Christopher Mead Sells 4,000 Shares of Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. (NYSE:AJG) Stock

Key Points

• Christopher Mead sold 4,000 shares of Arthur J. Gallagher at an average price of $227.12 on March 5, receiving $908,480 and reducing his stake by 17.16% to 19,306 shares (≈$4.38M).
• Shares fell about 4.5% to $217.87 on Monday (volume ~1.96M), while the company reported Q4 EPS of $2.38 (vs. $2.35 est.) and revenue of $3.57B (below $3.61B est.) — revenue was up 33.9% year-over-year.
• Arthur J. Gallagher raised its quarterly dividend to $0.70 (annualized $2.80, yield ~1.3%; ex-dividend March 6), and analyst consensus rates the stock as a "Hold" with a target around $281.76.

Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. (NYSE:AJG - Get Free Report) VP Christopher Mead sold 4,000 shares of the stock in a transaction on Thursday, March 5th. The stock was sold at an average price of $227.12, for a total transaction of $908,480.00. Following the transaction, the vice president directly owned 19,306 shares in the company, valued at approximately $4,384,778.72. This represents a 17.16% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this hyperlink.

Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. Stock Down 4.5%

Shares of NYSE AJG traded down $10.26 during trading on Monday, hitting $217.87. 1,961,117 shares of the company traded hands, compared to its average volume of 2,529,529. Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. has a fifty-two week low of $195.00 and a fifty-two week high of $351.23. The firm has a market capitalization of $56.02 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 35.43, a P/E/G ratio of 1.11 and a beta of 0.67. The business's fifty day moving average is $238.98 and its 200 day moving average is $262.54. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.52, a quick ratio of 1.06 and a current ratio of 1.06.

Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. (NYSE:AJG - Get Free Report) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, January 29th. The financial services provider reported $2.38 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $2.35 by $0.03. The business had revenue of $3.57 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $3.61 billion. Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. had a return on equity of 12.13% and a net margin of 11.84%.The company's quarterly revenue was up 33.9% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter in the prior year, the company earned $1.12 earnings per share. Equities research analysts predict that Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. will post 11.54 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. Increases Dividend

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, March 20th. Shareholders of record on Friday, March 6th will be issued a dividend of $0.70 per share. The ex-dividend date is Friday, March 6th. This is a positive change from Arthur J. Gallagher & Co.'s previous quarterly dividend of $0.65. This represents a $2.80 annualized dividend and a yield of 1.3%. Arthur J. Gallagher & Co.'s dividend payout ratio is currently 45.53%.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Arthur J. Gallagher & Co.

A number of institutional investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Kemnay Advisory Services Inc. purchased a new position in shares of Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. in the 4th quarter worth approximately $26,000. Physician Wealth Advisors Inc. lifted its holdings in Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. by 870.0% during the third quarter. Physician Wealth Advisors Inc. now owns 97 shares of the financial services provider's stock worth $30,000 after acquiring an additional 87 shares during the period. MV Capital Management Inc. purchased a new position in Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. in the fourth quarter worth $34,000. Rakuten Securities Inc. boosted its position in Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. by 650.0% in the second quarter. Rakuten Securities Inc. now owns 105 shares of the financial services provider's stock worth $34,000 after purchasing an additional 91 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Financial Life Planners bought a new position in Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. in the 3rd quarter valued at $39,000. 85.53% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several equities research analysts have recently commented on the stock. Citigroup boosted their target price on shares of Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. from $277.00 to $280.00 and gave the stock a "neutral" rating in a research report on Monday, February 2nd. Weiss Ratings reiterated a "hold (c+)" rating on shares of Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. in a research note on Monday, December 29th. Truist Financial set a $271.00 price objective on Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. in a research note on Friday, January 30th. Needham & Company LLC set a $272.00 target price on Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. in a report on Thursday, December 18th. Finally, Wall Street Zen upgraded Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. from a "sell" rating to a "hold" rating in a report on Saturday, February 21st. Seven research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, eleven have assigned a Hold rating and one has assigned a Sell rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the stock has an average rating of "Hold" and a consensus price target of $281.76.

About Arthur J. Gallagher & Co.

Arthur J. Gallagher & Co is a global insurance brokerage and risk management firm headquartered in Rolling Meadows, Illinois. Founded in 1927 by Arthur J. Gallagher, the company has grown from a regional broker into an international professional services organization that arranges insurance, provides consulting and designs risk-transfer solutions for commercial, industrial, public sector and individual clients.

The company's core activities include property and casualty insurance brokerage, employee benefits consulting and administration, and a range of risk management services.

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