South Street Advisors LLC Trims Holdings in Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. (NYSE:AJG)

South Street Advisors LLC decreased its position in Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. (NYSE:AJG - Free Report) by 4.7% in the 3rd quarter, according to its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The firm owned 44,271 shares of the financial services provider's stock after selling 2,172 shares during the period. Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. makes up 1.9% of South Street Advisors LLC's portfolio, making the stock its 24th largest position. South Street Advisors LLC's holdings in Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. were worth $12,457,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Several other institutional investors and hedge funds also recently made changes to their positions in the company. Mark Sheptoff Financial Planning LLC bought a new stake in Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. during the 2nd quarter worth about $26,000. Strategic Investment Solutions Inc. IL acquired a new position in shares of Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. during the 2nd quarter worth approximately $26,000. Creekmur Asset Management LLC acquired a new position in shares of Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. during the 1st quarter worth approximately $27,000. DiNuzzo Private Wealth Inc. grew its position in shares of Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. by 89.7% during the 2nd quarter. DiNuzzo Private Wealth Inc. now owns 110 shares of the financial services provider's stock worth $29,000 after purchasing an additional 52 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Quarry LP acquired a new stake in shares of Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. during the 2nd quarter worth approximately $29,000. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 85.53% of the company's stock.

Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. Stock Performance

AJG stock traded down $0.13 during mid-day trading on Friday, hitting $294.58. The company had a trading volume of 948,405 shares, compared to its average volume of 846,019. The firm has a market cap of $64.63 billion, a PE ratio of 56.11, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.54 and a beta of 0.72. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.64, a quick ratio of 1.06 and a current ratio of 1.06. Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. has a 12 month low of $218.63 and a 12 month high of $301.04. The stock's fifty day moving average price is $288.49 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $274.68.

Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. (NYSE:AJG - Get Free Report) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, October 24th. The financial services provider reported $2.26 EPS for the quarter, hitting the consensus estimate of $2.26. Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. had a net margin of 10.40% and a return on equity of 19.12%. The business had revenue of $2.77 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $2.78 billion. During the same quarter in the previous year, the firm posted $2.00 earnings per share. The company's revenue for the quarter was up 12.8% on a year-over-year basis. On average, analysts forecast that Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. will post 10.11 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. Announces Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, December 20th. Investors of record on Friday, December 6th will be paid a dividend of $0.60 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, December 6th. This represents a $2.40 annualized dividend and a yield of 0.81%. Arthur J. Gallagher & Co.'s dividend payout ratio is currently 45.71%.

Insider Activity at Arthur J. Gallagher & Co.

In other news, CFO Douglas K. Howell sold 7,000 shares of the company's stock in a transaction on Thursday, September 19th. The shares were sold at an average price of $284.68, for a total value of $1,992,760.00. Following the completion of the sale, the chief financial officer now owns 75,963 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $21,625,146.84. This represents a 8.44 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this link. Also, VP Christopher E. Mead sold 2,800 shares of the company's stock in a transaction on Monday, October 28th. The shares were sold at an average price of $287.00, for a total transaction of $803,600.00. Following the sale, the vice president now owns 14,674 shares of the company's stock, valued at $4,211,438. This represents a 16.02 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Over the last 90 days, insiders sold 23,900 shares of company stock valued at $6,892,280. Corporate insiders own 1.60% of the company's stock.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

AJG has been the topic of several analyst reports. Jefferies Financial Group increased their price target on shares of Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. from $269.00 to $274.00 and gave the stock a "hold" rating in a research report on Wednesday, October 9th. TD Cowen lifted their target price on shares of Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. from $273.00 to $288.00 and gave the stock a "hold" rating in a research note on Tuesday, August 13th. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods lifted their target price on shares of Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. from $241.00 to $252.00 and gave the stock an "underperform" rating in a research note on Friday, July 26th. BMO Capital Markets raised their price target on shares of Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. from $312.00 to $325.00 and gave the stock an "outperform" rating in a report on Tuesday. Finally, UBS Group lifted their price objective on shares of Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. from $260.00 to $292.00 and gave the company a "neutral" rating in a report on Wednesday, July 31st. Three investment analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, seven have issued a hold rating and four have issued a buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat, the company presently has an average rating of "Hold" and a consensus target price of $289.14.

About Arthur J. Gallagher & Co.

Arthur J. Gallagher & Co, together with its subsidiaries, provides insurance and reinsurance brokerage, consulting, and third-party property/casualty claims settlement and administration services to entities and individuals worldwide. It operates in Brokerage and Risk Management segments. The Brokerage segment offers retail and wholesale insurance and reinsurance brokerage services; assists retail brokers and other non-affiliated brokers in the placement of specialized and hard-to-place insurance; and acts as a brokerage wholesaler, managing general agent, and managing general underwriter for distributing specialized insurance coverages to underwriting enterprises.