Natixis Purchases 1,917 Shares of Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. (NYSE:AJG)

Natixis increased its position in shares of Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. (NYSE:AJG - Free Report) by 39.1% during the fourth quarter, according to its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The fund owned 6,823 shares of the financial services provider's stock after acquiring an additional 1,917 shares during the period. Natixis' holdings in Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. were worth $1,937,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Several other institutional investors and hedge funds also recently made changes to their positions in the company. Allred Capital Management LLC grew its position in shares of Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. by 1.0% in the 4th quarter. Allred Capital Management LLC now owns 3,380 shares of the financial services provider's stock valued at $960,000 after buying an additional 34 shares during the last quarter. Catalina Capital Group LLC raised its holdings in Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. by 1.0% during the 4th quarter. Catalina Capital Group LLC now owns 3,380 shares of the financial services provider's stock worth $959,000 after purchasing an additional 35 shares during the last quarter. Greenleaf Trust lifted its position in shares of Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. by 1.1% in the 4th quarter. Greenleaf Trust now owns 3,310 shares of the financial services provider's stock worth $940,000 after purchasing an additional 36 shares during the period. HBK Sorce Advisory LLC increased its position in shares of Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. by 3.2% during the fourth quarter. HBK Sorce Advisory LLC now owns 1,173 shares of the financial services provider's stock worth $333,000 after buying an additional 36 shares during the period. Finally, Brendel Financial Advisors LLC raised its stake in Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. by 0.5% during the fourth quarter. Brendel Financial Advisors LLC now owns 7,237 shares of the financial services provider's stock worth $2,054,000 after buying an additional 38 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 85.53% of the company's stock.

Insider Transactions at Arthur J. Gallagher & Co.

In related news, VP Christopher E. Mead sold 2,900 shares of the business's stock in a transaction dated Monday, February 3rd. The shares were sold at an average price of $302.61, for a total value of $877,569.00. Following the transaction, the vice president now directly owns 14,674 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $4,440,499.14. The trade was a 16.50 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. Also, CAO Richard C. Cary sold 10,000 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction dated Monday, February 10th. The stock was 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 of the company's stock, valued at $22,536,304.26. This trade represents a 12.54 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders have sold 23,235 shares of company stock worth $7,478,224 in the last 90 days. Insiders own 1.60% of the company's stock.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

AJG has been the subject of a number of recent analyst reports. Wells Fargo & Company increased their price target on Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. from $370.00 to $372.00 and gave the stock an "overweight" rating in a report on Thursday, April 10th. TD Cowen upgraded Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. from a "hold" rating to a "buy" rating and lifted their target price for the stock from $295.00 to $377.00 in a report on Friday, January 10th. Royal Bank of Canada increased their price target on Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. from $320.00 to $340.00 and gave the stock an "outperform" rating in a report on Friday, January 31st. Redburn Atlantic initiated coverage on shares of Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. in a research note on Tuesday, March 25th. They issued a "neutral" rating and a $352.00 price objective for the company. Finally, Jefferies Financial Group cut their target price on shares of Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. from $266.00 to $265.00 and set a "hold" rating on the stock in a research note on Friday, April 11th. Two equities 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 stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the stock presently has an average rating of "Hold" and a consensus target price of $315.27.

Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. Stock Up 3.7 %

Shares of NYSE:AJG opened at $331.08 on Wednesday. The business's 50 day moving average is $330.32 and its 200 day moving average is $306.48. Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. has a 12-month low of $232.27 and a 12-month high of $350.70. The stock has a market cap of $84.67 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 50.78 and a beta of 0.64. 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. (NYSE:AJG - Get Free Report) last posted its earnings results on Thursday, January 30th. The financial services provider reported $2.13 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate 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%. On average, sell-side analysts forecast 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 announced 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. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Friday, March 7th. This represents a $2.60 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 0.79%. This is a boost from Arthur J. Gallagher & Co.'s previous quarterly dividend of $0.60. 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.

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