Romano Brothers AND Company Cuts Stake in Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. (NYSE:AJG)

Romano Brothers AND Company reduced its holdings in shares of Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. (NYSE:AJG) by 1.3% during the 2nd quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The firm owned 15,464 shares of the financial services provider’s stock after selling 200 shares during the period. Romano Brothers AND Company’s holdings in Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. were worth $3,395,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Several other large investors have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the business. Principal Financial Group Inc. grew its holdings in Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. by 2.3% during the 1st quarter. Principal Financial Group Inc. now owns 280,001 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $53,567,000 after acquiring an additional 6,290 shares in the last quarter. Compagnie Lombard Odier SCmA acquired a new position in Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. during the 1st quarter worth approximately $29,000. Trust Co. of Vermont grew its holdings in Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. by 52.4% during the 1st quarter. Trust Co. of Vermont now owns 1,448 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $277,000 after acquiring an additional 498 shares in the last quarter. Townsquare Capital LLC grew its holdings in Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. by 17.8% during the 4th quarter. Townsquare Capital LLC now owns 6,702 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $1,263,000 after acquiring an additional 1,012 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Wrapmanager Inc. grew its holdings in Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. by 7.5% during the 1st quarter. Wrapmanager Inc. now owns 4,305 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $824,000 after acquiring an additional 302 shares in the last quarter. 81.15% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. Stock Performance

Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. stock traded up $1.37 during trading hours on Tuesday, reaching $234.48. 393,152 shares of the stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 842,391. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.58, a quick ratio of 1.04 and a current ratio of 1.04. Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. has a 52-week low of $167.93 and a 52-week high of $235.11. The firm’s 50 day moving average is $222.92 and its 200 day moving average is $209.99. The stock has a market cap of $50.60 billion, a P/E ratio of 45.48, a P/E/G ratio of 2.16 and a beta of 0.69.

Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. (NYSE:AJG) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, July 27th. The financial services provider reported $1.90 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.86 by $0.04. Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. had a net margin of 12.11% and a return on equity of 18.65%. The company had revenue of $2.44 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $2.36 billion. During the same period last year, the firm earned $1.70 EPS. The company’s revenue for the quarter was up 19.5% on a year-over-year basis. Analysts predict that Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. will post 8.74 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. Announces Dividend

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, September 15th. Shareholders of record on Friday, September 1st were issued a dividend of $0.55 per share. The ex-dividend date was Thursday, August 31st. This represents a $2.20 annualized dividend and a yield of 0.94%. Arthur J. Gallagher & Co.’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 42.88%.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several research analysts have commented on AJG shares. VNET Group reiterated a “maintains” rating on shares of Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. in a report on Tuesday, May 23rd. StockNews.com began coverage on shares of Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. in a report on Thursday, August 17th. They issued a “hold” rating for the company. Argus upped their target price on shares of Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. from $232.00 to $264.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a report on Wednesday, August 30th. Evercore ISI upped their target price on shares of Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. from $231.00 to $233.00 in a report on Friday, June 16th. Finally, Raymond James increased their price target on shares of Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. from $255.00 to $265.00 and gave the stock a “strong-buy” rating in a research note on Monday. Four equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, six have issued a buy rating and one has given a strong buy rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat, Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $235.31.

Insider Buying and Selling at Arthur J. Gallagher & Co.

In other Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. news, VP Christopher E. Mead sold 3,300 shares of the stock in a transaction on Friday, August 25th. The stock was sold at an average price of $226.14, for a total transaction of $746,262.00. Following the sale, the vice president now owns 10,816 shares in the company, valued at approximately $2,445,930.24. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available through this link. In related news, CFO Douglas K. Howell sold 4,588 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated Monday, August 28th. The shares were sold at an average price of $228.92, for a total value of $1,050,284.96. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief financial officer now owns 127,942 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $29,288,482.64. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at the SEC website. Also, VP Christopher E. Mead sold 3,300 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Friday, August 25th. The shares were sold at an average price of $226.14, for a total transaction of $746,262.00. Following the transaction, the vice president now directly owns 10,816 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $2,445,930.24. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders have sold 37,888 shares of company stock valued at $8,576,247 over the last quarter. Corporate insiders own 1.40% of the company’s stock.

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 businesses and organizations 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.