Benjamin Edwards Inc. Acquires 19,159 Shares of Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. (NYSE:AJG)

Benjamin Edwards Inc. raised its holdings in Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. (NYSE:AJG) by 18.7% during the 1st quarter, according to its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The fund owned 121,462 shares of the financial services provider’s stock after acquiring an additional 19,159 shares during the quarter. Benjamin Edwards Inc.’s holdings in Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. were worth $41,934,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission.

Several other hedge funds also recently bought and sold shares of AJG. HWG Holdings LP purchased a new stake in shares of Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. in the 1st quarter worth $25,000. Johnson Financial Group Inc. lifted its holdings in shares of Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. by 205.4% in the 4th quarter. Johnson Financial Group Inc. now owns 113 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $34,000 after buying an additional 76 shares during the period. Parvin Asset Management LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. in the 4th quarter worth $35,000. Centennial Bank AR purchased a new stake in shares of Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. in the 1st quarter worth $38,000. Finally, Golden State Wealth Management LLC lifted its holdings in shares of Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. by 2,750.0% in the 1st quarter. Golden State Wealth Management LLC now owns 114 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $39,000 after buying an additional 110 shares during the period. Institutional investors own 85.53% of the company’s stock.

Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. Stock Performance

NYSE AJG opened at $290.13 on Friday. The company has a market cap of $74.39 billion, a PE ratio of 41.21 and a beta of 0.68. The stock’s 50 day simple moving average is $312.55 and its 200-day simple moving average is $322.39. Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. has a 1-year low of $274.25 and a 1-year high of $351.23. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.52, a current ratio of 1.36 and a quick ratio of 1.44.

Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. (NYSE:AJG) last released its earnings results on Thursday, July 31st. The financial services provider reported $2.33 earnings per share for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $2.36 by ($0.03). The firm had revenue of $3.18 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $3.20 billion. Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. had a net margin of 14.54% and a return on equity of 13.17%. The business’s revenue was up 16.0% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter last year, the business earned $2.29 EPS. As a group, equities research analysts anticipate that Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. will post 11.54 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. Announces Dividend

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, September 19th. Investors of record on Friday, September 5th will be given a dividend of $0.65 per share. The ex-dividend date is Friday, September 5th. This represents a $2.60 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 0.9%. Arthur J. Gallagher & Co.’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 36.93%.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

AJG has been the subject of a number of analyst reports. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods upped their price objective on Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. from $326.00 to $330.00 and gave the stock a “market perform” rating in a research note 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 note on Friday, August 1st. Erste Group Bank reaffirmed a “hold” rating on shares of Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. in a research report on Wednesday, July 23rd. Barclays reduced their target price on Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. from $346.00 to $327.00 and set an “equal weight” rating on the stock in a research report on Monday, July 7th. Finally, Jefferies Financial Group reduced their target price on Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. from $266.00 to $265.00 and set a “hold” rating on the stock in a research report on Friday, April 11th. Two analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, eight have assigned a hold rating and five have assigned a buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the company has a consensus rating of “Hold” and a consensus target price of $329.15.

Insider Buying and Selling

In related 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 stock was sold at an average price of $344.13, for a total transaction of $4,645,755.00. Following the transaction, the insider owned 11,941 shares in the company, valued at approximately $4,109,256.33. This trade represents a 53.06% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through this link. Also, VP Scott R. Hudson sold 10,500 shares of Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, May 21st. The stock was sold at an average price of $337.17, for a total value of $3,540,285.00. Following the transaction, the vice president owned 91,175 shares in the company, valued at approximately $30,741,474.75. The trade was a 10.33% decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Over the last 90 days, insiders have sold 25,000 shares of company stock worth $8,528,080. 1.60% of the stock is 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.