Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. (NYSE:AJG) Holdings Boosted by Kestra Private Wealth Services LLC

Kestra Private Wealth Services LLC raised its stake in shares of Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. (NYSE:AJG) by 84.1% in the fourth quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The firm owned 4,927 shares of the financial services provider’s stock after buying an additional 2,251 shares during the period. Kestra Private Wealth Services LLC’s holdings in Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. were worth $1,108,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Several other institutional investors have also made changes to their positions in the company. McGlone Suttner Wealth Management Inc. raised its holdings in Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. by 4.0% during the fourth quarter. McGlone Suttner Wealth Management Inc. now owns 2,286 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $514,000 after buying an additional 88 shares in the last quarter. Fidelis Capital Partners LLC lifted its position in shares of Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. by 3.7% in the 3rd quarter. Fidelis Capital Partners LLC now owns 1,325 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $302,000 after acquiring an additional 47 shares during the period. Mackenzie Financial Corp increased its holdings in Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. by 16.1% in the 4th quarter. Mackenzie Financial Corp now owns 112,087 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $25,206,000 after buying an additional 15,528 shares during the period. Louisiana State Employees Retirement System acquired a new stake in Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. during the fourth quarter valued at approximately $2,946,000. Finally, Legato Capital Management LLC grew its position in Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. by 43.7% in the fourth quarter. Legato Capital Management LLC now owns 13,495 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $3,035,000 after acquiring an additional 4,102 shares during the period. 85.53% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. Price Performance

Shares of AJG stock opened at $238.62 on Friday. The firm has a market capitalization of $52.09 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 48.30, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.23 and a beta of 0.69. Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. has a 12-month low of $198.52 and a 12-month high of $256.10. The company has a quick ratio of 1.03, a current ratio of 1.05 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.70. The firm has a fifty day moving average of $243.83 and a 200-day moving average of $239.00.

Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. (NYSE:AJG) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, April 25th. The financial services provider reported $3.49 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $3.41 by $0.08. The company had revenue of $3.22 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $3.18 billion. Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. had a return on equity of 18.94% and a net margin of 10.27%. The company’s revenue for the quarter was up 20.4% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period in the prior year, the company earned $3.03 earnings per share. On average, equities research analysts forecast that Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. will post 10.08 earnings per share for the current year.

Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. Dividend Announcement

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, June 21st. Shareholders of record on Friday, June 7th will be paid a $0.60 dividend. This represents a $2.40 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 1.01%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, June 7th. Arthur J. Gallagher & Co.’s payout ratio is currently 48.58%.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several research analysts have recently commented on the company. Jefferies Financial Group downgraded Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating and reduced their target price for the stock from $279.00 to $233.00 in a report on Tuesday, January 9th. Royal Bank of Canada increased their target price on Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. from $270.00 to $282.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a report on Friday, March 22nd. Truist Financial reiterated a “hold” rating and set a $255.00 price target (down previously from $280.00) on shares of Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. in a research report on Wednesday, April 10th. TD Cowen raised their price objective on shares of Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. from $249.00 to $273.00 and gave the company a “hold” rating in a research report on Tuesday, April 2nd. Finally, Piper Sandler cut their target price on shares of Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. from $253.00 to $252.00 and set a “neutral” rating on the stock in a research report on Monday, April 29th. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, six have given a hold rating and five have given a buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat, Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. presently has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus target price of $255.31.

Insider Activity

In related news, VP Joel D. Cavaness sold 1,207 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction on Monday, March 18th. The shares were sold at an average price of $255.20, for a total value of $308,026.40. Following the sale, the vice president now directly owns 2,023 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $516,269.60. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this hyperlink. In other news, VP Joel D. Cavaness sold 1,207 shares of Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, March 18th. The shares were sold at an average price of $255.20, for a total value of $308,026.40. Following the sale, the vice president now directly owns 2,023 shares in the company, valued at $516,269.60. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through the SEC website. Also, Director David S. Johnson sold 500 shares of the stock in a transaction on 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 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. Insiders sold 29,016 shares of company stock worth $7,176,180 over the last quarter. 1.60% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

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.