Diversified Trust Co Decreases Holdings in Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. (NYSE:AJG)

Diversified Trust Co lessened its position in Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. (NYSE:AJG - Free Report) by 71.8% during the first quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The fund owned 666 shares of the financial services provider's stock after selling 1,692 shares during the quarter. Diversified Trust Co's holdings in Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. were worth $230,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission.

A number of other large investors have also added to or reduced their stakes in the company. HWG Holdings LP bought a new position in shares of Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. during the 1st quarter valued at about $25,000. MRP Capital Investments LLC bought a new position in Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. during the fourth quarter valued at approximately $28,000. New Age Alpha Advisors LLC raised its stake in shares of Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. by 81.7% during the fourth quarter. New Age Alpha Advisors LLC now owns 109 shares of the financial services provider's stock worth $31,000 after acquiring an additional 49 shares in the last quarter. Johnson Financial Group Inc. lifted its holdings in shares of Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. by 205.4% in the 4th quarter. Johnson Financial Group Inc. now owns 113 shares of the financial services provider's stock worth $34,000 after acquiring an additional 76 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Golden State Wealth Management LLC grew its holdings in shares of 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 valued at $39,000 after purchasing an additional 110 shares during the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 85.53% of the company's stock.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several analysts have weighed in on AJG shares. Redburn Atlantic assumed coverage on shares of Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. in a research note on Tuesday, March 25th. They issued a "neutral" rating and a $352.00 price target for the company. Barclays boosted their target price 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 raised their price target on Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. from $315.00 to $326.00 and gave the stock a "market perform" rating in a research report on Thursday, June 5th. Jefferies Financial Group lowered their price objective on Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. from $266.00 to $265.00 and set a "hold" rating for the company in a research report on Friday, April 11th. Finally, Wells Fargo & Company cut their target price on shares of Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. from $372.00 to $371.00 and set an "overweight" rating on the stock in a report on Monday, June 9th. Two analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, seven have issued a hold rating and five have issued a buy rating to the company's stock. According to MarketBeat.com, Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. presently has a consensus rating of "Hold" and a consensus target price of $319.29.

Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. Trading Up 0.2%

NYSE:AJG traded up $0.76 during trading hours on Thursday, hitting $316.50. The company had a trading volume of 639,946 shares, compared to its average volume of 1,378,055. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.56, a current ratio of 1.44 and a quick ratio of 1.44. Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. has a 52 week low of $260.83 and a 52 week high of $351.23. The company has a market capitalization of $81.06 billion, a PE ratio of 45.80 and a beta of 0.71. The stock has a 50-day moving average price of $329.02 and a 200 day moving average price of $318.96.

Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. (NYSE:AJG - Get Free Report) last announced its earnings results on Thursday, May 1st. The financial services provider reported $3.67 earnings per share for the quarter, beating analysts' consensus estimates of $3.57 by $0.10. Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. had a net margin of 14.39% and a return on equity of 14.83%. The firm had revenue of $3.69 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $3.85 billion. During the same quarter in the previous year, the firm posted $3.45 EPS. The company's revenue for the quarter was up 14.5% compared to the same quarter last year. On average, equities research analysts predict 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, June 20th. Investors of record on Friday, June 6th were given a dividend of $0.65 per share. The ex-dividend date was Friday, June 6th. This represents a $2.60 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 0.82%. Arthur J. Gallagher & Co.'s dividend payout ratio is presently 37.63%.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. news, VP Scott R. Hudson sold 10,500 shares of the company's stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, May 21st. The shares were sold at an average price of $337.17, for a total value of $3,540,285.00. Following the sale, the vice president owned 91,175 shares in the company, valued at approximately $30,741,474.75. This represents a 10.33% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this link. Also, Director David S. Johnson sold 1,000 shares of the company's stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, May 16th. The stock was sold at an average price of $342.04, for a total value of $342,040.00. Following the completion of the sale, the director owned 45,323 shares in the company, valued at $15,502,278.92. The trade was 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.

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.