Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. (NYSE:AJG) Stock Position Lowered by Northwest & Ethical Investments L.P.

Northwest & Ethical Investments L.P. lessened its stake in Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. (NYSE:AJG - Free Report) by 83.4% during the 4th quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the SEC. The institutional investor owned 1,000 shares of the financial services provider's stock after selling 5,032 shares during the quarter. Northwest & Ethical Investments L.P.'s holdings in Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. were worth $283,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Other institutional investors and hedge funds also recently bought and sold shares of the company. Catalina Capital Group LLC lifted its holdings in shares of Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. by 1.0% in the 4th quarter. Catalina Capital Group LLC now owns 3,380 shares of the financial services provider's stock worth $959,000 after buying an additional 35 shares during the period. Greenleaf Trust raised 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 valued at $940,000 after purchasing an additional 36 shares during the last quarter. HBK Sorce Advisory LLC lifted its stake 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. Brendel Financial Advisors LLC lifted its position in Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. by 0.5% during the 4th quarter. Brendel Financial Advisors LLC now owns 7,237 shares of the financial services provider's stock worth $2,054,000 after acquiring an additional 38 shares during the period. Finally, Moors & Cabot Inc. boosted its position in Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. by 4.4% in the third quarter. Moors & Cabot Inc. now owns 929 shares of the financial services provider's stock valued at $261,000 after buying an additional 39 shares during the last quarter. 85.53% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

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Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several research firms recently commented on AJG. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods raised their target price on Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. from $308.00 to $314.00 and gave the stock a "market perform" 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. Wells Fargo & Company upped their target price on Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. from $341.00 to $370.00 and gave the company an "overweight" rating in a report on Friday, March 21st. TD Cowen upgraded shares of Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. from a "hold" rating to a "buy" rating and raised their price target for the stock from $295.00 to $377.00 in a report on Friday, January 10th. Finally, Piper Sandler upgraded Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. from a "neutral" rating to an "overweight" rating and increased their price objective for the stock from $285.00 to $315.00 in a research report on Wednesday, January 8th. Two investment analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, seven have assigned a hold rating and six have given a buy rating to the company's stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the company currently has a consensus rating of "Hold" and an average target price of $313.20.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. news, VP Christopher E. Mead sold 2,900 shares of the business's stock in a transaction on 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 owns 14,674 shares in the company, valued at $4,440,499.14. The trade was a 16.50 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available through the SEC website. Also, Director Sherry S. Barrat sold 2,500 shares of the company's stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, February 3rd. The shares were sold at an average price of $304.33, for a total value of $760,825.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the director now directly owns 16,533 shares in the company, valued at approximately $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. Insiders sold 23,235 shares of company stock worth $7,478,224 over the last three months. 1.60% of the stock is owned by insiders.

Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. Price Performance

AJG stock traded up $5.05 during midday trading on Thursday, hitting $341.78. 1,330,640 shares of the stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 1,151,871. The stock has a market cap of $87.40 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 52.42 and a beta of 0.75. Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. has a fifty-two week low of $230.08 and a fifty-two week high of $345.43. The stock's 50-day moving average price is $319.90 and its 200-day moving average price is $300.37. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.63, a quick ratio of 1.51 and a current ratio of 1.51.

Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. (NYSE:AJG - Get Free Report) last announced its earnings results on Thursday, January 30th. The financial services provider reported $2.13 EPS for the quarter, beating 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%. Research analysts predict 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 announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, March 21st. Investors of record on Friday, March 7th were issued a $0.65 dividend. This represents a $2.60 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 0.76%. This is an increase from Arthur J. Gallagher & Co.'s previous quarterly dividend of $0.60. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Friday, March 7th. Arthur J. Gallagher & Co.'s payout ratio is presently 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.