Woodley Farra Manion Portfolio Management Inc. Sells 120,655 Shares of Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. $AJG

Woodley Farra Manion Portfolio Management Inc. trimmed its holdings in shares of Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. (NYSE:AJG) by 44.5% in the 3rd quarter, Holdings Channel reports. The firm owned 150,286 shares of the financial services provider’s stock after selling 120,655 shares during the quarter. Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. accounts for 2.2% of Woodley Farra Manion Portfolio Management Inc.’s holdings, making the stock its 23rd biggest holding. Woodley Farra Manion Portfolio Management Inc.’s holdings in Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. were worth $46,550,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

A number of other institutional investors and hedge funds also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the stock. D.A. Davidson & CO. lifted its position in shares of Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. by 1.2% in the 2nd quarter. D.A. Davidson & CO. now owns 2,892 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $926,000 after purchasing an additional 35 shares during the period. Parkside Financial Bank & Trust lifted its stake in shares of Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. by 6.5% during the 2nd quarter. Parkside Financial Bank & Trust now owns 570 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $182,000 after purchasing an additional 35 shares during the last quarter. Dorsey & Whitney Trust CO LLC lifted its stake in shares of Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. by 1.4% during the 2nd quarter. Dorsey & Whitney Trust CO LLC now owns 2,623 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $840,000 after purchasing an additional 35 shares during the last quarter. CX Institutional boosted its position in Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. by 2.1% during the third quarter. CX Institutional now owns 1,782 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $552,000 after purchasing an additional 36 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Citizens Financial Group Inc. RI grew its stake in Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. by 1.0% in the third quarter. Citizens Financial Group Inc. RI now owns 3,958 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $1,226,000 after purchasing an additional 38 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors own 85.53% of the company’s stock.

Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. Price Performance

Shares of AJG stock traded down $0.69 during trading hours on Friday, reaching $217.68. The company had a trading volume of 89,894 shares, compared to its average volume of 2,509,477. The stock has a fifty day moving average of $247.17 and a 200-day moving average of $268.80. The company has a market capitalization of $55.97 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 35.51, a PEG ratio of 1.16 and a beta of 0.66. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.52, a quick ratio of 1.06 and a current ratio of 1.06. Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. has a 12-month low of $195.00 and a 12-month high of $351.23.

Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. (NYSE:AJG) last posted its quarterly earnings data 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. Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. had a return on equity of 12.13% and a net margin of 11.84%.The firm had revenue of $3.57 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $3.61 billion. During the same quarter in the previous year, the business earned $1.12 EPS. The company’s quarterly revenue was up 33.9% compared to the same quarter last year. On average, equities analysts anticipate that Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. will post 11.54 earnings per share for the current year.

Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. Increases Dividend

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, March 20th. Shareholders of record on Friday, March 6th will be issued a dividend of $0.70 per share. This is a positive change from Arthur J. Gallagher & Co.’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.65. The ex-dividend date is Friday, March 6th. This represents a $2.80 annualized dividend and a yield of 1.3%. Arthur J. Gallagher & Co.’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 42.28%.

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

In other news, CFO Douglas K. Howell sold 5,000 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated Monday, December 22nd. The stock was sold at an average price of $258.05, for a total transaction of $1,290,250.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief financial officer directly owned 95,777 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $24,715,254.85. The trade was a 4.96% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through the SEC website. Also, General Counsel Walter D. Bay sold 15,850 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction on Friday, December 19th. The stock was sold at an average price of $255.00, for a total transaction of $4,041,750.00. Following the transaction, the general counsel owned 79,549 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $20,284,995. The trade was a 16.61% decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale is available in the SEC filing. Insiders have sold 24,850 shares of company stock valued at $6,364,440 in the last quarter. Corporate insiders own 1.60% of the company’s stock.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several equities analysts have issued reports on AJG shares. Jefferies Financial Group reduced their price target on Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. from $283.00 to $280.00 and set a “hold” rating on the stock in a research report on Monday, February 2nd. Morgan Stanley set a $300.00 price target on Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. in a research note on Friday, December 19th. Mizuho set a $277.00 price objective on Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. in a research note on Wednesday, January 14th. Wolfe Research set a $289.00 price target on shares of Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a report on Wednesday, December 17th. Finally, Citigroup lifted their price objective on shares of Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. from $277.00 to $280.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a research note on Monday, February 2nd. Six research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, twelve have given a Hold rating and one has assigned a Sell rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat, Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. currently has an average rating of “Hold” and an average price target of $284.12.

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.