Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. $AJG Shares Sold by Peapack Gladstone Financial Corp

Key Points

• Peapack Gladstone Financial Corp sharply reduced its stake in Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. by 95% in the fourth quarter, selling 21,333 shares and leaving it with 1,128 shares worth about $292,000.
• An insider, CAO Richard C. Cary, sold 3,000 shares at an average price of $206 each, a transaction valued at $618,000 and cutting his position by 5.9%.
• Arthur J. Gallagher reported better-than-expected Q1 EPS of $4.47 and announced a quarterly dividend of $0.70 per share, while analysts currently keep the stock at a Moderate Buy consensus with a $264 price target.

Peapack Gladstone Financial Corp trimmed its holdings in Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. (NYSE:AJG - Free Report) by 95.0% during the fourth quarter, according to its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The firm owned 1,128 shares of the financial services provider's stock after selling 21,333 shares during the quarter. Peapack Gladstone Financial Corp's holdings in Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. were worth $292,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Other institutional investors have also modified their holdings of the company. Physician Wealth Advisors Inc. increased its holdings in shares of Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. by 870.0% in the 3rd quarter. Physician Wealth Advisors Inc. now owns 97 shares of the financial services provider's stock valued at $30,000 after acquiring an additional 87 shares during the period. Rakuten Securities Inc. grew its position in Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. by 650.0% in the 2nd quarter. Rakuten Securities Inc. now owns 105 shares of the financial services provider's stock valued at $34,000 after buying an additional 91 shares during the last quarter. Financial Life Planners purchased a new position in Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. in the 3rd quarter valued at $39,000. Westside Investment Management Inc. grew its position in Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. by 100.0% in the 3rd quarter. Westside Investment Management Inc. now owns 136 shares of the financial services provider's stock valued at $42,000 after buying an additional 68 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Thurston Springer Miller Herd & Titak Inc. grew its position in Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. by 668.2% in the 4th quarter. Thurston Springer Miller Herd & Titak Inc. now owns 169 shares of the financial services provider's stock valued at $44,000 after buying an additional 147 shares during the last quarter. 85.53% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In related news, CAO Richard C. Cary sold 3,000 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, June 2nd. The stock was sold at an average price of $206.00, for a total value of $618,000.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief accounting officer directly owned 47,819 shares of the company's stock, valued at $9,850,714. This trade represents a 5.90% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available at this hyperlink. 1.40% of the stock is owned by insiders.

Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. Price Performance

Shares of NYSE AJG opened at $210.77 on Friday. The firm has a market capitalization of $54.15 billion, a P/E ratio of 34.10, a PEG ratio of 1.02 and a beta of 0.52. Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. has a one year low of $190.75 and a one year high of $337.33. The company's fifty day moving average is $210.44 and its two-hundred day moving average is $229.38. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.51, a quick ratio of 1.06 and a current ratio of 1.06.

Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. (NYSE:AJG - Get Free Report) last issued its earnings results on Thursday, April 30th. The financial services provider reported $4.47 EPS for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $4.43 by $0.04. The company had revenue of $4.71 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $4.73 billion. Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. had a net margin of 10.76% and a return on equity of 12.83%. The business's revenue was up 29.0% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period in the previous year, the firm earned $3.67 EPS. Analysts forecast that Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. will post 13.27 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. Dividend Announcement

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, June 19th. Investors of record on Friday, June 5th will be paid a $0.70 dividend. This represents a $2.80 annualized dividend and a yield of 1.3%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, June 5th. Arthur J. Gallagher & Co.'s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 45.31%.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of equities analysts recently weighed in on AJG shares. UBS Group set a $240.00 price objective on shares of Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. in a research report on Thursday, May 21st. Piper Sandler lowered their price objective on shares of Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. from $226.00 to $211.00 and set a "neutral" rating on the stock in a research report on Friday, May 1st. Barclays lifted their price objective on shares of Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. from $262.00 to $275.00 and gave the company an "overweight" rating in a research report on Wednesday, April 8th. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods lowered their price objective on shares of Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. from $246.00 to $235.00 and set a "market perform" rating on the stock in a research report on Friday, May 1st. Finally, Mizuho lowered their price objective on shares of Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. from $260.00 to $259.00 and set an "outperform" rating on the stock in a research report on Monday, April 13th. Eleven equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and eight have issued a Hold rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus price target of $264.00.

Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. Profile

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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