Alliancebernstein L.P. Sells 90,461 Shares of Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. $AJG

Alliancebernstein L.P. lessened its holdings in shares of Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. (NYSE:AJG) by 8.0% in the third quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 1,035,632 shares of the financial services provider’s stock after selling 90,461 shares during the quarter. Alliancebernstein L.P. owned 0.40% of Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. worth $320,777,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Other large investors have also recently made changes to their positions in the company. Vanguard Group Inc. grew its holdings in shares of Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. by 2.3% during the second quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 31,096,542 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $9,954,625,000 after buying an additional 685,278 shares during the last quarter. JPMorgan Chase & Co. lifted its position in Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. by 19.6% in the 3rd quarter. JPMorgan Chase & Co. now owns 20,338,533 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $6,299,674,000 after acquiring an additional 3,330,205 shares in the last quarter. Capital World Investors lifted its position in Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. by 0.9% in the 3rd quarter. Capital World Investors now owns 11,783,119 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $3,649,477,000 after acquiring an additional 101,298 shares in the last quarter. State Street Corp boosted its stake in Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. by 1.1% during the 2nd quarter. State Street Corp now owns 10,743,493 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $3,439,207,000 after purchasing an additional 117,646 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Capital International Investors increased its holdings in Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. by 0.6% during the 3rd quarter. Capital International Investors now owns 7,194,743 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $2,228,156,000 after purchasing an additional 45,256 shares in the last quarter. 85.53% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. Stock Up 1.8%

AJG stock opened at $207.86 on Monday. The stock’s fifty day simple moving average is $234.93 and its two-hundred day simple moving average is $259.95. The company has a current ratio of 1.06, a quick ratio of 1.06 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.52. Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. has a 1-year low of $195.00 and a 1-year high of $351.23. The stock has a market cap of $53.44 billion, a P/E ratio of 33.80, a P/E/G ratio of 1.01 and a beta of 0.67.

Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. (NYSE:AJG) last announced its earnings results on Thursday, January 29th. The financial services provider reported $2.38 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $2.35 by $0.03. The firm had revenue of $3.57 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $3.61 billion. Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. had a return on equity of 12.13% and a net margin of 11.84%.The business’s revenue was up 33.9% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period last year, the firm posted $1.12 EPS. Analysts expect that Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. will post 11.54 EPS for the current year.

Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. Increases Dividend

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, March 20th. Investors of record on Friday, March 6th will be issued a dividend of $0.70 per share. This represents a $2.80 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 1.3%. This is a boost from Arthur J. Gallagher & Co.’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.65. The ex-dividend date is Friday, March 6th. Arthur J. Gallagher & Co.’s dividend payout ratio is 45.53%.

Insider Activity at Arthur J. Gallagher & Co.

In other news, CFO Douglas K. Howell sold 5,000 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, December 22nd. The shares were sold at an average price of $258.05, for a total transaction of $1,290,250.00. Following the completion of the sale, 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 sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available at this hyperlink. Also, VP Scott R. Hudson sold 3,800 shares of Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. stock in a transaction that occurred on 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 sale, the vice president directly owned 85,920 shares in the company, valued at $19,552,814.40. This trade represents a 4.24% decrease in their position. The SEC filing for this sale provides additional information. Over the last three months, insiders have sold 32,650 shares of company stock worth $8,137,686. 1.30% of the stock is currently owned by corporate insiders.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

AJG has been the topic of a number of recent research reports. Piper Sandler dropped their target price on Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. from $249.00 to $226.00 and set a “neutral” rating on the stock in a report on Monday, February 23rd. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods decreased their price target on Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. from $279.00 to $249.00 and set a “market perform” rating for the company in a report on Friday, January 30th. Truist Financial set a $271.00 price objective on Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. in a research note on Friday, January 30th. Wall Street Zen raised shares of Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. from a “sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Saturday, February 21st. Finally, Cantor Fitzgerald reiterated a “neutral” rating on shares of Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. in a research note on Friday, January 30th. Eight analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and eleven have issued a Hold rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. presently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $282.65.

Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. Company 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.