Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. (NYSE:AJG) Shares Sold by Envestnet Portfolio Solutions Inc.

Envestnet Portfolio Solutions Inc. decreased its holdings in Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. (NYSE:AJG - Free Report) by 23.3% in the first quarter, according to its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The institutional investor owned 62,651 shares of the financial services provider's stock after selling 19,060 shares during the quarter. Envestnet Portfolio Solutions Inc.'s holdings in Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. were worth $21,630,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Other institutional investors and hedge funds have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Vanguard Group Inc. raised its holdings in shares of Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. by 14.9% in the fourth quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 29,672,134 shares of the financial services provider's stock worth $8,422,435,000 after buying an additional 3,851,661 shares during the last quarter. Capital International Investors raised its stake in Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. by 3.1% in the 4th quarter. Capital International Investors now owns 10,067,647 shares of the financial services provider's stock worth $2,857,737,000 after acquiring an additional 305,876 shares during the last quarter. Capital World Investors lifted its position in Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. by 30.4% during the 4th quarter. Capital World Investors now owns 8,199,413 shares of the financial services provider's stock worth $2,327,403,000 after acquiring an additional 1,910,471 shares during the period. Geode Capital Management LLC grew its stake in Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. by 14.3% during the 4th quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC now owns 6,277,993 shares of the financial services provider's stock valued at $1,779,248,000 after purchasing an additional 787,265 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Norges Bank purchased a new position in shares of Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. in the fourth quarter worth about $1,421,591,000. 85.53% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of research firms recently commented on AJG. Jefferies Financial Group decreased their target price on Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. from $266.00 to $265.00 and set a "hold" rating for the company in a report on Friday, April 11th. Redburn Atlantic assumed coverage on shares of Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. in a report on Tuesday, March 25th. They issued a "neutral" rating and a $352.00 price objective on the stock. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods raised their target price on shares of Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. from $315.00 to $326.00 and gave the stock a "market perform" rating in a report on Thursday, June 5th. Barclays boosted their target price on shares of Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. from $308.00 to $346.00 and gave the company an "equal weight" rating in a research report on Friday, April 11th. Finally, Wells Fargo & Company cut their price target on 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. Two research analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, seven have given a hold rating and five have issued a buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat.com, Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. presently has a consensus rating of "Hold" and an average price target of $319.29.

Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. Stock Up 0.3%

Shares of NYSE:AJG opened at $317.20 on Thursday. Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. has a fifty-two week low of $251.42 and a fifty-two week high of $351.23. The company has a quick ratio of 1.44, a current ratio of 1.44 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.56. The firm's 50-day simple moving average is $331.32 and its 200-day simple moving average is $317.26. The company has a market cap of $81.24 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 45.90 and a beta of 0.74.

Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. (NYSE:AJG - Get Free Report) last released its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, May 1st. The financial services provider reported $3.67 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping 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 analysts' expectations of $3.85 billion. During the same quarter in the prior year, the business posted $3.45 earnings per share. Arthur J. Gallagher & Co.'s revenue was up 14.5% compared to the same quarter last year. As a group, equities research analysts predict that Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. will post 11.54 earnings per share for the current year.

Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. Announces Dividend

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, June 20th. Investors of record on Friday, June 6th will be paid a $0.65 dividend. This represents a $2.60 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 0.82%. The ex-dividend date is Friday, June 6th. Arthur J. Gallagher & Co.'s payout ratio is currently 37.63%.

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

In other Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. news, insider Susan E. Pietrucha sold 13,500 shares of the company's stock in a transaction dated Monday, May 19th. The stock was sold at an average price of $344.13, for a total transaction of $4,645,755.00. Following the completion of the sale, the insider now directly owns 11,941 shares in the company, valued at $4,109,256.33. This represents a 53.06% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available through this hyperlink. Also, VP Scott R. Hudson sold 7,510 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, March 21st. The stock was sold at an average price of $333.59, for a total transaction of $2,505,260.90. Following the sale, the vice president now directly owns 90,020 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $30,029,771.80. This trade represents a 7.70% decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last 90 days, insiders have sold 32,510 shares of company stock worth $11,033,341. 1.60% of the stock is owned by insiders.

Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. 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.

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