Annex Advisory Services LLC Boosts Stock Holdings in Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. (NYSE:AJG)

Annex Advisory Services LLC increased its position in shares of Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. (NYSE:AJG - Free Report) by 25.0% during the first quarter, according to its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The fund owned 66,294 shares of the financial services provider's stock after acquiring an additional 13,273 shares during the period. Annex Advisory Services LLC's holdings in Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. were worth $22,887,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Several other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also recently bought and sold shares of the stock. Arthur M. Cohen & Associates LLC lifted its holdings in Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. by 2.1% during the 1st quarter. Arthur M. Cohen & Associates LLC now owns 12,449 shares of the financial services provider's stock worth $4,298,000 after buying an additional 256 shares during the period. Thurston Springer Miller Herd & Titak Inc. lifted its holdings in Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. by 54.1% during the 1st quarter. Thurston Springer Miller Herd & Titak Inc. now owns 336 shares of the financial services provider's stock worth $116,000 after buying an additional 118 shares during the period. Lifestyle Asset Management Inc. acquired a new position in Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. during the 1st quarter worth about $354,000. Portside Wealth Group LLC lifted its holdings in Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. by 18.1% during the 1st quarter. Portside Wealth Group LLC now owns 931 shares of the financial services provider's stock worth $321,000 after buying an additional 143 shares during the period. Finally, Veracity Capital LLC acquired a new position in Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. during the 1st quarter worth about $220,000. 85.53% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other news, insider Susan E. Pietrucha sold 13,500 shares of the company's stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, May 19th. The stock was sold at an average price of $344.13, for a total value of $4,645,755.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the insider now directly owns 11,941 shares of the company's stock, valued at $4,109,256.33. This represents a 53.06% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available at this hyperlink. Also, Director David S. Johnson sold 1,000 shares of the company's stock in a transaction that occurred on 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 now directly owns 45,323 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $15,502,278.92. This represents a 2.16% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last ninety days, insiders sold 32,510 shares of company stock valued at $11,033,341. Corporate insiders own 1.60% of the company's stock.

Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. Stock Down 2.5%

AJG traded down $8.36 during midday trading on Thursday, reaching $327.99. 1,851,429 shares of the company were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 1,335,168. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.63, a quick ratio of 1.51 and a current ratio of 1.51. The company's fifty day moving average price is $333.09 and its 200 day moving average price is $316.31. The company has a market cap of $84.00 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 50.30 and a beta of 0.78. Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. has a one year low of $250.72 and a one year high of $351.23.

Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. (NYSE:AJG - Get Free Report) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, May 1st. The financial services provider reported $3.67 EPS for the quarter, topping analysts' consensus estimates of $3.57 by $0.10. The firm had revenue of $3.69 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $3.85 billion. Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. had a return on equity of 16.47% and a net margin of 12.70%. The company's revenue for the quarter was up 14.5% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period in the previous year, the company posted $3.45 EPS. As a group, analysts expect that Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. will post 11.54 EPS for the current year.

Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. Dividend Announcement

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, June 20th. Shareholders of record on Friday, June 6th will be issued a dividend of $0.65 per share. This represents a $2.60 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 0.79%. The ex-dividend date is Friday, June 6th. Arthur J. Gallagher & Co.'s dividend payout ratio is currently 37.63%.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of research analysts have recently issued reports on AJG shares. Barclays boosted their price objective on Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. from $308.00 to $346.00 and gave the company an "equal weight" rating in a research note on Friday, April 11th. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods boosted their price objective on Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. from $315.00 to $326.00 and gave the company a "market perform" rating in a research note on Thursday. Jefferies Financial Group dropped their price objective on Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. from $266.00 to $265.00 and set a "hold" rating on the stock in a research note on Friday, April 11th. Redburn Atlantic started coverage on Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. in a research note on Tuesday, March 25th. They issued a "neutral" rating and a $352.00 price objective on the stock. Finally, Wells Fargo & Company boosted their price objective on Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. from $370.00 to $372.00 and gave the company an "overweight" rating in a research note on Thursday, April 10th. Two research analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, seven have assigned a hold rating and five have assigned a buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat, the company presently has an average rating of "Hold" and a consensus target price of $319.36.

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.