US Bancorp DE Sells 8,087 Shares of Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. (NYSE:AJG)

Key Points

• US Bancorp DE reduced its holdings in Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. by 8.9%, owning 82,428 shares worth approximately $28.46 million after selling 8,087 shares.
• A recent quarterly dividend of $0.65 has been announced, with payment scheduled for September 19th, reflecting an annualized yield of 0.9%.
• Analysts have varied ratings on Arthur J. Gallagher & Co., with a consensus rating of "Hold" and a target price set at approximately $329.75.

US Bancorp DE trimmed its position in shares of Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. (NYSE:AJG - Free Report) by 8.9% in the 1st quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the SEC. The institutional investor owned 82,428 shares of the financial services provider's stock after selling 8,087 shares during the quarter. US Bancorp DE's holdings in Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. were worth $28,460,000 as of its most recent filing with the SEC.

Other hedge funds and other institutional investors also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. CWA Asset Management Group LLC boosted its holdings in Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. by 22.5% in the 1st quarter. CWA Asset Management Group LLC now owns 1,125 shares of the financial services provider's stock valued at $388,000 after purchasing an additional 207 shares during the last quarter. Two Sigma Investments LP purchased a new position in Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. in the fourth quarter worth approximately $382,000. Golden State Wealth Management LLC raised its position in Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. by 2,750.0% in the first quarter. Golden State Wealth Management LLC now owns 114 shares of the financial services provider's stock valued at $39,000 after purchasing an additional 110 shares during the period. Allspring Global Investments Holdings LLC grew its holdings in shares of Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. by 0.7% during the 1st quarter. Allspring Global Investments Holdings LLC now owns 11,280 shares of the financial services provider's stock worth $3,879,000 after purchasing an additional 82 shares during the period. Finally, Seven Grand Managers LLC purchased a new stake in Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. in the 4th quarter valued at about $7,096,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 85.53% of the company's stock.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of equities analysts recently weighed in on the stock. Barclays lowered their price objective on shares of Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. from $346.00 to $327.00 and set an "equal weight" rating for the company in a research report on Monday, July 7th. Erste Group Bank reissued a "hold" rating on shares of Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. in a research note on Wednesday, July 23rd. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods increased their target price on shares of Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. from $326.00 to $330.00 and gave the stock a "market perform" rating in a report on Wednesday, July 9th. Wells Fargo & Company upped their price objective on Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. from $371.00 to $373.00 and gave the stock an "overweight" rating in a research report on Friday, August 1st. Finally, Jefferies Financial Group decreased their price objective 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. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, eight have issued a hold rating and five have issued a buy rating to the company's stock. According to MarketBeat, Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. has a consensus rating of "Hold" and an average target price of $329.15.

Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. Trading Up 1.3%

Shares of AJG stock traded up $3.65 on Thursday, reaching $289.91. 3,101,835 shares of the stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 1,543,931. Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. has a 1-year low of $274.25 and a 1-year high of $351.23. The stock has a market cap of $74.33 billion, a P/E ratio of 41.18 and a beta of 0.68. The company has a quick ratio of 1.44, a current ratio of 1.36 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.52. The firm has a 50 day moving average of $314.73 and a two-hundred day moving average of $322.47.

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

Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. Dividend Announcement

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

Insider Transactions at Arthur J. Gallagher & Co.

In other news, insider Susan E. Pietrucha sold 13,500 shares of Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, May 19th. The shares were sold at an average price of $344.13, for a total value of $4,645,755.00. Following the transaction, the insider owned 11,941 shares of the company's stock, valued at $4,109,256.33. The trade was a 53.06% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is accessible through this link. Also, Director David S. Johnson sold 1,000 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, May 16th. The stock was sold at an average price of $342.04, for a total transaction of $342,040.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the director directly owned 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. Over the last quarter, insiders sold 25,000 shares of company stock valued at $8,528,080. 1.60% of the stock is currently owned by corporate insiders.

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.