Gilbert & Cook Inc. Cuts Position in Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. (NYSE:AJG)

Key Points

• Gilbert & Cook Inc. reduced its stake in Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. by 31.9% during the first quarter, now owning 4,066 shares valued at approximately $1,404,000.
• Significant institutional investments include Norges Bank purchasing a new position worth over $1.4 billion and Wellington Management increasing its stake by 162.0%.
• Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. recently declared a quarterly dividend of $0.65 per share, representing an annualized payment of $2.60 with a yield of 0.83%.

Gilbert & Cook Inc. trimmed its stake in shares of Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. (NYSE:AJG - Free Report) by 31.9% during the first quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 4,066 shares of the financial services provider's stock after selling 1,904 shares during the period. Gilbert & Cook Inc.'s holdings in Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. were worth $1,404,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Other large investors also recently modified their holdings of the company. Norges Bank bought a new position in Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. in the fourth quarter valued at approximately $1,421,591,000. Winslow Capital Management LLC bought a new stake in shares of Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. in the fourth quarter worth $719,489,000. Capital World Investors lifted its position in shares of Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. by 30.4% in the fourth quarter. Capital World Investors now owns 8,199,413 shares of the financial services provider's stock worth $2,327,403,000 after purchasing an additional 1,910,471 shares in the last quarter. Wellington Management Group LLP lifted its position in shares of Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. by 162.0% in the fourth quarter. Wellington Management Group LLP now owns 2,822,319 shares of the financial services provider's stock worth $801,115,000 after purchasing an additional 1,745,283 shares in the last quarter. Finally, D. E. Shaw & Co. Inc. lifted its position in shares of Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. by 1,511.2% in the fourth quarter. D. E. Shaw & Co. Inc. now owns 1,758,166 shares of the financial services provider's stock worth $499,055,000 after purchasing an additional 1,649,046 shares in the last quarter. 85.53% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other news, VP Scott R. Hudson sold 10,500 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction on Wednesday, May 21st. The stock was sold at an average price of $337.17, for a total transaction of $3,540,285.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the vice president directly owned 91,175 shares in the company, valued at $30,741,474.75. This trade represents a 10.33% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through the SEC website. Also, Director David S. Johnson sold 1,000 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Friday, May 16th. The shares were sold at an average price of $342.04, for a total value of $342,040.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the director directly owned 45,323 shares in the company, valued at approximately $15,502,278.92. This represents a 2.16% decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders have sold a total of 25,000 shares of company stock valued at $8,528,080 over the last ninety days. Company insiders own 1.60% of the company's stock.

Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. Price Performance

Shares of NYSE AJG traded up $6.09 during midday trading on Friday, hitting $315.15. 897,383 shares of the company's stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 1,269,745. Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. has a 12-month low of $267.00 and a 12-month high of $351.23. The company has a current ratio of 1.44, a quick ratio of 1.44 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.56. The company has a market cap of $80.71 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 45.61 and a beta of 0.71. The business's fifty day moving average price is $322.82 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $322.47.

Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. (NYSE:AJG - Get Free Report) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, May 1st. The financial services provider reported $3.67 earnings per share for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $3.57 by $0.10. Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. had a return on equity of 14.83% and a net margin of 14.39%. The firm had revenue of $3.69 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $3.85 billion. During the same quarter in the previous year, the company posted $3.45 earnings per share. The business's revenue was up 14.5% on a year-over-year basis. As a group, research analysts forecast that Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. will post 11.54 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, June 20th. Investors of record on Friday, June 6th were issued a dividend of $0.65 per share. The ex-dividend date was Friday, June 6th. This represents a $2.60 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 0.83%. Arthur J. Gallagher & Co.'s dividend payout ratio is presently 37.63%.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

AJG has been the topic of several analyst reports. Wells Fargo & Company dropped their price target on shares of Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. from $372.00 to $371.00 and set an "overweight" rating on the stock in a research report on Monday, June 9th. Erste Group Bank reiterated a "hold" rating on shares of Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. in a report on Wednesday. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods upped their price objective on shares of Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. from $326.00 to $330.00 and gave the company a "market perform" rating in a report on Wednesday, July 9th. Barclays decreased their price objective on shares of Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. from $346.00 to $327.00 and set an "equal weight" rating on the stock in a report on Monday, July 7th. Finally, Jefferies Financial Group decreased their price objective on shares of Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. from $266.00 to $265.00 and set a "hold" rating on the stock in a report on Friday, April 11th. Two analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, eight have assigned a hold rating and five have issued a buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat, Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. has an average rating of "Hold" and a consensus price target of $318.21.

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.