GC Wealth Management RIA LLC Grows Position in Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. $AJG

Key Points

• GC Wealth Management RIA LLC increased its holdings in Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. by 72.3% during the second quarter, owning 2,396 shares worth $767,000 at the end of the period.
• Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. reported a missed earnings expectation for the last quarter, with EPS at $2.33 compared to the consensus estimate of $2.36, and revenue slightly below expectations at $3.18 billion.
• The company recently announced a quarterly dividend of $0.65 per share, resulting in an annualized dividend yield of 0.9% and a payout ratio of 36.93%.

GC Wealth Management RIA LLC raised its holdings in shares of Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. (NYSE:AJG - Free Report) by 72.3% during the second quarter, according to its most recent filing with the SEC. The firm owned 2,396 shares of the financial services provider's stock after purchasing an additional 1,005 shares during the period. GC Wealth Management RIA LLC's holdings in Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. were worth $767,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Several other hedge funds have also recently modified their holdings of AJG. JPMorgan Chase & Co. increased its holdings in Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. by 38.3% during the first quarter. JPMorgan Chase & Co. now owns 17,372,745 shares of the financial services provider's stock valued at $5,997,767,000 after buying an additional 4,815,007 shares during the period. Vanguard Group Inc. boosted its position in Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. by 2.5% during the 1st quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 30,411,264 shares of the financial services provider's stock valued at $10,499,185,000 after acquiring an additional 739,130 shares in the last quarter. Nuveen LLC bought a new position in shares of Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. in the 1st quarter worth $240,665,000. 1832 Asset Management L.P. lifted its stake in shares of Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. by 3,142.2% during the 1st quarter. 1832 Asset Management L.P. now owns 640,911 shares of the financial services provider's stock worth $221,268,000 after purchasing an additional 621,143 shares during the last quarter. Finally, DSM Capital Partners LLC bought a new stake in Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. during the first quarter valued at about $136,565,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 85.53% of the company's stock.

Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. Stock Performance

AJG opened at $305.40 on Tuesday. The company has a current ratio of 1.36, a quick ratio of 1.36 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.52. Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. has a 12-month low of $275.56 and a 12-month high of $351.23. The firm has a 50 day moving average of $297.87 and a two-hundred day moving average of $317.15. The firm has a market capitalization of $78.30 billion, a PE ratio of 43.38 and a beta of 0.72.

Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. (NYSE:AJG - Get Free Report) last released its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, July 31st. The financial services provider reported $2.33 EPS for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $2.36 by ($0.03). The business had revenue of $3.18 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $3.20 billion. Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. had a net margin of 14.54% and a return on equity of 13.17%. The firm's revenue was up 16.0% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period last year, the company earned $2.29 earnings per share. On average, analysts anticipate that Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. will post 11.54 EPS for the current year.

Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. Dividend Announcement

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, September 19th. Stockholders of record on Friday, September 5th were paid a $0.65 dividend. The ex-dividend date was Friday, September 5th. This represents a $2.60 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 0.9%. Arthur J. Gallagher & Co.'s dividend payout ratio is presently 36.93%.

Insider Activity

In related news, CFO Douglas K. Howell sold 8,000 shares of Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, September 22nd. The stock was sold at an average price of $299.54, for a total transaction of $2,396,320.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief financial officer directly owned 100,777 shares in the company, valued at approximately $30,186,742.58. This trade represents a 7.35% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. Also, VP Scott R. Hudson sold 12,855 shares of the business's stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, September 8th. The shares were sold at an average price of $297.60, for a total value of $3,825,648.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the vice president directly owned 85,920 shares of the company's stock, valued at $25,569,792. The trade was a 13.01% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Over the last ninety days, insiders have sold 29,855 shares of company stock worth $8,916,928. 1.60% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

Analyst Ratings Changes

AJG has been the subject of several analyst reports. Cantor Fitzgerald raised shares of Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. to a "strong-buy" rating in a research report on Wednesday, August 13th. Citigroup started coverage on Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. in a report on Wednesday, August 13th. They set a "neutral" rating and a $317.00 price objective for the company. Wall Street Zen raised Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. from a "sell" rating to a "hold" rating in a research report on Friday, September 5th. Barclays cut their price objective on shares of Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. from $346.00 to $327.00 and set an "equal weight" rating on the stock in a report on Monday, July 7th. Finally, UBS Group boosted their target price on shares of Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. from $322.00 to $329.00 and gave the stock a "neutral" rating in a research report on Friday, September 19th. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, six have issued a Buy rating, eight have given a Hold rating and one has issued a Sell rating to the company's stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. has a consensus rating of "Hold" and an average price target of $330.93.

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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