SC&H Financial Advisors Inc. Sells 700 Shares of Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. (NYSE:AJG)

SC&H Financial Advisors Inc. lowered its position in shares of Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. (NYSE:AJG) by 45.9% in the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The fund owned 824 shares of the financial services provider’s stock after selling 700 shares during the quarter. SC&H Financial Advisors Inc.’s holdings in Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. were worth $234,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Several other hedge funds also recently made changes to their positions in the business. Wealth Enhancement Advisory Services LLC boosted its holdings in Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. by 21.2% during the fourth quarter. Wealth Enhancement Advisory Services LLC now owns 67,146 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $18,893,000 after purchasing an additional 11,752 shares during the last quarter. DekaBank Deutsche Girozentrale lifted its position in Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. by 15.7% during the 3rd quarter. DekaBank Deutsche Girozentrale now owns 109,639 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $30,450,000 after buying an additional 14,860 shares in the last quarter. Principal Financial Group Inc. boosted its stake in shares of Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. by 231.2% during the 3rd quarter. Principal Financial Group Inc. now owns 885,796 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $249,237,000 after buying an additional 618,362 shares during the last quarter. Running Oak Capital LLC increased its position in shares of Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. by 8.9% in the fourth quarter. Running Oak Capital LLC now owns 48,722 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $13,830,000 after acquiring an additional 3,983 shares during the last quarter. Finally, MML Investors Services LLC raised its holdings in Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. by 1.2% during the third quarter. MML Investors Services LLC now owns 183,857 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $51,732,000 after acquiring an additional 2,092 shares in the last quarter. 85.53% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. Stock Performance

NYSE:AJG opened at $322.42 on Friday. The company has a current ratio of 1.51, a quick ratio of 1.06 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.63. The stock has a 50 day simple moving average of $291.82 and a 200 day simple moving average of $289.91. Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. has a 1-year low of $230.08 and a 1-year high of $323.55. The stock has a market cap of $80.54 billion, a P/E ratio of 49.45 and a beta of 0.77.

Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. (NYSE:AJG) last announced its earnings results on Thursday, January 30th. The financial services provider reported $2.13 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $2.03 by $0.10. Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. had a net margin of 12.70% and a return on equity of 16.47%. Research analysts anticipate that Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. will post 11.53 earnings per share for the current year.

Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. Increases Dividend

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, March 21st. Stockholders of record on Friday, March 7th will be given a $0.65 dividend. This represents a $2.60 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 0.81%. This is an increase from Arthur J. Gallagher & Co.’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.60. The ex-dividend date is Friday, March 7th. Arthur J. Gallagher & Co.’s payout ratio is presently 36.81%.

Insider Activity at Arthur J. Gallagher & Co.

In related news, VP Christopher E. Mead sold 2,900 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Monday, February 3rd. The shares were sold at an average price of $302.61, for a total transaction of $877,569.00. Following the completion of the sale, the vice president now owns 14,674 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $4,440,499.14. This represents a 16.50 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available through the SEC website. Also, Director Sherry S. Barrat sold 2,500 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, February 3rd. The shares were sold at an average price of $304.33, for a total transaction of $760,825.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the director now owns 16,533 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $5,031,487.89. The trade was a 13.14 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. 1.60% of the stock is currently owned by corporate insiders.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several research analysts have weighed in on AJG shares. Truist Financial boosted their price target on Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. from $275.00 to $290.00 and gave the stock a “hold” rating in a research report on Friday, January 31st. Royal Bank of Canada upped their price target on shares of Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. from $320.00 to $340.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a research report on Friday, January 31st. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods lifted their price objective on shares of Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. from $286.00 to $295.00 and gave the company a “market perform” rating in a research report on Friday, January 31st. Piper Sandler upgraded shares of Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. from a “neutral” rating to an “overweight” rating and raised their target price for the company from $285.00 to $315.00 in a research note on Wednesday, January 8th. Finally, Wells Fargo & Company lowered their price target on Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. from $344.00 to $341.00 and set an “overweight” rating on the stock in a research report on Friday, January 31st. Two investment analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, six have assigned a hold rating and six have given a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the company presently has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus target price of $307.00.

About Arthur J. Gallagher & Co.

Arthur J. Gallagher & Co engages in the provision of insurance brokerage, reinsurance brokerage, consulting, and third-party claims settlement and administration services. It operates through the following business segments: Brokerage, Risk Management, and Corporate. The Brokerage segment consists of retail and wholesale insurance brokerage operations.