Zurcher Kantonalbank Zurich Cantonalbank Cuts Stock Position in Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. (NYSE:AJG)

Zurcher Kantonalbank Zurich Cantonalbank lowered its holdings in Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. (NYSE:AJG) by 0.2% in the second quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the SEC. The institutional investor owned 39,012 shares of the financial services provider’s stock after selling 81 shares during the period. Zurcher Kantonalbank Zurich Cantonalbank’s holdings in Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. were worth $10,116,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

A number of other hedge funds also recently added to or reduced their stakes in AJG. Capital International Investors grew its position in shares of Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. by 7.0% during the first quarter. Capital International Investors now owns 11,050,941 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $2,763,177,000 after buying an additional 727,325 shares in the last quarter. Norges Bank acquired a new position in Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. during the 4th quarter worth approximately $1,308,316,000. Capital World Investors increased its position in shares of Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. by 9.0% in the 1st quarter. Capital World Investors now owns 4,832,060 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $1,208,208,000 after purchasing an additional 398,350 shares during the last quarter. WCM Investment Management LLC raised its holdings in shares of Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. by 0.6% in the 1st quarter. WCM Investment Management LLC now owns 2,624,447 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $656,217,000 after purchasing an additional 14,366 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Boston Partners lifted its position in shares of Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. by 2.5% during the 1st quarter. Boston Partners now owns 1,611,299 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $402,206,000 after purchasing an additional 38,886 shares during the last quarter. 85.53% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Insider Activity

In other Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. 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 value of $1,799,520.10. Following the transaction, the general counsel now directly owns 30,053 shares in the company, valued at approximately $8,536,855.18. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available through the SEC website. In related news, CFO Douglas K. Howell sold 8,710 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on Thursday, August 1st. The stock was sold at an average price of $285.07, for a total value of $2,482,959.70. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief financial officer now directly owns 75,963 shares in the company, valued at $21,654,772.41. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through the SEC website. Also, General Counsel Walter D. Bay sold 6,335 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, July 30th. The stock was sold at an average price of $284.06, for a total value of $1,799,520.10. Following the completion of the sale, the general counsel now directly owns 30,053 shares in the company, valued at $8,536,855.18. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders have sold 48,348 shares of company stock worth $13,342,910 over the last three months. 1.60% of the stock is currently owned by corporate insiders.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several research firms recently weighed in on AJG. Argus boosted their target price on Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. from $264.00 to $270.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research note on Tuesday, May 14th. Truist Financial boosted their price objective on shares of Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. from $255.00 to $265.00 and gave the stock a “hold” rating in a research report on Friday, July 26th. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods increased their target price on shares of Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. from $241.00 to $252.00 and gave the company an “underperform” rating in a research report on Friday, July 26th. UBS Group upped their price objective on shares of Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. from $260.00 to $292.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a research note on Wednesday, July 31st. Finally, Royal Bank of Canada lifted their target price on Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. from $290.00 to $310.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a research report on Friday, July 26th. Three analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, seven have given a hold rating and six have given a buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the company presently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and a consensus target price of $275.38.

Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. Price Performance

AJG stock traded up $0.61 during trading on Thursday, reaching $291.48. 374,964 shares of the company were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 826,429. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.67, a quick ratio of 1.05 and a current ratio of 1.04. The stock’s 50 day moving average price is $275.21 and its 200 day moving average price is $256.69. Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. has a 52-week low of $218.63 and a 52-week high of $294.00. The company has a market cap of $63.69 billion, a P/E ratio of 59.00, a PEG ratio of 2.41 and a beta of 0.72.

Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. (NYSE:AJG) last posted its earnings results on Thursday, July 25th. The financial services provider reported $2.26 EPS for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $2.24 by $0.02. Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. had a return on equity of 19.25% and a net margin of 10.41%. The company had revenue of $2.73 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $2.77 billion. During the same period in the previous year, the business earned $1.90 earnings per share. Arthur J. Gallagher & Co.’s quarterly revenue was up 14.3% compared to the same quarter last year. As a group, analysts predict that Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. will post 10.15 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. Announces Dividend

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, September 20th. Stockholders of record on Friday, September 6th will be issued a $0.60 dividend. The ex-dividend date is Friday, September 6th. This represents a $2.40 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 0.82%. Arthur J. Gallagher & Co.’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 48.58%.

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.