Axxcess Wealth Management LLC Reduces Stake in Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. (NYSE:AJG)

Axxcess Wealth Management LLC cut its stake in shares of Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. (NYSE:AJG) by 34.0% during the fourth quarter, HoldingsChannel reports. The firm owned 5,179 shares of the financial services provider’s stock after selling 2,664 shares during the quarter. Axxcess Wealth Management LLC’s holdings in Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. were worth $1,165,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Several other institutional investors have also modified their holdings of AJG. Beaird Harris Wealth Management LLC grew its holdings in Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. by 175.6% during the 3rd quarter. Beaird Harris Wealth Management LLC now owns 113 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $26,000 after purchasing an additional 72 shares during the last quarter. Annis Gardner Whiting Capital Advisors LLC purchased a new position in shares of Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. during the third quarter valued at approximately $28,000. SJS Investment Consulting Inc. grew its stake in shares of Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. by 460.9% during the fourth quarter. SJS Investment Consulting Inc. now owns 129 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $29,000 after buying an additional 106 shares during the last quarter. Ruedi Wealth Management Inc. purchased a new stake in shares of Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. in the fourth quarter worth approximately $33,000. Finally, Milestone Investment Advisors LLC purchased a new position in Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. during the 3rd quarter valued at $45,000. 85.53% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. Stock Performance

NYSE:AJG opened at $238.72 on Monday. The company’s 50-day moving average is $243.70 and its two-hundred day moving average is $239.06. The firm has a market capitalization of $52.16 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 48.32, a PEG ratio of 2.23 and a beta of 0.69. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.70, a current ratio of 1.05 and a quick ratio of 1.05. 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) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, April 25th. The financial services provider reported $3.49 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $3.41 by $0.08. The firm had revenue of $3.22 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $3.18 billion. Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. had a return on equity of 18.94% and a net margin of 10.27%. The company’s quarterly revenue was up 20.4% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period last year, the company earned $3.03 EPS. Analysts forecast that Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. will post 10.08 EPS for the current year.

Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. Announces Dividend

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, June 21st. Shareholders of record on Friday, June 7th will be paid a dividend of $0.60 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, June 7th. This represents a $2.40 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 1.01%. Arthur J. Gallagher & Co.’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 48.58%.

Insider Transactions at Arthur J. Gallagher & Co.

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

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

AJG has been the topic of several recent analyst reports. TD Cowen raised their price target on shares of 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 boosted their price target on Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. from $270.00 to $282.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a report on Friday, March 22nd. Truist Financial reissued a “hold” rating and issued 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. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods lowered their target price on Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. from $246.00 to $240.00 and set an “underperform” rating for the company in a report on Wednesday, April 10th. Finally, Jefferies Financial Group downgraded Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating and dropped their price target for the stock from $279.00 to $233.00 in a research report on Tuesday, January 9th. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, six have given a hold rating and five have given a buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. has a consensus rating of “Hold” and an average target price of $255.31.

Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. Company 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.