Aviva PLC Decreases Stake in Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. $AJG

Aviva PLC cut its holdings in shares of Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. (NYSE:AJG) by 34.9% in the 2nd quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The institutional investor owned 263,000 shares of the financial services provider’s stock after selling 141,061 shares during the period. Aviva PLC’s holdings in Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. were worth $84,192,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Several other institutional investors have also modified their holdings of AJG. AlphaQuest LLC acquired a new stake in Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. during the 1st quarter valued at approximately $33,000. Saudi Central Bank purchased a new position in shares of Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. during the 1st quarter valued at approximately $34,000. J.Safra Asset Management Corp grew its position in shares of Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. by 209.1% during the second quarter. J.Safra Asset Management Corp now owns 102 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $32,000 after buying an additional 69 shares in the last quarter. Motco increased its stake in shares of Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. by 700.0% in the first quarter. Motco now owns 112 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $39,000 after buying an additional 98 shares during the last quarter. Finally, SouthState Corp acquired a new stake in Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. in the first quarter valued at $39,000. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 85.53% of the company’s stock.

Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. Stock Performance

Shares of NYSE AJG opened at $249.75 on Friday. The company has a quick ratio of 1.36, a current ratio of 1.36 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.52. The firm’s 50-day moving average price is $289.46 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $307.23. Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. has a 52-week low of $239.47 and a 52-week high of $351.23. The stock has a market capitalization of $64.04 billion, a P/E ratio of 35.48 and a beta of 0.71.

Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. (NYSE:AJG) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, October 30th. The financial services provider reported $2.32 earnings per share for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $2.51 by ($0.19). The company had revenue of $3.33 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $3.34 billion. Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. had a return on equity of 13.17% and a net margin of 14.54%.The firm’s revenue for the quarter was up 20.2% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter in the previous year, the company posted $2.26 earnings per share. As a group, sell-side analysts forecast that Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. will post 11.54 earnings per share for the current year.

Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. Announces Dividend

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, December 19th. Shareholders of record on Friday, December 5th will be paid a $0.65 dividend. This represents a $2.60 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 1.0%. The ex-dividend date is Friday, December 5th. Arthur J. Gallagher & Co.’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 38.86%.

Analyst Ratings Changes

AJG has been the subject of several recent analyst reports. The Goldman Sachs Group decreased their price objective on shares of Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. from $361.00 to $315.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a report on Friday, October 31st. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods decreased their price target on Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. from $315.00 to $275.00 and set a “market perform” rating for the company in a research note on Friday, October 31st. Weiss Ratings restated a “buy (b-)” rating on shares of Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. in a research note on Wednesday, October 8th. Wells Fargo & Company lifted their target price on Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. from $365.00 to $366.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research report on Wednesday, October 8th. Finally, Cowen reiterated a “buy” rating on shares of Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. in a report on Friday, October 31st. One research analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, nine have issued a Buy rating and eight have assigned a Hold rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat, the company currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $323.73.

Insider Activity

In other Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. news, CFO Douglas K. Howell sold 8,000 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated Monday, September 22nd. The shares were sold at an average price of $299.54, for a total transaction of $2,396,320.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief financial officer directly owned 100,777 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $30,186,742.58. The trade was a 7.35% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available at this hyperlink. Also, VP Scott R. Hudson sold 12,855 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, September 8th. The shares were sold at an average price of $297.60, for a total transaction of $3,825,648.00. Following the completion of the sale, the vice president owned 85,920 shares in the company, valued at $25,569,792. The trade was a 13.01% decrease in their position. Additional details regarding this sale are available in the official SEC disclosure. Over the last quarter, insiders sold 29,855 shares of company stock valued at $8,916,928. 1.60% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. Profile

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