shares of AJG stock traded up $0.95 on Monday, reaching $237.52. The stock had a trading volume of 669,482 shares, compared to its average volume of 873,225. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.65, a quick ratio of 1.03 and a current ratio of 1.03. Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. has a 1 year low of $198.52 and a 1 year high of $256.10. The stock has a market cap of $51.85 billion, a P/E ratio of 53.50, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.23 and a beta of 0.68. The company has a 50 day simple moving average of $244.42 and a 200 day simple moving average of $238.91.

Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. (NYSE:AJG) last announced its earnings results on Thursday, January 25th. The financial services provider reported $1.85 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $1.83 by $0.02. Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. had a return on equity of 18.49% and a net margin of 9.63%. The business had revenue of $2.39 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $2.40 billion. During the same period last year, the firm posted $1.54 earnings per share. Equities research analysts expect that Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. will post 10.06 EPS for the current year.

Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. Increases Dividend

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, March 15th. Stockholders of record on Friday, March 1st were paid a $0.60 dividend. This represents a $2.40 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 1.01%. This is a positive change from Arthur J. Gallagher & Co.’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.55. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Thursday, February 29th. Arthur J. Gallagher & Co.’s dividend payout ratio is 54.05%.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of analysts have recently commented on the company. TD Cowen boosted their price target on Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. from $249.00 to $273.00 and gave the stock a “hold” rating in a research report on Tuesday, April 2nd. Royal Bank of Canada increased their target price on Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. from $270.00 to $282.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a research note on Friday, March 22nd. Truist Financial reaffirmed a “hold” rating and issued a $255.00 price target (down previously from $280.00) on shares of Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. in a research report on Wednesday, April 10th. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods cut their price objective on shares of Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. from $246.00 to $240.00 and set an “underperform” rating on the stock in a research report on Wednesday, April 10th. Finally, Jefferies Financial Group cut shares of Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating and decreased their target price for the stock from $279.00 to $233.00 in a report on Tuesday, January 9th. One analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, six have assigned a hold rating and five have assigned a buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat, Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. currently has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $255.23.

Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. Company Profile

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.