Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. $AJG Shares Sold by Brookstone Capital Management

Brookstone Capital Management reduced its position in Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. (NYSE:AJG) by 94.3% in the 1st quarter, Holdings Channel reports. The fund owned 3,827 shares of the financial services provider’s stock after selling 63,757 shares during the period. Brookstone Capital Management’s holdings in Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. were worth $829,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Other large investors have also modified their holdings of the company. Vanguard Group Inc. grew its position in Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. by 0.7% during the fourth quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 31,390,446 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $8,123,534,000 after acquiring an additional 217,136 shares during the period. Capital World Investors boosted its stake in shares of Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. by 7.0% in the fourth quarter. Capital World Investors now owns 12,613,371 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $3,264,359,000 after purchasing an additional 830,252 shares during the period. State Street Corp grew its stake in shares of Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. by 0.6% during the fourth quarter. State Street Corp now owns 10,953,598 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $2,834,682,000 after acquiring an additional 62,518 shares in the last quarter. Norges Bank acquired a new stake in Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. during the 4th quarter valued at approximately $1,925,062,000. Finally, Capital International Investors raised its holdings in Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. by 0.6% in the third quarter. Capital International Investors now owns 7,194,743 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $2,228,156,000 after acquiring an additional 45,256 shares in the last quarter. 85.53% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

AJG has been the topic of several research analyst reports. Barclays increased their price target on shares of Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. from $262.00 to $275.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research report on Wednesday, April 8th. Citigroup upgraded Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. from a “neutral” rating to a “buy” rating and lowered their price target for the company from $280.00 to $250.00 in a report on Wednesday, May 6th. Truist Financial reduced their price objective on Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. from $235.00 to $225.00 and set a “hold” rating on the stock in a research note on Friday, May 1st. Royal Bank Of Canada initiated coverage on shares of Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. in a report on Tuesday, March 17th. They issued an “outperform” rating and a $260.00 price objective for the company. Finally, Jefferies Financial Group upgraded shares of Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating and boosted their target price for the company from $235.00 to $265.00 in a research note on Thursday, June 11th. Thirteen analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and six have issued a Hold rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat, the company presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $264.12.

Insider Activity

In other news, CAO Richard C. Cary sold 3,000 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, June 2nd. The shares were sold at an average price of $206.00, for a total value of $618,000.00. Following the completion of the sale, the chief accounting officer directly owned 47,819 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $9,850,714. This represents a 5.90% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this link. 1.40% of the stock is owned by company insiders.

Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. Price Performance

Shares of NYSE:AJG opened at $226.34 on Friday. The company’s fifty day moving average is $210.49 and its two-hundred day moving average is $225.98. The company has a market cap of $58.15 billion, a P/E ratio of 36.62, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.11 and a beta of 0.52. Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. has a 12-month low of $190.75 and a 12-month high of $323.25. The company has a quick ratio of 1.06, a current ratio of 1.06 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.51.

Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. (NYSE:AJG) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, April 30th. The financial services provider reported $4.47 earnings per share for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $4.43 by $0.04. The business had revenue of $4.71 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $4.73 billion. Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. had a return on equity of 12.83% and a net margin of 10.76%.Arthur J. Gallagher & Co.’s revenue for the quarter was up 29.0% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter in the previous year, the company posted $3.67 earnings per share. Equities analysts expect that Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. will post 13.23 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, June 19th. Stockholders of record on Friday, June 5th were issued a $0.70 dividend. The ex-dividend date was Friday, June 5th. This represents a $2.80 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 1.2%. Arthur J. Gallagher & Co.’s dividend payout ratio is currently 45.31%.

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.