Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. $AJG Shares Sold by Ayrshire Capital Management LLC

Ayrshire Capital Management LLC reduced its stake in Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. (NYSE:AJG) by 36.4% in the third quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The firm owned 14,617 shares of the financial services provider’s stock after selling 8,372 shares during the period. Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. accounts for about 2.1% of Ayrshire Capital Management LLC’s investment portfolio, making the stock its 27th biggest holding. Ayrshire Capital Management LLC’s holdings in Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. were worth $4,528,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission.

Several other hedge funds have also made changes to their positions in the stock. Vanguard Group Inc. grew its stake in Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. by 2.3% during the 2nd quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 31,096,542 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $9,954,625,000 after buying an additional 685,278 shares during the last quarter. State Street Corp grew its position in shares of Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. by 1.1% during the second quarter. State Street Corp now owns 10,743,493 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $3,439,207,000 after acquiring an additional 117,646 shares during the last quarter. Norges Bank acquired a new stake in shares of Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. in the 2nd quarter worth about $1,536,230,000. WCM Investment Management LLC lifted its position in Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. by 5.5% in the 2nd quarter. WCM Investment Management LLC now owns 2,464,662 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $783,097,000 after purchasing an additional 128,071 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Mitsubishi UFJ Asset Management Co. Ltd. boosted its stake in Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. by 4.2% during the 2nd quarter. Mitsubishi UFJ Asset Management Co. Ltd. now owns 2,381,835 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $762,473,000 after purchasing an additional 94,940 shares during the period. Institutional investors own 85.53% of the company’s stock.

Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. Trading Down 0.5%

Shares of AJG stock opened at $261.93 on Wednesday. The stock has a 50-day simple moving average of $254.45 and a 200 day simple moving average of $286.02. The stock has a market capitalization of $67.26 billion, a P/E ratio of 39.15 and a beta of 0.69. Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. has a fifty-two week low of $236.34 and a fifty-two week high of $351.23. The company has a quick ratio of 1.06, a current ratio of 1.06 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.52.

Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. (NYSE:AJG) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, October 30th. The financial services provider reported $2.32 earnings per share for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $2.51 by ($0.19). The business had revenue of $3.33 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $3.34 billion. Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. had a net margin of 13.58% and a return on equity of 11.98%. Arthur J. Gallagher & Co.’s revenue was up 20.2% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period in the previous year, the company posted $2.26 earnings per share. On average, sell-side analysts expect that Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. will post 11.54 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. Announces Dividend

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, December 19th. Shareholders of record on Friday, December 5th were given a $0.65 dividend. The ex-dividend date was Friday, December 5th. This represents a $2.60 annualized dividend and a yield of 1.0%. Arthur J. Gallagher & Co.’s payout ratio is 38.86%.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several brokerages have commented on AJG. UBS Group dropped their price target on shares of Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. from $329.00 to $285.00 and set a “neutral” rating on the stock in a research note on Wednesday, December 17th. Wells Fargo & Company cut their target price on Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. from $344.00 to $328.00 and set an “overweight” rating on the stock in a research note on Monday, December 22nd. Morgan Stanley set a $300.00 price target on Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. in a research note on Friday, December 19th. Barclays lowered Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. from an “equal weight” rating to an “underweight” rating and lowered their price target for the company from $328.00 to $250.00 in a report on Thursday, November 20th. Finally, Citigroup decreased their target price on shares of Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. from $330.00 to $277.00 and set a “neutral” rating for the company in a research report on Monday, November 3rd. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, nine have given a Buy rating, nine have assigned a Hold rating and one has given a Sell rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat, the stock has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $302.22.

Insider Buying and Selling

In related news, CFO Douglas K. Howell sold 5,000 shares of the stock in a transaction on Monday, December 22nd. The stock was sold at an average price of $258.05, for a total value of $1,290,250.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief financial officer owned 95,777 shares in the company, valued at $24,715,254.85. This trade represents a 4.96% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which can be accessed through the SEC website. Also, General Counsel Walter D. Bay sold 15,850 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated Friday, December 19th. The stock was sold at an average price of $255.00, for a total value of $4,041,750.00. Following the sale, the general counsel owned 79,549 shares in the company, valued at approximately $20,284,995. The trade was a 16.61% decrease in their position. Additional details regarding this sale are available in the official SEC disclosure. Insiders have sold 32,100 shares of company stock valued at $8,243,865 in the last three months. Insiders own 1.30% of the company’s stock.

Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. Profile

Arthur J. Gallagher & Co is a global insurance brokerage and risk management firm headquartered in Rolling Meadows, Illinois. Founded in 1927 by Arthur J. Gallagher, the company has grown from a regional broker into an international professional services organization that arranges insurance, provides consulting and designs risk-transfer solutions for commercial, industrial, public sector and individual clients.

The company’s core activities include property and casualty insurance brokerage, employee benefits consulting and administration, and a range of risk management services.