Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. (NYSE:AJG) Shares Purchased by Mackenzie Financial Corp

Mackenzie Financial Corp grew its stake in Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. (NYSE:AJG - Free Report) by 16.1% in the fourth quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The institutional investor owned 112,087 shares of the financial services provider's stock after purchasing an additional 15,528 shares during the period. Mackenzie Financial Corp owned approximately 0.05% of Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. worth $25,206,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC).

A number of other large investors have also made changes to their positions in AJG. Norges Bank acquired a new position in Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. in the fourth quarter valued at approximately $1,431,788,000. FMR LLC lifted its holdings in Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. by 8.1% in the third quarter. FMR LLC now owns 9,664,117 shares of the financial services provider's stock valued at $2,202,742,000 after acquiring an additional 726,485 shares during the last quarter. Morgan Stanley lifted its holdings in Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. by 40.6% in the fourth quarter. Morgan Stanley now owns 2,143,144 shares of the financial services provider's stock valued at $404,069,000 after acquiring an additional 619,008 shares during the last quarter. Bank Julius Baer & Co. Ltd Zurich lifted its holdings in Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. by 36,168.9% in the third quarter. Bank Julius Baer & Co. Ltd Zurich now owns 357,974 shares of the financial services provider's stock valued at $81,593,000 after acquiring an additional 356,987 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Congress Asset Management Co. MA lifted its holdings in Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. by 7,923.4% in the third quarter. Congress Asset Management Co. MA now owns 298,871 shares of the financial services provider's stock valued at $68,122,000 after acquiring an additional 295,146 shares during the last quarter. 85.53% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

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

Insider Activity at Arthur J. Gallagher & Co.

In related 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 value of $308,026.40. Following the transaction, the vice president now owns 2,023 shares of the company's stock, valued at $516,269.60. The transaction 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 firm's stock in a transaction dated Monday, March 18th. The stock was sold at an average price of $255.20, for a total transaction of $308,026.40. Following the transaction, the vice president now owns 2,023 shares of the company's stock, valued at $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 firm's stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, February 6th. The stock was 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 in the company, valued at approximately $10,540,693.52. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders have sold 29,016 shares of company stock valued at $7,176,180 over the last quarter. 1.60% of the stock is owned by insiders.

Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. Stock Up 1.5 %

NYSE:AJG traded up $3.47 during trading hours on Thursday, hitting $233.99. The company's stock had a trading volume of 934,873 shares, compared to its average volume of 873,823. The stock has a market capitalization of $51.08 billion, a P/E ratio of 52.86, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.18 and a beta of 0.68. The stock has a fifty day moving average of $244.49 and a 200-day moving average of $238.64. The company has a current ratio of 1.03, a quick ratio of 1.03 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.65. Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. has a 52-week low of $198.52 and a 52-week high of $256.10.

Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. (NYSE:AJG - Get Free Report) last posted its earnings results on Thursday, January 25th. The financial services provider reported $1.85 EPS for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $1.83 by $0.02. The firm had revenue of $2.39 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $2.40 billion. Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. had a return on equity of 18.49% and a net margin of 9.63%. During the same quarter in the prior year, the company posted $1.54 earnings per share. On average, equities analysts forecast that Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. will post 10.06 earnings per share for the current year.

Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. Increases Dividend

The firm also recently announced 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 annualized dividend and a yield of 1.03%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Thursday, February 29th. This is a positive change from Arthur J. Gallagher & Co.'s previous quarterly dividend of $0.55. Arthur J. Gallagher & Co.'s dividend payout ratio is 54.05%.

Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. Profile

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.