Metis Global Partners LLC Acquires 579 Shares of Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. (NYSE:AJG)

Metis Global Partners LLC raised its position in shares of Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. (NYSE:AJG) by 6.2% in the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 9,968 shares of the financial services provider’s stock after purchasing an additional 579 shares during the period. Metis Global Partners LLC’s holdings in Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. were worth $2,829,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission.

A number of other institutional investors and hedge funds have also bought and sold shares of AJG. Valley National Advisers Inc. bought a new stake in Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. during the 4th quarter valued at $25,000. Pin Oak Investment Advisors Inc. raised its position in Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. by 543.8% during the 3rd quarter. Pin Oak Investment Advisors Inc. now owns 103 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $28,000 after purchasing an additional 87 shares in the last quarter. Rakuten Securities Inc. raised its position in Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. by 580.0% during the 3rd quarter. Rakuten Securities Inc. now owns 102 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $29,000 after purchasing an additional 87 shares in the last quarter. E Fund Management Hong Kong Co. Ltd. bought a new stake in Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. during the 4th quarter valued at $35,000. Finally, Financial Life Planners bought a new stake in Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. during the 4th quarter valued at $36,000. 85.53% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of equities research analysts have weighed in on AJG shares. Truist Financial lifted their target price on Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. from $275.00 to $290.00 and gave the company a “hold” rating in a research report on Friday, January 31st. Royal Bank of Canada boosted their price target on 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 boosted their price target on Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. from $286.00 to $295.00 and gave the stock a “market perform” rating in a research report on Friday, January 31st. TD Cowen raised Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating and boosted their price target for the stock from $295.00 to $377.00 in a research report on Friday, January 10th. Finally, BMO Capital Markets boosted their price target on Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. from $312.00 to $325.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a research report on Tuesday, November 12th. Two investment analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, six have given a hold rating and six have issued a buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the company currently has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus target price of $307.00.

Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. Stock Up 1.3 %

Shares of AJG stock opened at $337.61 on Friday. Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. has a 1-year low of $230.08 and a 1-year high of $338.43. The stock’s fifty day moving average price is $302.93 and its 200 day moving average price is $295.15. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.63, a current ratio of 1.51 and a quick ratio of 1.51. The company has a market cap of $85.99 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 51.78 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 for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $2.03 by $0.10. Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. had a return on equity of 16.47% and a net margin of 12.70%. On average, research analysts expect that Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. will post 11.54 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. Increases Dividend

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, March 21st. Shareholders of record on Friday, March 7th will be paid a dividend of $0.65 per share. This represents a $2.60 annualized dividend and a yield of 0.77%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, March 7th. This is an increase from Arthur J. Gallagher & Co.’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.60. Arthur J. Gallagher & Co.’s payout ratio is presently 39.88%.

Insider Buying and Selling at Arthur J. Gallagher & Co.

In other Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. news, Director Sherry S. Barrat sold 2,500 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated Monday, February 3rd. The stock was sold at an average price of $304.33, for a total transaction of $760,825.00. Following the sale, the director now owns 16,533 shares in the company, valued at approximately $5,031,487.89. The trade was a 13.14 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through the SEC website. Also, CAO Richard C. Cary sold 10,000 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated Monday, February 10th. The shares were sold at an average price of $322.99, for a total value of $3,229,900.00. Following the sale, the chief accounting officer now owns 69,774 shares in the company, valued at approximately $22,536,304.26. The trade was a 12.54 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last 90 days, insiders have sold 15,725 shares of company stock worth $4,972,964. 1.60% of the stock is currently owned by insiders.

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.