Kentucky Retirement Systems Insurance Trust Fund Makes New $2.47 Million Investment in Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. (NYSE:AJG)

Kentucky Retirement Systems Insurance Trust Fund acquired a new stake in shares of Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. (NYSE:AJG - Free Report) in the first quarter, according to its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The firm acquired 7,149 shares of the financial services provider's stock, valued at approximately $2,468,000.

Several other hedge funds and other institutional investors also recently made changes to their positions in the business. Norges Bank acquired a new position in Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. during the 4th quarter valued at about $1,421,591,000. Vanguard Group Inc. lifted 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 valued at $8,422,435,000 after purchasing an additional 3,851,661 shares in the last quarter. Winslow Capital Management LLC purchased a new position in shares of Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. during the fourth quarter valued at approximately $719,489,000. Capital World Investors raised its position in Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. by 30.4% in the 4th 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. Finally, Wellington Management Group LLP lifted its stake in Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. by 162.0% during the 4th quarter. Wellington Management Group LLP now owns 2,822,319 shares of the financial services provider's stock valued at $801,115,000 after acquiring an additional 1,745,283 shares in the last quarter. 85.53% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

Insider Activity at Arthur J. Gallagher & Co.

In related news, VP Scott R. Hudson sold 10,500 shares of the business's stock in a transaction on Wednesday, May 21st. The stock was sold at an average price of $337.17, for a total transaction of $3,540,285.00. Following the sale, the vice president now directly owns 91,175 shares in the company, valued at approximately $30,741,474.75. The trade was a 10.33% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. Also, Director David S. Johnson sold 1,000 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Friday, May 16th. The stock was sold at an average price of $342.04, for a total value of $342,040.00. Following the sale, the director now directly owns 45,323 shares in the company, valued at $15,502,278.92. This trade represents a 2.16% decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last ninety days, insiders have sold 25,000 shares of company stock worth $8,528,080. 1.60% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several research firms have recently issued reports on AJG. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods upped 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 research note on Thursday, June 5th. 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 report on Friday, April 11th. Redburn Atlantic started coverage on Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. in a research note on Tuesday, March 25th. They issued a "neutral" rating and a $352.00 target price on the stock. Barclays increased their price target on 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 objective 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 investment analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, seven have given a hold rating and five have assigned a buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat, Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. currently has an average rating of "Hold" and a consensus price target of $319.29.

Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. Stock Performance

NYSE:AJG opened at $320.84 on Friday. The company has a market capitalization of $82.17 billion, a P/E ratio of 46.43 and a beta of 0.74. The business has a fifty day simple moving average of $330.89 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $317.47. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.56, a current ratio of 1.44 and a quick ratio of 1.44. Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. has a 1 year low of $251.42 and a 1 year high of $351.23.

Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. (NYSE:AJG - Get Free Report) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, May 1st. The financial services provider reported $3.67 earnings per share 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 company had revenue of $3.69 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $3.85 billion. During the same quarter last year, the firm posted $3.45 EPS. The firm's revenue for the quarter was up 14.5% on a year-over-year basis. 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 firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, June 20th. Stockholders of record on Friday, June 6th were given a $0.65 dividend. This represents a $2.60 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 0.81%. The ex-dividend date was Friday, June 6th. Arthur J. Gallagher & Co.'s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 37.63%.

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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