Wealth Enhancement Advisory Services LLC Cuts Stock Position in Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. $AJG

Key Points

• Wealth Enhancement Advisory Services LLC reduced its holdings in Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. by 11.3%, ending the quarter with 59,661 shares valued at approximately $18.98 million.
• Analysts have given Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. a consensus target price of $330.93, with ratings ranging from Strong Buy to Sell.
• The company recently declared a quarterly dividend of $0.65, translating to an annual dividend yield of 0.9%.

Wealth Enhancement Advisory Services LLC lowered its stake in shares of Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. (NYSE:AJG - Free Report) by 11.3% during the 2nd quarter, according to its most recent filing with the SEC. The firm owned 59,661 shares of the financial services provider's stock after selling 7,625 shares during the period. Wealth Enhancement Advisory Services LLC's holdings in Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. were worth $18,978,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Several other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also bought and sold shares of AJG. JPMorgan Chase & Co. lifted its stake in Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. by 38.3% during the 1st quarter. JPMorgan Chase & Co. now owns 17,372,745 shares of the financial services provider's stock valued at $5,997,767,000 after acquiring an additional 4,815,007 shares during the period. Vanguard Group Inc. lifted its stake in Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. by 2.5% during the 1st quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 30,411,264 shares of the financial services provider's stock valued at $10,499,185,000 after acquiring an additional 739,130 shares during the period. Nuveen LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. during the 1st quarter valued at about $240,665,000. 1832 Asset Management L.P. increased its position in shares of Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. by 3,142.2% during the 1st quarter. 1832 Asset Management L.P. now owns 640,911 shares of the financial services provider's stock valued at $221,268,000 after purchasing an additional 621,143 shares during the last quarter. Finally, DSM Capital Partners LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. during the 1st quarter valued at about $136,565,000. Institutional investors own 85.53% of the company's stock.

Insider Buying and Selling at Arthur J. Gallagher & Co.

In other news, CFO Douglas K. Howell sold 3,000 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction 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 in the company, valued at approximately $34,407,849.06. This trade represents a 2.55% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is accessible through this link. Also, VP Scott R. Hudson sold 12,855 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction on Monday, September 8th. The shares were sold at an average price of $297.60, for a total value of $3,825,648.00. Following the transaction, the vice president owned 85,920 shares in the company, valued at approximately $25,569,792. This represents a 13.01% decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Company insiders own 1.30% of the company's stock.

Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. Trading Up 0.9%

Shares of NYSE:AJG traded up $2.83 on Tuesday, hitting $302.89. 475,081 shares of the company's stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 1,525,422. Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. has a 12 month low of $275.56 and a 12 month high of $351.23. The stock has a market capitalization of $77.66 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 43.04 and a beta of 0.72. The business's 50 day simple moving average is $298.50 and its two-hundred day simple moving average is $317.85. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.52, a current ratio of 1.36 and a quick ratio of 1.36.

Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. (NYSE:AJG - Get Free Report) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, July 31st. The financial services provider reported $2.33 EPS for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $2.36 by ($0.03). The firm 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 business's quarterly revenue was up 16.0% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter in the prior year, the business posted $2.29 EPS. Analysts anticipate that Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. will post 11.54 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. Dividend Announcement

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, September 19th. Stockholders of record on Friday, September 5th were paid a dividend of $0.65 per share. The ex-dividend date was Friday, September 5th. This represents a $2.60 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 0.9%. Arthur J. Gallagher & Co.'s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 36.93%.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

AJG has been the subject of several research reports. Piper Sandler upped their price target on shares of Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. from $352.00 to $372.00 and gave the company an "overweight" rating in a research report on Friday, August 1st. Wells Fargo & Company reduced their price target on shares of Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. from $369.00 to $365.00 and set an "overweight" rating for the company in a research report on Friday. Barclays reduced their target price on shares of 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. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods increased their target price on shares of Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. from $288.00 to $298.00 and gave the stock a "market perform" rating in a report on Friday. Finally, Citigroup started coverage on shares of Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. in a report on Wednesday, August 13th. They set a "neutral" rating and a $317.00 price objective for the company. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, six have given a Buy rating, eight have issued a Hold rating and one has given a Sell rating to the company. According to MarketBeat, the company has an average rating of "Hold" and a consensus price target of $330.93.

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.