Merrion Investment Management Co LLC Has $1.41 Million Stock Position in Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. (NYSE:AJG)

Merrion Investment Management Co LLC boosted its holdings in shares of Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. (NYSE:AJG) by 6.4% during the 3rd quarter, HoldingsChannel.com reports. The fund owned 5,000 shares of the financial services provider’s stock after purchasing an additional 300 shares during the period. Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. accounts for approximately 0.9% of Merrion Investment Management Co LLC’s portfolio, making the stock its 24th biggest position. Merrion Investment Management Co LLC’s holdings in Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. were worth $1,407,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

A number of other institutional investors and hedge funds have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the business. DZ BANK AG Deutsche Zentral Genossenschafts Bank Frankfurt am Main raised its holdings in shares of Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. by 2.0% during the fourth quarter. DZ BANK AG Deutsche Zentral Genossenschafts Bank Frankfurt am Main now owns 944,101 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $212,309,000 after acquiring an additional 18,399 shares during the period. Quarry LP acquired a new stake in shares of Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. in the 4th quarter valued at about $57,000. Peterson Wealth Management bought a new stake in shares of Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. in the fourth quarter valued at about $296,000. Transcendent Capital Group LLC bought a new position in shares of Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. during the fourth quarter worth about $31,000. Finally, Richardson Financial Services Inc. bought a new position in shares of Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. during the 4th quarter worth approximately $27,000. 85.53% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several equities analysts have recently weighed in on the company. BMO Capital Markets raised their price objective on Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. from $275.00 to $295.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a report on Friday, July 26th. Bank of America increased their price objective on Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. from $271.00 to $293.00 and gave the company an “underperform” rating in a report on Thursday. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods upped their price target on shares of Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. from $241.00 to $252.00 and gave the stock an “underperform” rating in a research report on Friday, July 26th. Jefferies Financial Group lifted their price objective on shares of Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. from $269.00 to $274.00 and gave the company a “hold” rating in a research report on Wednesday. Finally, Barclays began coverage on shares of Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. in a report on Wednesday, September 4th. They issued an “equal weight” rating and a $300.00 target price on the stock. Three research analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, seven have assigned a hold rating and four have issued a buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat, the company has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus target price of $287.00.

Insider Buying and Selling

In related news, General Counsel Walter D. Bay sold 6,335 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, July 30th. The shares were sold at an average price of $284.06, for a total transaction of $1,799,520.10. Following the completion of the sale, the general counsel now owns 30,053 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $8,536,855.18. This represents a 0.00 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available through the SEC website. In other Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. news, General Counsel Walter D. Bay sold 6,335 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, July 30th. The shares were sold at an average price of $284.06, for a total transaction of $1,799,520.10. Following the completion of the transaction, the general counsel now directly owns 30,053 shares in the company, valued at $8,536,855.18. The trade was a 0.00 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this link. Also, CFO Douglas K. Howell sold 7,000 shares of Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. stock in a transaction on Thursday, September 19th. The shares were sold at an average price of $284.68, for a total value of $1,992,760.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief financial officer now owns 75,963 shares in the company, valued at approximately $21,625,146.84. The trade was a 0.00 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Over the last quarter, insiders have sold 44,145 shares of company stock worth $12,622,660. Company insiders own 1.60% of the company’s stock.

Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. Stock Performance

Shares of NYSE AJG opened at $285.70 on Friday. Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. has a one year low of $218.63 and a one year high of $301.04. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.67, a current ratio of 1.04 and a quick ratio of 1.04. The firm has a market cap of $62.60 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 55.58, a P/E/G ratio of 2.53 and a beta of 0.72. The stock’s fifty day moving average price is $288.05 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $265.79.

Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. (NYSE:AJG) last announced its earnings results on Thursday, July 25th. The financial services provider reported $2.26 EPS for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $2.24 by $0.02. The company had revenue of $2.73 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $2.77 billion. Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. had a net margin of 10.41% and a return on equity of 19.25%. The business’s revenue for the quarter was up 14.3% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period last year, the firm earned $1.90 earnings per share. On average, equities analysts forecast that Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. will post 10.11 EPS for the current year.

Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. Announces Dividend

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, September 20th. Stockholders of record on Friday, September 6th were issued a dividend of $0.60 per share. This represents a $2.40 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 0.84%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Friday, September 6th. Arthur J. Gallagher & Co.’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 46.69%.

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.