Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. $AJG Shares Purchased by IFP Advisors Inc

Key Points

• IFP Advisors Inc increased its stake in Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. by 40.2%, owning a total of 3,023 shares worth approximately $988,000 by the end of the second quarter.
• The company reported $2.33 earnings per share, missing the consensus estimate of $2.36, while its revenue for the quarter was $3.18 billion, slightly below expectations.
• Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. declared a quarterly dividend of $0.65 per share, resulting in an annualized dividend yield of 0.9%.

IFP Advisors Inc increased its stake in shares of Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. (NYSE:AJG - Free Report) by 40.2% in the 2nd quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The institutional investor owned 3,023 shares of the financial services provider's stock after purchasing an additional 867 shares during the quarter. IFP Advisors Inc's holdings in Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. were worth $988,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Other institutional investors and hedge funds have also recently bought and sold shares of the company. HWG Holdings LP acquired a new position in Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. during the 1st quarter worth $25,000. AlphaQuest LLC acquired a new position in Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. during the 1st quarter worth $33,000. Saudi Central Bank purchased a new stake in Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. during the 1st quarter worth about $34,000. Centennial Bank AR purchased a new stake in Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. during the 1st quarter worth about $38,000. Finally, Golden State Wealth Management LLC lifted its holdings in Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. by 2,750.0% during the 1st quarter. Golden State Wealth Management LLC now owns 114 shares of the financial services provider's stock worth $39,000 after buying an additional 110 shares during the last quarter. 85.53% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. Stock Down 0.2%

Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. stock opened at $301.75 on Monday. Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. has a fifty-two week low of $275.56 and a fifty-two week high of $351.23. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.52, a quick ratio of 1.36 and a current ratio of 1.36. The company has a market capitalization of $77.37 billion, a P/E ratio of 42.86 and a beta of 0.73. The stock has a 50-day simple moving average of $299.11 and a 200-day simple moving average of $315.45.

Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. (NYSE:AJG - Get Free Report) last posted its earnings results on Thursday, July 31st. The financial services provider reported $2.33 earnings per share for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $2.36 by ($0.03). The firm had revenue of $3.18 billion during 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 revenue for the quarter was up 16.0% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period in the previous year, the firm posted $2.29 earnings per share. Equities research analysts expect 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 disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, September 19th. Shareholders of record on Friday, September 5th were paid a dividend of $0.65 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Friday, September 5th. This represents a $2.60 annualized dividend and a yield of 0.9%. Arthur J. Gallagher & Co.'s dividend payout ratio is currently 36.93%.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of analysts have issued reports on AJG shares. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods lifted their price target on Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. from $288.00 to $298.00 and gave the stock a "market perform" rating in a report on Friday, September 19th. Wells Fargo & Company lifted their price target on Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. from $365.00 to $366.00 and gave the stock an "overweight" rating in a report on Wednesday, October 8th. Barclays decreased their price target on Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. from $346.00 to $327.00 and set an "equal weight" rating for the company in a report on Monday, July 7th. Citigroup assumed coverage on Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. in a report on Wednesday, August 13th. They set a "neutral" rating and a $317.00 price target for the company. Finally, Cantor Fitzgerald raised Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. to a "strong-buy" rating in a report on Wednesday, August 13th. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, seven have given a Buy rating and eight have assigned a Hold rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat, the stock presently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus price target of $331.43.

Insider Activity at Arthur J. Gallagher & Co.

In other Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. news, VP Scott R. Hudson sold 12,855 shares of the company's stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, September 8th. The stock was sold at an average price of $297.60, for a total transaction of $3,825,648.00. Following the completion of the sale, the vice president directly owned 85,920 shares of the company's stock, valued at $25,569,792. This represents a 13.01% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at the SEC website. Also, CFO Douglas K. Howell sold 8,000 shares of the company's stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, September 22nd. The shares were sold at an average price of $299.54, for a total value of $2,396,320.00. Following the sale, the chief financial officer directly owned 100,777 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $30,186,742.58. This represents a 7.35% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Over the last ninety days, insiders have sold 29,855 shares of company stock valued at $8,916,928. 1.30% of the stock is owned by company insiders.

Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. Company Profile

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.

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