Avanza Fonder AB Has $6.26 Million Position in Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. $AJG

Avanza Fonder AB grew its position in Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. (NYSE:AJG) by 18.8% during the 4th quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the SEC. The institutional investor owned 24,193 shares of the financial services provider’s stock after purchasing an additional 3,826 shares during the period. Avanza Fonder AB’s holdings in Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. were worth $6,261,000 as of its most recent filing with the SEC.

A number of other hedge funds have also made changes to their positions in the company. Physician Wealth Advisors Inc. boosted its holdings in shares of Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. by 870.0% in the 3rd quarter. Physician Wealth Advisors Inc. now owns 97 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $30,000 after acquiring an additional 87 shares in the last quarter. Rakuten Securities Inc. raised its position in Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. by 650.0% in the 2nd quarter. Rakuten Securities Inc. now owns 105 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $34,000 after purchasing an additional 91 shares during the last quarter. Financial Life Planners acquired a new position in Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. in the third quarter worth $39,000. Central Pacific Bank Trust Division grew its holdings in shares of Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. by 40.6% during the third quarter. Central Pacific Bank Trust Division now owns 135 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $42,000 after purchasing an additional 39 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Westside Investment Management Inc. increased its stake in shares of Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. by 100.0% in the third quarter. Westside Investment Management Inc. now owns 136 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $42,000 after buying an additional 68 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 85.53% of the company’s stock.

Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. Stock Up 1.0%

Shares of NYSE:AJG opened at $216.89 on Tuesday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.52, a current ratio of 1.06 and a quick ratio of 1.06. The stock has a market cap of $55.76 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 35.27, a P/E/G ratio of 1.07 and a beta of 0.67. The company has a 50 day moving average of $228.80 and a 200-day moving average of $256.16. Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. has a one year low of $195.00 and a one year high of $351.23.

Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. (NYSE:AJG) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, January 29th. The financial services provider reported $2.38 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $2.35 by $0.03. Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. had a net margin of 11.84% and a return on equity of 12.13%. The firm had revenue of $3.57 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $3.61 billion. During the same period last year, the firm earned $1.12 earnings per share. The business’s revenue for the quarter was up 33.9% on a year-over-year basis. On average, sell-side analysts forecast that Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. will post 11.54 earnings per share for the current year.

Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. Increases Dividend

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, March 20th. Stockholders of record on Friday, March 6th were given a $0.70 dividend. The ex-dividend date was Friday, March 6th. This represents a $2.80 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 1.3%. This is an increase from Arthur J. Gallagher & Co.’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.65. Arthur J. Gallagher & Co.’s dividend payout ratio is 45.53%.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

AJG has been the topic of several research reports. Jefferies Financial Group reduced their price target on shares of Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. from $283.00 to $280.00 and set a “hold” rating on the stock in a research report on Monday, February 2nd. Cantor Fitzgerald reaffirmed a “neutral” rating on shares of Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. in a research note on Friday, January 30th. Weiss Ratings reiterated a “hold (c+)” rating on shares of Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. in a research report on Monday, December 29th. Wall Street Zen raised shares of Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. from a “sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Saturday, February 21st. Finally, Wolfe Research set a $289.00 price objective on shares of Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a research report on Wednesday, December 17th. Nine equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and eleven have given a Hold rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the company has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus target price of $278.00.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other news, VP Scott R. Hudson sold 3,800 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Friday, March 6th. The stock was sold at an average price of $227.57, for a total value of $864,766.00. Following the completion of the sale, the vice president directly owned 85,920 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $19,552,814.40. This represents a 4.24% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available through this hyperlink. Also, VP Christopher E. Mead sold 4,000 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, March 5th. The shares were sold at an average price of $227.12, for a total transaction of $908,480.00. Following the completion of the sale, the vice president owned 19,306 shares in the company, valued at $4,384,778.72. This represents a 17.16% decrease in their ownership of the stock. Additional details regarding this sale are available in the official SEC disclosure. 1.30% of the stock is owned by insiders.

About Arthur J. Gallagher & Co.

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.