Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. (NYSE:AJG) Shares Sold by KBC Group NV

KBC Group NV lowered its stake in Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. (NYSE:AJG - Free Report) by 4.0% during the 1st quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 153,063 shares of the financial services provider's stock after selling 6,315 shares during the period. KBC Group NV owned 0.06% of Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. worth $52,844,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Other hedge funds have also added to or reduced their stakes in the company. HWG Holdings LP bought a new stake in shares of Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. during the first quarter valued at approximately $25,000. MRP Capital Investments LLC bought a new stake in shares of Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. during the 4th quarter valued at $28,000. New Age Alpha Advisors LLC grew its position in shares of Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. by 81.7% in the 4th quarter. New Age Alpha Advisors LLC now owns 109 shares of the financial services provider's stock worth $31,000 after buying an additional 49 shares during the period. Johnson Financial Group Inc. increased its stake 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 in the last quarter. Finally, Parvin Asset Management LLC bought a new stake in Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. during the fourth quarter worth about $35,000. 85.53% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. Price Performance

Shares of NYSE:AJG traded up $0.76 on Thursday, reaching $316.50. The company's stock had a trading volume of 639,946 shares, compared to its average volume of 1,560,705. The company has a 50-day simple moving average of $329.02 and a 200 day simple moving average of $318.96. 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 52-week low of $260.83 and a 52-week high of $351.23. The company has a market cap of $81.06 billion, a P/E ratio of 45.80 and a beta of 0.71.

Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. (NYSE:AJG - Get Free Report) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, May 1st. The financial services provider reported $3.67 EPS for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate 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 company had revenue of $3.69 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $3.85 billion. During the same period in the previous year, the firm earned $3.45 earnings per share. Arthur J. Gallagher & Co.'s quarterly revenue was up 14.5% compared to the same quarter last year. As a group, equities research analysts anticipate that Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. will post 11.54 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. Announces Dividend

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, June 20th. Investors of record on Friday, June 6th were issued a dividend of $0.65 per share. This represents a $2.60 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 0.82%. The ex-dividend date was 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 news, Director David S. Johnson sold 1,000 shares of Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, May 16th. The shares were sold at an average price of $342.04, for a total transaction of $342,040.00. Following the completion of the sale, the director owned 45,323 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $15,502,278.92. The trade was a 2.16% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is accessible through this link. Also, VP Scott R. Hudson sold 10,500 shares of the firm'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 directly owned 91,175 shares in the company, valued at approximately $30,741,474.75. The trade was a 10.33% decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders have sold 25,000 shares of company stock valued at $8,528,080 in the last quarter. 1.60% of the stock is owned by insiders.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several equities analysts have recently issued reports on AJG shares. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods lifted their target price on shares of Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. from $315.00 to $326.00 and gave the company a "market perform" rating in a report on Thursday, June 5th. Wells Fargo & Company cut their target price on Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. from $372.00 to $371.00 and set an "overweight" rating on the stock in a research note on Monday, June 9th. Barclays upped their price target on shares of Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. from $308.00 to $346.00 and gave the stock an "equal weight" rating in a research note on Friday, April 11th. Redburn Atlantic assumed coverage on shares of Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. in a research note on Tuesday, March 25th. They set a "neutral" rating and a $352.00 price objective for the company. Finally, Jefferies Financial Group decreased their price target on 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. Two equities research analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, seven have assigned a hold rating and five have assigned a buy rating to the company's stock. According to MarketBeat.com, Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. has a consensus rating of "Hold" and an average target price of $319.29.

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.