Elo Mutual Pension Insurance Co Lowers Stock Holdings in Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. (NYSE:AJG)

Elo Mutual Pension Insurance Co cut its stake in shares of Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. (NYSE:AJG) by 3.7% during the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the SEC. The firm owned 19,995 shares of the financial services provider’s stock after selling 771 shares during the quarter. Elo Mutual Pension Insurance Co’s holdings in Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. were worth $5,676,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Several other institutional investors and hedge funds have also recently modified their holdings of AJG. Vanguard Group Inc. raised its holdings in shares of Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. by 14.9% in the fourth quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 29,672,134 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $8,422,435,000 after acquiring an additional 3,851,661 shares in the last quarter. Principal Financial Group Inc. lifted its position in shares of Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. by 126.2% in the 4th quarter. Principal Financial Group Inc. now owns 2,003,237 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $568,619,000 after purchasing an additional 1,117,441 shares during the period. Raymond James Financial Inc. bought a new position in shares of Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. during the fourth quarter valued at approximately $163,087,000. Sei Investments Co. increased its holdings in Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. by 307.2% during the fourth quarter. Sei Investments Co. now owns 742,746 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $210,829,000 after buying an additional 560,325 shares during the period. Finally, Burkehill Global Management LP purchased a new stake in Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. during the fourth quarter worth $156,118,000. Institutional investors own 85.53% of the company’s stock.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several research firms have recently commented on AJG. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods boosted their price target on Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. from $308.00 to $314.00 and gave the stock a “market perform” rating in a research report on Friday, March 21st. Redburn Atlantic started coverage on shares of Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. in a report on Tuesday. They issued a “neutral” rating and a $352.00 target price for the company. Wells Fargo & Company raised their price target on shares of Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. from $341.00 to $370.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a report on Friday, March 21st. Truist Financial increased their target price on shares of 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. Finally, 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. Two research analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, seven have assigned a hold rating and six have issued a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the stock presently has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $313.20.

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

In related news, CAO Richard C. Cary sold 10,000 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction on Monday, February 10th. The shares were sold at an average price of $322.99, for a total transaction 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. This trade represents a 12.54 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. Also, VP Christopher E. Mead sold 2,900 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Monday, February 3rd. The stock was sold at an average price of $302.61, for a total transaction of $877,569.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the vice president now owns 14,674 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $4,440,499.14. This trade represents a 16.50 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last quarter, insiders sold 23,235 shares of company stock worth $7,478,224. Insiders own 1.60% of the company’s stock.

Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. Trading Up 1.5 %

Shares of NYSE:AJG opened at $341.78 on Friday. The company has a quick ratio of 1.51, a current ratio of 1.51 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.63. Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. has a 52-week low of $230.08 and a 52-week high of $345.43. The stock has a market cap of $87.40 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 52.42 and a beta of 0.75. The business has a 50-day moving average price of $320.82 and a 200-day moving average price of $300.66.

Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. (NYSE:AJG) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, January 30th. The financial services provider reported $2.13 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping 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%. Equities analysts predict that Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. will post 11.54 EPS for the current year.

Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. Increases Dividend

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, March 21st. Shareholders of record on Friday, March 7th were given a dividend of $0.65 per share. This is an increase from Arthur J. Gallagher & Co.’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.60. This represents a $2.60 annualized dividend and a yield of 0.76%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Friday, March 7th. Arthur J. Gallagher & Co.’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 39.88%.

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 segments: Brokerage, Risk Management, and Corporate. The Brokerage segment consists of retail and wholesale insurance brokerage operations.