Ritholtz Wealth Management Increases Stake in Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. (NYSE:AJG)

Ritholtz Wealth Management boosted its stake in Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. (NYSE:AJG) by 1.3% during the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 8,658 shares of the financial services provider’s stock after purchasing an additional 110 shares during the quarter. Ritholtz Wealth Management’s holdings in Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. were worth $1,947,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Other hedge funds and other institutional investors also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Beaird Harris Wealth Management LLC increased its position in Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. by 175.6% in the third quarter. Beaird Harris Wealth Management LLC now owns 113 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $26,000 after purchasing an additional 72 shares during the last quarter. Annis Gardner Whiting Capital Advisors LLC purchased a new position in Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. in the third quarter worth about $28,000. SJS Investment Consulting Inc. raised its position in Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. by 460.9% during the fourth quarter. SJS Investment Consulting Inc. now owns 129 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $29,000 after purchasing an additional 106 shares during the period. VisionPoint Advisory Group LLC purchased a new position in shares of Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. in the 2nd quarter worth approximately $30,000. Finally, Milestone Investment Advisors LLC bought a new position in shares of Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. during the 1st quarter valued at approximately $38,000. 85.53% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. Price Performance

Shares of AJG stock traded up $2.27 during trading hours on Thursday, hitting $250.06. 960,704 shares of the company’s stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 888,885. The firm has a market cap of $54.59 billion, a P/E ratio of 56.32, a P/E/G ratio of 2.36 and a beta of 0.68. Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. has a fifty-two week low of $186.88 and a fifty-two week high of $256.10. The firm has a 50 day moving average of $242.65 and a two-hundred day moving average of $237.63. The company has a quick ratio of 1.03, a current ratio of 1.03 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.65.

Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. (NYSE:AJG) last announced its earnings results on Thursday, January 25th. The financial services provider reported $1.85 EPS for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.83 by $0.02. The business had revenue of $2.39 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $2.40 billion. Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. had a return on equity of 18.49% and a net margin of 9.63%. During the same quarter in the prior year, the firm earned $1.54 earnings per share. Sell-side analysts forecast that Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. will post 10.09 EPS for the current year.

Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. Increases Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, March 15th. Investors of record on Friday, March 1st were issued a $0.60 dividend. The ex-dividend date was Thursday, February 29th. This represents a $2.40 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 0.96%. This is a positive change from Arthur J. Gallagher & Co.’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.55. Arthur J. Gallagher & Co.’s dividend payout ratio is currently 54.05%.

Insider Buying and Selling

In related news, VP Scott R. Hudson sold 15,000 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, March 12th. The stock was sold at an average price of $255.06, for a total value of $3,825,900.00. Following the transaction, the vice president now directly owns 96,709 shares in the company, valued at $24,666,597.54. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this hyperlink. In related news, VP Scott R. Hudson sold 15,000 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, March 12th. The shares were sold at an average price of $255.06, for a total value of $3,825,900.00. Following the sale, the vice president now directly owns 96,709 shares in the company, valued at approximately $24,666,597.54. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through this link. Also, Director David S. Johnson sold 500 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, February 6th. The stock was 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 of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $10,540,693.52. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Over the last ninety days, insiders sold 29,016 shares of company stock worth $7,176,180. Insiders own 1.60% of the company’s stock.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of research analysts have weighed in on AJG shares. Raymond James cut shares of Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. from a “strong-buy” rating to a “market perform” rating in a research report on Tuesday, December 12th. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods cut their target price on Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. from $249.00 to $246.00 and set an “underperform” rating on the stock in a research note on Friday, January 26th. TD Cowen assumed coverage on shares of Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. in a report on Wednesday, January 10th. They issued a “market perform” rating and a $249.00 price target on the stock. Jefferies Financial Group lowered Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating and cut their price objective for the company from $279.00 to $233.00 in a report on Tuesday, January 9th. Finally, Royal Bank of Canada increased their price target on Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. from $270.00 to $282.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a research report on Friday, March 22nd. One analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, five have assigned a hold rating and six have issued a buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat, the stock currently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $255.77.

About Arthur J. Gallagher & Co.

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.