Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. (NYSE:AJG) Shares Sold by New York State Common Retirement Fund

New York State Common Retirement Fund lowered its position in Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. (NYSE:AJG - Free Report) by 9.5% during the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The fund owned 172,477 shares of the financial services provider's stock after selling 18,078 shares during the period. New York State Common Retirement Fund owned approximately 0.07% of Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. worth $48,958,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission.

A number of other large investors have also recently bought and sold shares of AJG. Stratos Wealth Advisors LLC boosted its position in Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. by 5.5% in the third quarter. Stratos Wealth Advisors LLC now owns 1,288 shares of the financial services provider's stock valued at $363,000 after buying an additional 67 shares during the last quarter. Blue Trust Inc. lifted its holdings in Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. by 84.9% in the third quarter. Blue Trust Inc. now owns 2,045 shares of the financial services provider's stock valued at $530,000 after acquiring an additional 939 shares during the period. Allspring Global Investments Holdings LLC lifted its holdings in Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. by 0.5% in the third quarter. Allspring Global Investments Holdings LLC now owns 10,216 shares of the financial services provider's stock valued at $2,874,000 after acquiring an additional 48 shares during the period. Eastern Bank acquired a new position in Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. in the third quarter valued at approximately $242,000. Finally, Private Advisor Group LLC lifted its holdings in Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. by 5.2% in the third quarter. Private Advisor Group LLC now owns 30,832 shares of the financial services provider's stock valued at $8,675,000 after acquiring an additional 1,533 shares during the period. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 85.53% of the company's stock.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of research analysts have issued reports on the company. Truist Financial boosted their price target on Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. from $275.00 to $290.00 and gave the company a "hold" rating in a report on Friday, January 31st. The Goldman Sachs Group downgraded Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. from a "buy" rating to a "neutral" rating and set a $313.00 target price for the company. in a research note on Monday, November 25th. Piper Sandler raised Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. from a "neutral" rating to an "overweight" rating and upped their target price for the stock from $285.00 to $315.00 in a research note on Wednesday, January 8th. BMO Capital Markets upped their target price on Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. from $312.00 to $325.00 and gave the stock an "outperform" rating in a research note on Tuesday, November 12th. Finally, Keefe, Bruyette & Woods upped their target price on Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. from $286.00 to $295.00 and gave the stock a "market perform" rating in a research note on Friday, January 31st. Two analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, six have assigned a hold rating and six have issued a buy rating to the company's stock. According to MarketBeat.com, Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. currently has an average rating of "Hold" and a consensus price target of $307.00.

Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. Trading Down 0.0 %

Shares of NYSE AJG traded down $0.10 during trading on Friday, hitting $325.03. 391,392 shares of the company were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 1,727,604. Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. has a 12-month low of $230.08 and a 12-month high of $329.60. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.63, a quick ratio of 1.06 and a current ratio of 1.51. The company has a fifty day moving average price of $297.14 and a 200-day moving average price of $293.00. The firm has a market capitalization of $82.79 billion, a PE ratio of 49.83 and a beta of 0.77.

Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. (NYSE:AJG - Get Free Report) last issued its quarterly earnings data 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 return on equity of 16.47% and a net margin of 12.70%. As a group, equities research analysts expect that Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. will post 11.54 EPS for the current year.

Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. Increases Dividend

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, March 21st. Investors of record on Friday, March 7th will be given a dividend of $0.65 per share. This represents a $2.60 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 0.80%. This is an increase from Arthur J. Gallagher & Co.'s previous quarterly dividend of $0.60. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, March 7th. Arthur J. Gallagher & Co.'s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 36.81%.

Insider Buying and Selling

In related news, Director David S. Johnson sold 325 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, February 12th. The stock was sold at an average price of $322.06, for a total transaction of $104,669.50. Following the completion of the sale, the director now directly owns 44,783 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $14,422,812.98. This trade represents a 0.72 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. Also, Director Sherry S. Barrat sold 2,500 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction dated Monday, February 3rd. The stock was sold at an average price of $304.33, for a total value of $760,825.00. Following the sale, the director now directly owns 16,533 shares of the company's stock, valued at $5,031,487.89. The trade was a 13.14 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last ninety days, insiders sold 15,725 shares of company stock valued at $4,972,964. 1.60% of the stock is currently owned by insiders.

Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. Company Profile

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.