Arete Wealth Advisors LLC Sells 1,391 Shares of Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. $AJG

Key Points

• Arete Wealth Advisors LLC has reduced its stake in Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. by 29.7%, now owning 3,286 shares valued at approximately $1.13 million.
• The company recently reported earnings per share of $2.33 for the last quarter, which missed analysts' expectations by $0.03.
• Arthur J. Gallagher announced a quarterly dividend of $0.65, resulting in an annual yield of 0.9%, with a payout ratio of 36.93%.

Arete Wealth Advisors LLC trimmed its stake in shares of Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. (NYSE:AJG - Free Report) by 29.7% in the first quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The fund owned 3,286 shares of the financial services provider's stock after selling 1,391 shares during the quarter. Arete Wealth Advisors LLC's holdings in Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. were worth $1,134,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC).

Several other large investors have also added to or reduced their stakes in AJG. HWG Holdings LP acquired a new stake in Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. during the first quarter worth approximately $25,000. AlphaQuest LLC acquired a new stake in Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. during the first quarter worth approximately $33,000. Saudi Central Bank acquired a new stake in Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. during the first quarter worth approximately $34,000. Centennial Bank AR acquired a new stake in Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. during the first quarter worth approximately $38,000. Finally, Golden State Wealth Management LLC grew its stake in Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. by 2,750.0% during the first quarter. Golden State Wealth Management LLC now owns 114 shares of the financial services provider's stock worth $39,000 after purchasing an additional 110 shares during the period. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 85.53% of the company's stock.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several equities research analysts recently commented on AJG shares. Cantor Fitzgerald raised Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. to a "strong-buy" rating in a research note on Wednesday, August 13th. Wall Street Zen raised Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. from a "sell" rating to a "hold" rating in a research note on Friday, September 5th. UBS Group reduced their price objective on Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. from $345.00 to $322.00 and set a "neutral" rating for the company in a research note on Monday, August 4th. Barclays reduced their price objective on Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. from $346.00 to $327.00 and set an "equal weight" rating for the company in a research note on Monday, July 7th. Finally, Citigroup began coverage on Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. in a research note on Wednesday, August 13th. They issued a "neutral" rating and a $317.00 price objective for the company. One analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, six have issued a Buy rating, eight have assigned a Hold rating and one has given a Sell rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat, Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. has an average rating of "Hold" and an average target price of $333.13.

Insider Activity at Arthur J. Gallagher & Co.

In related news, CFO Douglas K. Howell sold 3,000 shares of Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, September 9th. The stock was sold at an average price of $299.78, for a total transaction of $899,340.00. Following the transaction, the chief financial officer owned 114,777 shares of the company's stock, valued at $34,407,849.06. The trade was a 2.55% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this link. Also, VP Scott R. Hudson sold 12,855 shares of Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. stock in a transaction on Monday, September 8th. The stock was sold at an average price of $297.60, for a total value of $3,825,648.00. Following the sale, the vice president owned 85,920 shares in the company, valued at $25,569,792. This trade represents a 13.01% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. 1.60% of the stock is owned by insiders.

Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. Stock Down 1.1%

Shares of NYSE:AJG traded down $3.34 during mid-day trading on Friday, hitting $297.27. 1,302,078 shares of the company traded hands, compared to its average volume of 1,313,249. The stock has a market cap of $76.22 billion, a P/E ratio of 42.23 and a beta of 0.72. The company has a current ratio of 1.36, a quick ratio of 1.36 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.52. Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. has a 12-month low of $274.25 and a 12-month high of $351.23. The stock has a 50-day moving average price of $300.81 and a two-hundred day moving average price of $319.61.

Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. (NYSE:AJG - Get Free Report) last announced its earnings results on Thursday, July 31st. The financial services provider reported $2.33 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $2.36 by ($0.03). The company had revenue of $3.18 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $3.20 billion. Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. had a net margin of 14.54% and a return on equity of 13.17%. The firm's quarterly revenue was up 16.0% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period in the previous year, the firm earned $2.29 EPS. On average, equities research analysts forecast that Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. will post 11.54 earnings per share for the current year.

Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. Dividend Announcement

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, September 19th. Investors of record on Friday, September 5th will be given a dividend of $0.65 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, September 5th. This represents a $2.60 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 0.9%. Arthur J. Gallagher & Co.'s payout ratio is presently 36.93%.

About Arthur J. Gallagher & Co.

Arthur J. Gallagher & Co engages in the provision of insurance brokerage, reinsurance brokerage, consulting, and third-party claims settlement and administration services. It operates through the following segments: Brokerage, Risk Management, and Corporate. The Brokerage segment consists of retail and wholesale insurance brokerage operations.