Wellington Management Group LLP Sells 1,301,884 Shares of Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. $AJG

Key Points

• Wellington Management Group LLP cut its Arthur J. Gallagher stake by 50.4%, selling 1,301,884 shares and retaining 1,281,475 shares valued at approximately $294.2 million. Institutional investors collectively own 85.53% of AJG.
• Analysts maintain a positive outlook, with a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $290.28; recent firms raised targets as high as $300.
• Arthur J. Gallagher reported quarterly EPS of $2.84, slightly above estimates, while revenue rose 24.3% year over year to $3.95 billion. The company also declared a quarterly dividend of $0.70 per share, representing a 1.0% annualized yield.

Wellington Management Group LLP trimmed its stake in shares of Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. (NYSE:AJG - Free Report) by 50.4% in the second quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The institutional investor owned 1,281,475 shares of the financial services provider's stock after selling 1,301,884 shares during the quarter. Wellington Management Group LLP owned approximately 0.50% of Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. worth $294,188,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Other hedge funds have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Kemnay Advisory Services Inc. bought a new position in shares of Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. in the 4th quarter valued at $26,000. Axiom Investment Management LLC bought a new stake in Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. during the 1st quarter worth $28,000. Cassaday & Co Wealth Management LLC bought a new stake in Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. during the 1st quarter worth $29,000. MV Capital Management Inc. acquired a new position in Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. in the 4th quarter worth about $34,000. Finally, Rakuten Securities Inc. raised its position in Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. by 650.0% in the second quarter. Rakuten Securities Inc. now owns 105 shares of the financial services provider's stock valued at $34,000 after purchasing an additional 91 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 85.53% of the company's stock.

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

In other Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. news, General Counsel Walter D. Bay sold 12,000 shares of the business's stock in a transaction dated Monday, August 24th. The shares were sold at an average price of $270.08, for a total value of $3,240,960.00. Following the transaction, the general counsel directly owned 71,292 shares in the company, valued at $19,254,543.36. The trade was a 14.41% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through the SEC website. Also, VP Christopher E. Mead sold 3,500 shares of the stock in a transaction on Wednesday, August 19th. The shares were sold at an average price of $257.02, for a total value of $899,570.00. Following the transaction, the vice president directly owned 22,223 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $5,711,755.46. This trade represents a 13.61% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale is available in the SEC filing. In the last 90 days, insiders sold 18,500 shares of company stock worth $4,758,530. Insiders own 1.40% of the company's stock.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

AJG has been the subject of a number of recent research reports. Barclays increased their price objective on Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. from $275.00 to $292.00 and gave the company an "overweight" rating in a report on Tuesday, July 7th. UBS Group upped their price target on Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. from $291.00 to $299.00 and gave the company a "buy" rating in a research report on Monday, August 3rd. Jefferies Financial Group upgraded Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. from a "hold" rating to a "buy" rating and raised their price objective for the stock from $235.00 to $265.00 in a research report on Thursday, June 11th. Mizuho lifted their price objective on Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. from $287.00 to $300.00 and gave the stock an "outperform" rating in a research note on Friday, July 31st. Finally, Piper Sandler increased their target price on shares of Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. from $276.00 to $287.00 and gave the company an "overweight" rating in a research report on Friday, July 31st. Fourteen research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and five have issued a Hold rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the stock presently has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average price target of $290.28.

Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. Price Performance

Shares of NYSE:AJG opened at $267.43 on Monday. Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. has a twelve month low of $190.75 and a twelve month high of $313.55. The stock's 50 day moving average is $249.63 and its 200-day moving average is $225.84. The company has a quick ratio of 1.05, a current ratio of 1.05 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.50. The firm has a market capitalization of $68.54 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 44.35, a PEG ratio of 1.62 and a beta of 0.50.

Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. (NYSE:AJG - Get Free Report) last announced its earnings results on Thursday, July 30th. The financial services provider reported $2.84 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $2.81 by $0.03. The company had revenue of $3.95 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $4.01 billion. Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. had a return on equity of 13.28% and a net margin of 9.96%.Arthur J. Gallagher & Co.'s quarterly revenue was up 24.3% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter in the previous year, the firm earned $2.33 earnings per share. Sell-side analysts forecast that Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. will post 13.28 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. Dividend Announcement

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, September 18th. Shareholders of record on Tuesday, September 8th will be given a $0.70 dividend. This represents a $2.80 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 1.0%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Tuesday, September 8th. Arthur J. Gallagher & Co.'s dividend payout ratio is presently 46.43%.

About Arthur J. Gallagher & Co.

Arthur J. Gallagher & Co is a global insurance brokerage and risk management firm headquartered in Rolling Meadows, Illinois. Founded in 1927 by Arthur J. Gallagher, the company has grown from a regional broker into an international professional services organization that arranges insurance, provides consulting and designs risk-transfer solutions for commercial, industrial, public sector and individual clients.

The company's core activities include property and casualty insurance brokerage, employee benefits consulting and administration, and a range of risk management services.

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