Jefferies Financial Group Inc. Buys 4,764 Shares of Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. (NYSE:AJG)

Jefferies Financial Group Inc. boosted its stake in Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. (NYSE:AJG - Free Report) by 473.6% during the 4th quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 5,770 shares of the financial services provider's stock after acquiring an additional 4,764 shares during the quarter. Jefferies Financial Group Inc.'s holdings in Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. were worth $1,638,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

A number of other large investors have also recently bought and sold shares of the company. Valley National Advisers Inc. acquired a new stake in shares of Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. in the 4th quarter valued at approximately $25,000. MRP Capital Investments LLC acquired a new stake in Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. in the 4th quarter valued at about $28,000. New Age Alpha Advisors LLC grew its holdings in Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. by 81.7% during the fourth quarter. New Age Alpha Advisors LLC now owns 109 shares of the financial services provider's stock worth $31,000 after purchasing an additional 49 shares during the period. Johnson Financial Group Inc. raised its stake in Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. by 205.4% in the fourth quarter. Johnson Financial Group Inc. now owns 113 shares of the financial services provider's stock valued at $34,000 after buying an additional 76 shares during the period. Finally, E Fund Management Hong Kong Co. Ltd. acquired a new stake in shares of Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. in the fourth quarter valued at approximately $35,000. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 85.53% of the company's stock.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. news, VP Scott R. Hudson sold 7,510 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Friday, March 21st. The stock was sold at an average price of $333.59, for a total value of $2,505,260.90. Following the transaction, the vice president now owns 90,020 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $30,029,771.80. This represents a 7.70% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through the SEC website. Corporate insiders own 1.60% of the company's stock.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several analysts recently issued reports on AJG shares. Royal Bank of Canada boosted their price target on Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. from $320.00 to $340.00 and gave the company an "outperform" rating in a research note on Friday, January 31st. Barclays raised their target price on Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. from $308.00 to $346.00 and gave the stock an "equal weight" rating in a research note on Friday, April 11th. Jefferies Financial Group decreased their price target on Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. from $266.00 to $265.00 and set a "hold" rating for the company in a report on Friday, April 11th. Truist Financial upped their price objective on Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. from $275.00 to $290.00 and gave the company a "hold" rating in a research note on Friday, January 31st. Finally, Keefe, Bruyette & Woods increased their target price on shares of Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. from $307.00 to $315.00 and gave the stock a "market perform" rating in a research note on Friday, May 2nd. Two analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, seven have given a hold rating and five have given a buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the company currently has an average rating of "Hold" and an average target price of $318.57.

Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. Stock Down 0.5%

Shares of AJG stock traded down $1.83 during mid-day trading on Tuesday, reaching $341.99. 125,454 shares of the company's stock traded hands, compared to its average volume of 1,597,872. The company's 50-day moving average price is $331.16 and its 200-day moving average price is $312.51. The company has a market cap of $87.58 billion, a P/E ratio of 52.44 and a beta of 0.78. The company has a quick ratio of 1.51, a current ratio of 1.51 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.63. Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. has a 12 month low of $244.60 and a 12 month high of $350.70.

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 analysts' consensus estimates of $3.57 by $0.10. Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. had a net margin of 12.70% and a return on equity of 16.47%. The business had revenue of $3.69 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $3.85 billion. During the same quarter in the prior year, the company earned $3.45 earnings per share. The business's revenue was up 14.5% compared to the same quarter last year. On average, equities analysts expect that Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. will post 11.54 earnings per share 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, June 20th. Investors of record on Friday, June 6th will be issued a $0.65 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, June 6th. This represents a $2.60 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 0.76%. Arthur J. Gallagher & Co.'s payout ratio 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.