United Super Pty Ltd in its capacity as Trustee for the Construction & Building Unions Superannuation Fund Takes Position in Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. (NYSE:AJG)

United Super Pty Ltd in its capacity as Trustee for the Construction & Building Unions Superannuation Fund bought a new position in Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. (NYSE:AJG - Free Report) in the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The institutional investor bought 83,331 shares of the financial services provider's stock, valued at approximately $18,739,000.

Several other institutional investors and hedge funds also recently modified their holdings of AJG. McGlone Suttner Wealth Management Inc. lifted its stake in shares of Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. by 4.0% in the fourth quarter. McGlone Suttner Wealth Management Inc. now owns 2,286 shares of the financial services provider's stock worth $514,000 after acquiring an additional 88 shares in the last quarter. Fidelis Capital Partners LLC lifted its stake in shares of Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. by 3.7% in the third quarter. Fidelis Capital Partners LLC now owns 1,325 shares of the financial services provider's stock worth $302,000 after acquiring an additional 47 shares in the last quarter. Louisiana State Employees Retirement System acquired a new position in shares of Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. in the fourth quarter worth about $2,946,000. Legato Capital Management LLC lifted its stake in shares of Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. by 43.7% in the fourth quarter. Legato Capital Management LLC now owns 13,495 shares of the financial services provider's stock worth $3,035,000 after acquiring an additional 4,102 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Guinness Atkinson Asset Management Inc lifted its stake in shares of Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. by 7.4% in the third quarter. Guinness Atkinson Asset Management Inc now owns 3,913 shares of the financial services provider's stock worth $892,000 after acquiring an additional 268 shares in the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 85.53% of the company's stock.

Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. Stock Performance

Shares of Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. stock traded down $0.91 on Wednesday, reaching $230.52. 735,836 shares of the company were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 872,526. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.65, a quick ratio of 1.03 and a current ratio of 1.03. The company's 50-day moving average is $244.49 and its two-hundred day moving average is $238.64. The firm has a market cap of $50.32 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 51.92, a P/E/G ratio of 2.18 and a beta of 0.68. Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. has a 1-year low of $198.52 and a 1-year high of $256.10.

Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. (NYSE:AJG - Get Free Report) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, January 25th. The financial services provider reported $1.85 earnings per share for the quarter, topping analysts' consensus estimates of $1.83 by $0.02. Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. had a return on equity of 18.49% and a net margin of 9.63%. The business had revenue of $2.39 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $2.40 billion. During the same period in the prior year, the firm earned $1.54 EPS. As a group, research analysts expect that Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. will post 10.06 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. Increases Dividend

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, March 15th. Investors of record on Friday, March 1st were issued a $0.60 dividend. This represents a $2.40 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 1.04%. This is a positive change from Arthur J. Gallagher & Co.'s previous quarterly dividend of $0.55. The ex-dividend date was Thursday, February 29th. Arthur J. Gallagher & Co.'s dividend payout ratio is 54.05%.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several research analysts recently commented on AJG shares. TD Cowen boosted their price target on Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. from $249.00 to $273.00 and gave the stock a "hold" rating in a research note on Tuesday, April 2nd. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods cut their price objective on Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. from $246.00 to $240.00 and set an "underperform" rating on the stock in a research note on Wednesday, April 10th. Truist Financial restated a "hold" rating and set a $255.00 price objective (down previously from $280.00) on shares of Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. in a research note on Wednesday, April 10th. Jefferies Financial Group cut Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. from a "buy" rating to a "hold" rating and cut their price objective for the company from $279.00 to $233.00 in a research note on Tuesday, January 9th. Finally, Royal Bank of Canada upped their price objective on Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. from $270.00 to $282.00 and gave the company an "outperform" rating in a research note on Friday, March 22nd. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, six have assigned a hold rating and five have issued a buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. currently has an average rating of "Hold" and a consensus target price of $255.23.

Insider Buying and Selling

In related news, Director David S. Johnson sold 500 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, February 6th. The stock was sold at an average price of $234.04, for a total value of $117,020.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the director now directly owns 45,038 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $10,540,693.52. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this link. In other Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. news, VP Joel D. Cavaness sold 1,207 shares of the stock in a transaction on Monday, March 18th. The stock was sold at an average price of $255.20, for a total transaction of $308,026.40. Following the completion of the transaction, the vice president now directly owns 2,023 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $516,269.60. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is accessible through the SEC website. Also, Director David S. Johnson sold 500 shares of the stock in a transaction on Tuesday, February 6th. The shares were sold at an average price of $234.04, for a total value of $117,020.00. Following the transaction, the director now directly owns 45,038 shares of the company's stock, valued at $10,540,693.52. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders sold 29,016 shares of company stock valued at $7,176,180 in the last three months. 1.60% of the stock is currently owned by corporate insiders.

About Arthur J. Gallagher & Co.

Arthur J. Gallagher & Co, together with its subsidiaries, provides insurance and reinsurance brokerage, consulting, and third-party property/casualty claims settlement and administration services to entities and individuals worldwide. It operates in Brokerage and Risk Management segments. The Brokerage segment offers retail and wholesale insurance and reinsurance brokerage services; assists retail brokers and other non-affiliated brokers in the placement of specialized and hard-to-place insurance; and acts as a brokerage wholesaler, managing general agent, and managing general underwriter for distributing specialized insurance coverages to underwriting enterprises.