McElhenny Sheffield Capital Management LLC Invests $1.21 Million in Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. $AJG

Key Points

• McElhenny Sheffield Capital Management LLC invested $1.21 million in Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. by acquiring 3,787 shares during the second quarter.
• Recent insider trades include the CFO, Douglas K. Howell, selling 8,000 shares, resulting in a 7.35% decrease in his ownership, while VP Scott R. Hudson sold 12,855 shares with a 13.01% decrease in his position.
• Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. announced a quarterly dividend of $0.65 per share, with an annualized yield of 0.8% and a payout ratio of 36.93%.

McElhenny Sheffield Capital Management LLC bought a new position in shares of Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. (NYSE:AJG - Free Report) during the second quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The fund bought 3,787 shares of the financial services provider's stock, valued at approximately $1,212,000.

A number of other institutional investors and hedge funds also recently modified their holdings of the stock. HWG Holdings LP acquired a new position in Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. during the first quarter valued at $25,000. AlphaQuest LLC acquired a new position in Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. during the first quarter valued at $33,000. Saudi Central Bank acquired a new position in Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. during the first quarter valued at $34,000. Centennial Bank AR acquired a new position in Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. during the first quarter valued at $38,000. Finally, Motco raised its position in Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. by 700.0% during the first quarter. Motco now owns 112 shares of the financial services provider's stock valued at $39,000 after buying an additional 98 shares during the period. 85.53% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Insider Activity at Arthur J. Gallagher & Co.

In related news, CFO Douglas K. Howell sold 8,000 shares of the 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 sale, the chief financial officer owned 100,777 shares in the company, valued at $30,186,742.58. This represents a 7.35% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this link. Also, VP Scott R. Hudson sold 12,855 shares of the 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 sale, the vice president owned 85,920 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $25,569,792. The trade was a 13.01% decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last 90 days, insiders have sold 29,855 shares of company stock valued at $8,916,928. 1.60% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several research firms recently weighed in on AJG. Wall Street Zen raised Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. from a "sell" rating to a "hold" rating in a research report on Friday, September 5th. Wells Fargo & Company upped their price target on Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. from $365.00 to $366.00 and gave the company an "overweight" rating in a research report on Wednesday. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods upped their price target on Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. from $288.00 to $298.00 and gave the company a "market perform" rating in a research report on Friday, September 19th. The Goldman Sachs Group started coverage on Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. in a research report on Wednesday, September 3rd. They issued a "buy" rating and a $344.00 target price on the stock. Finally, Piper Sandler dropped their target price on Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. from $352.00 to $340.00 and set an "overweight" rating on the stock in a research report on Thursday, October 2nd. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, seven have issued a Buy rating, eight have issued a Hold rating and one has given a Sell rating to the company. According to MarketBeat.com, the company has an average rating of "Hold" and an average target price of $328.87.

Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. Stock Performance

AJG opened at $306.99 on Thursday. The company has a market cap of $78.71 billion, a PE ratio of 43.61 and a beta of 0.73. The stock has a 50-day moving average of $298.46 and a 200-day moving average of $316.28. Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. has a 52-week low of $275.56 and a 52-week high of $351.23. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.52, a quick ratio of 1.36 and a current ratio of 1.36.

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

Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. Announces Dividend

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, September 19th. Investors of record on Friday, September 5th were paid a dividend of $0.65 per share. The ex-dividend date was Friday, September 5th. This represents a $2.60 annualized dividend and a yield of 0.8%. Arthur J. Gallagher & Co.'s dividend payout ratio is presently 36.93%.

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.

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