Professional Advisory Services Inc. Sells 9,365 Shares of Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. (NYSE:AJG)

Professional Advisory Services Inc. trimmed its holdings in shares of Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. (NYSE:AJG - Free Report) by 12.6% in the first quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the SEC. The institutional investor owned 64,760 shares of the financial services provider's stock after selling 9,365 shares during the quarter. Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. accounts for 3.1% of Professional Advisory Services Inc.'s holdings, making the stock its 13th biggest position. Professional Advisory Services Inc.'s holdings in Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. were worth $22,358,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

A number of other large investors have also bought and sold shares of the business. Allred Capital Management LLC increased its stake in Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. by 1.0% during the 4th quarter. Allred Capital Management LLC now owns 3,380 shares of the financial services provider's stock worth $960,000 after purchasing an additional 34 shares in the last quarter. HBK Sorce Advisory LLC increased its stake in Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. by 3.2% during the 4th quarter. HBK Sorce Advisory LLC now owns 1,173 shares of the financial services provider's stock worth $333,000 after purchasing an additional 36 shares in the last quarter. RFG Advisory LLC increased its stake in Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. by 0.5% during the 1st quarter. RFG Advisory LLC now owns 7,195 shares of the financial services provider's stock worth $2,484,000 after purchasing an additional 36 shares in the last quarter. Sivia Capital Partners LLC increased its stake in Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. by 3.6% during the 1st quarter. Sivia Capital Partners LLC now owns 1,059 shares of the financial services provider's stock worth $366,000 after purchasing an additional 37 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Tucker Asset Management LLC increased its stake in Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. by 3.0% during the 4th quarter. Tucker Asset Management LLC now owns 1,419 shares of the financial services provider's stock worth $403,000 after purchasing an additional 41 shares in the last quarter. 85.53% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

Insider Buying and Selling at Arthur J. Gallagher & Co.

In other Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. news, VP Scott R. Hudson sold 7,510 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction on Friday, March 21st. The stock was sold at an average price of $333.59, for a total transaction of $2,505,260.90. Following the completion of the sale, the vice president now owns 90,020 shares of the company's stock, valued at $30,029,771.80. This trade represents a 7.70% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available through this hyperlink. Also, Director David S. Johnson sold 1,000 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction on Friday, May 16th. The shares were 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 of the company's stock, valued at $15,502,278.92. This represents a 2.16% decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders sold 32,510 shares of company stock valued at $11,033,341 in the last quarter. 1.60% of the stock is currently owned by insiders.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of equities analysts have weighed in on the company. Jefferies Financial Group reduced 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 report on Friday, April 11th. Barclays upped their price target on Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. from $308.00 to $346.00 and gave the stock an "equal weight" rating in a research report on Friday, April 11th. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods upped their price target on Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. from $315.00 to $326.00 and gave the stock a "market perform" rating in a research report on Thursday. Wells Fargo & Company upped their price target on Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. from $370.00 to $372.00 and gave the stock an "overweight" rating in a research report on Thursday, April 10th. Finally, Redburn Atlantic assumed coverage on Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. in a research report on Tuesday, March 25th. They set a "neutral" rating and a $352.00 price target for the company. Two 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 stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the company presently has an average rating of "Hold" and a consensus price target of $319.36.

Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. Trading Up 0.2%

NYSE AJG opened at $328.90 on Friday. The company has a market cap of $84.23 billion, a PE ratio of 50.44 and a beta of 0.74. The company has a current ratio of 1.51, a quick ratio of 1.51 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.63. Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. has a 12 month low of $251.42 and a 12 month high of $351.23. The stock has a 50 day moving average of $332.45 and a 200-day moving average of $316.95.

Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. (NYSE:AJG - Get Free Report) last released its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, May 1st. The financial services provider reported $3.67 EPS for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $3.57 by $0.10. The company had revenue of $3.69 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $3.85 billion. Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. had a return on equity of 16.47% and a net margin of 12.70%. The firm's revenue for the quarter was up 14.5% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter in the prior year, the firm posted $3.45 EPS. On average, 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 declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, June 20th. Shareholders of record on Friday, June 6th will be issued a dividend of $0.65 per share. This represents a $2.60 annualized dividend and a yield of 0.79%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, June 6th. Arthur J. Gallagher & Co.'s dividend payout ratio is 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.

This instant news alert was generated by narrative science technology and financial data from MarketBeat in order to provide readers with the fastest and most accurate reporting. This story was reviewed by MarketBeat's editorial team prior to publication. Please send any questions or comments about this story to contact@marketbeat.com.