Alley Investment Management Company LLC Sells 21,813 Shares of Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. $AJG

Alley Investment Management Company LLC lessened its holdings in Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. (NYSE:AJG) by 34.9% during the 4th quarter, according to its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The fund owned 40,745 shares of the financial services provider’s stock after selling 21,813 shares during the quarter. Alley Investment Management Company LLC’s holdings in Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. were worth $10,544,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission.

Other hedge funds also recently bought and sold shares of the company. Zurcher Kantonalbank Zurich Cantonalbank grew its position in shares of Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. by 27.3% during the 4th quarter. Zurcher Kantonalbank Zurich Cantonalbank now owns 105,558 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $27,317,000 after buying an additional 22,659 shares in the last quarter. TFR Capital LLC. boosted its position in Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. by 9.0% during the fourth quarter. TFR Capital LLC. now owns 3,836 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $993,000 after purchasing an additional 317 shares in the last quarter. Tokio Marine Asset Management Co. Ltd. boosted its position in Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. by 5.7% during the fourth quarter. Tokio Marine Asset Management Co. Ltd. now owns 9,320 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $2,412,000 after purchasing an additional 506 shares in the last quarter. Wealth Enhancement Trust Services Inc. bought a new stake in Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. during the fourth quarter valued at about $899,000. Finally, Asset Management One Co. Ltd. boosted its position in Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. by 12.1% during the fourth quarter. Asset Management One Co. Ltd. now owns 127,525 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $33,549,000 after purchasing an additional 13,775 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors own 85.53% of the company’s stock.

Insider Activity at Arthur J. Gallagher & Co.

In other news, VP Christopher E. Mead sold 4,000 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, March 5th. The stock was sold at an average price of $227.12, for a total value of $908,480.00. Following the transaction, the vice president owned 19,306 shares in the company, valued at $4,384,778.72. This trade represents a 17.16% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available through this link. Also, VP Scott R. Hudson sold 3,800 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Friday, March 6th. The stock was sold at an average price of $227.57, for a total transaction of $864,766.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the vice president directly owned 85,920 shares in the company, valued at approximately $19,552,814.40. This represents a 4.24% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The SEC filing for this sale provides additional information. 1.40% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of equities research analysts recently weighed in on the company. Barclays raised their price objective on Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. from $262.00 to $275.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research report on Wednesday, April 8th. Cantor Fitzgerald reaffirmed a “neutral” rating on shares of Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. in a research report on Friday, January 30th. Weiss Ratings reaffirmed a “hold (c+)” rating on shares of Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. in a research report on Monday, December 29th. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods dropped their price objective on Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. from $249.00 to $246.00 and set a “market perform” rating on the stock in a research report on Tuesday, April 7th. Finally, Royal Bank Of Canada initiated coverage on Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. in a research note on Tuesday, March 17th. They issued an “outperform” rating and a $260.00 price target for the company. Ten research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and nine have given a Hold rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat.com, Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $273.94.

Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. Trading Up 0.6%

Shares of NYSE:AJG opened at $222.99 on Tuesday. Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. has a 52-week low of $195.00 and a 52-week high of $351.23. The stock has a market cap of $57.33 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 36.26, a PEG ratio of 1.10 and a beta of 0.68. The company has a quick ratio of 1.06, a current ratio of 1.06 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.52. The business has a 50-day moving average price of $216.43 and a 200-day moving average price of $244.56.

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, topping the consensus estimate of $2.35 by $0.03. The firm had revenue of $3.57 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $3.61 billion. Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. had a return on equity of 12.13% and a net margin of 11.84%.The company’s revenue for the quarter was up 33.9% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period last year, the business posted $1.12 earnings per share. Equities analysts predict that Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. will post 13.19 EPS for the current year.

Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. Increases Dividend

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

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.