Ferguson Wellman Capital Management Inc. Sells 26,224 Shares of Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. $AJG

Key Points

• Ferguson Wellman Capital Management cut its stake in Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. by 35.3% in the first quarter, selling 26,224 shares and leaving it with 48,122 shares worth about $10.4 million.
• Institutional ownership remains high, with several other funds adding or increasing positions in AJG; overall, 85.53% of the stock is held by institutions.
• Wall Street sentiment is mixed but generally constructive: multiple firms raised price targets, while Wolfe Research downgraded the stock to peer perform amid concerns about valuation and margins.

Ferguson Wellman Capital Management Inc. lowered its holdings in Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. (NYSE:AJG - Free Report) by 35.3% in the first quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The firm owned 48,122 shares of the financial services provider's stock after selling 26,224 shares during the period. Ferguson Wellman Capital Management Inc.'s holdings in Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. were worth $10,422,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Other institutional investors have also made changes to their positions in the company. Jump Financial LLC bought a new stake in shares of Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. during the 2nd quarter valued at approximately $2,825,000. Qube Research & Technologies Ltd bought a new position in shares of Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. in the 2nd quarter valued at $3,429,000. Treasurer of the State of North Carolina grew its position in Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. by 5.3% during the 2nd quarter. Treasurer of the State of North Carolina now owns 118,467 shares of the financial services provider's stock worth $37,924,000 after acquiring an additional 5,947 shares during the last quarter. Peapack Gladstone Financial Corp raised its position in Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. by 2,919.2% in the second quarter. Peapack Gladstone Financial Corp now owns 19,987 shares of the financial services provider's stock valued at $6,398,000 after purchasing an additional 19,325 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Armistice Capital LLC acquired a new position in shares of Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. in the second quarter valued at approximately $412,000. 85.53% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Key Stories Impacting Arthur J. Gallagher & Co.

Here are the key news stories impacting Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. this week:

• Positive Sentiment: Wells Fargo raised its price target on Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. to $299 from $271 and kept an overweight rating, signaling confidence in further upside for the insurance broker. Benzinga article
• Positive Sentiment: Mizuho also lifted its target to $287 from $261 and maintained an outperform rating, reinforcing a constructive view on AJG's growth prospects. Benzinga article
• Positive Sentiment: AJG announced the acquisition of Med James, Inc., adding to its long-running acquisition-driven expansion strategy. PR Newswire article
• Positive Sentiment: Management also announced the date for its second-quarter 2026 earnings release and conference call, keeping investors focused on upcoming results. PR Newswire article
• Neutral Sentiment: Zacks said AJG trades at a discount to the industry on a valuation basis, but noted the company still faces margin and leverage challenges despite solid organic growth and acquisition activity. Zacks article
• Neutral Sentiment: MarketWatch noted the stock underperformed peers in recent trading, suggesting AJG has lagged some competitors even as broader analyst sentiment remains mixed. MarketWatch article
• Negative Sentiment: Wolfe Research downgraded Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. to peer perform from outperform, which likely weighed on sentiment and helped offset the bullish target increases. Downgrade article

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. news, CAO Richard C. Cary sold 3,000 shares of the company's stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, June 2nd. The stock was sold at an average price of $206.00, for a total transaction of $618,000.00. Following the sale, the chief accounting officer directly owned 47,819 shares in the company, valued at $9,850,714. This represents a 5.90% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available at this link. 1.40% of the stock is owned by insiders.

Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. Stock Performance

NYSE:AJG traded down $0.60 on Friday, hitting $253.16. The stock had a trading volume of 1,032,986 shares, compared to its average volume of 1,830,509. Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. has a 52-week low of $190.75 and a 52-week high of $316.71. The stock has a market cap of $65.04 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 40.96, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.31 and a beta of 0.50. The company has a quick ratio of 1.06, a current ratio of 1.06 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.51. The business's 50-day simple moving average is $216.10 and its two-hundred day simple moving average is $225.86.

Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. (NYSE:AJG - Get Free Report) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, April 30th. The financial services provider reported $4.47 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping analysts' consensus estimates of $4.43 by $0.04. Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. had a net margin of 10.76% and a return on equity of 12.83%. The company had revenue of $4.71 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $4.73 billion. During the same quarter last year, the firm posted $3.67 earnings per share. The firm's revenue was up 29.0% compared to the same quarter last year. As a group, research analysts predict that Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. will post 13.22 earnings per share for the current year.

Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. Announces Dividend

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, June 19th. Investors of record on Friday, June 5th were given a $0.70 dividend. The ex-dividend date was Friday, June 5th. This represents a $2.80 annualized dividend and a yield of 1.1%. Arthur J. Gallagher & Co.'s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 45.31%.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several research analysts have weighed in on AJG shares. Weiss Ratings reissued a "hold (c-)" rating on shares of Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. in a research report on Monday, June 15th. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods raised their target price on Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. from $242.00 to $261.00 and gave the company a "market perform" rating in a research report on Wednesday. Citigroup raised shares of Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. from a "neutral" rating to a "buy" rating and cut their price target for the stock from $280.00 to $250.00 in a report on Wednesday, May 6th. UBS Group increased their target price on shares of Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. from $250.00 to $291.00 and gave the company a "buy" rating in a research report on Wednesday. Finally, Wolfe Research lowered shares of Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. from an "outperform" rating to a "peer perform" rating in a research note on Thursday. Twelve research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and seven have given a Hold rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat, the company presently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average price target of $274.18.

Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. Company Profile

Arthur J. Gallagher & Co is a global insurance brokerage and risk management firm headquartered in Rolling Meadows, Illinois. Founded in 1927 by Arthur J. Gallagher, the company has grown from a regional broker into an international professional services organization that arranges insurance, provides consulting and designs risk-transfer solutions for commercial, industrial, public sector and individual clients.

The company's core activities include property and casualty insurance brokerage, employee benefits consulting and administration, and a range of risk management services.

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