AustralianSuper Pty Ltd Takes $480,000 Position in Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. (NYSE:AJG)

AustralianSuper Pty Ltd purchased a new position in shares of Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. (NYSE:AJG - Free Report) in the 1st quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The firm purchased 1,389 shares of the financial services provider's stock, valued at approximately $480,000.

A number of other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also bought and sold shares of AJG. Vanguard Group Inc. raised its stake in Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. by 14.9% in the 4th quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 29,672,134 shares of the financial services provider's stock worth $8,422,435,000 after acquiring an additional 3,851,661 shares during the last quarter. Capital International Investors boosted its stake in Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. by 3.1% in the fourth quarter. Capital International Investors now owns 10,067,647 shares of the financial services provider's stock valued at $2,857,737,000 after acquiring an additional 305,876 shares in the last quarter. Capital World Investors raised its holdings 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 valued at $2,327,403,000 after buying an additional 1,910,471 shares during the last quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC increased its holdings in Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. by 14.3% in the fourth 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 buying an additional 787,265 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Norges Bank acquired a new stake in shares of Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. in the fourth quarter valued at approximately $1,421,591,000. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 85.53% of the company's stock.

Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. Stock Down 0.9%

Shares of NYSE AJG traded down $2.79 during mid-day trading on Wednesday, reaching $309.62. 246,822 shares of the company traded hands, compared to its average volume of 1,393,642. The stock has a market cap of $79.29 billion, a PE ratio of 44.78 and a beta of 0.71. The company's fifty day moving average is $325.18 and its two-hundred day moving average is $321.95. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.56, a quick ratio of 1.44 and a current ratio of 1.44. Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. has a fifty-two week low of $267.00 and a fifty-two week high of $351.23.

Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. (NYSE:AJG - Get Free Report) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, May 1st. The financial services provider reported $3.67 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping analysts' consensus estimates 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 business had revenue of $3.69 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $3.85 billion. During the same quarter in the prior year, the business posted $3.45 earnings per share. The firm's quarterly revenue was up 14.5% compared to the same quarter last year. On average, analysts expect 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 was paid on Friday, June 20th. Shareholders of record on Friday, June 6th were given a $0.65 dividend. This represents a $2.60 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 0.84%. The ex-dividend date was Friday, June 6th. Arthur J. Gallagher & Co.'s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 37.63%.

Insider Activity at Arthur J. Gallagher & Co.

In other news, insider Susan E. Pietrucha sold 13,500 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction dated Monday, May 19th. The shares were sold at an average price of $344.13, for a total value of $4,645,755.00. Following the transaction, the insider directly owned 11,941 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $4,109,256.33. This trade represents a 53.06% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available at this link. Also, VP Scott R. Hudson sold 10,500 shares of the business's stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, May 21st. The shares were sold at an average price of $337.17, for a total transaction of $3,540,285.00. Following the completion of the sale, 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 disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last quarter, insiders have sold 25,000 shares of company stock worth $8,528,080. 1.30% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of research analysts recently weighed in on the stock. Barclays decreased 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 research report on Monday, July 7th. Jefferies Financial Group reduced their price objective on shares of Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. from $266.00 to $265.00 and set a "hold" rating for the company in a research note on Friday, April 11th. Redburn Atlantic started coverage on shares of Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. in a research report on Tuesday, March 25th. They issued a "neutral" rating and a $352.00 target price on the stock. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods increased their price objective on shares of Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. from $326.00 to $330.00 and gave the stock a "market perform" rating in a research note on Wednesday, July 9th. Finally, Wells Fargo & Company lowered their price target on Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. from $372.00 to $371.00 and set an "overweight" rating for the company in a research report on Monday, June 9th. Two investment analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, eight have given a hold rating and five have issued a buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat, the company currently has an average rating of "Hold" and an average 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.