WCM Investment Management LLC Reduces Position in Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. (NYSE:AJG)

WCM Investment Management LLC reduced its position in Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. (NYSE:AJG - Free Report) by 0.6% during the fourth quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the SEC. The firm owned 2,328,997 shares of the financial services provider's stock after selling 13,875 shares during the period. Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. accounts for approximately 1.6% of WCM Investment Management LLC's portfolio, making the stock its 27th largest holding. WCM Investment Management LLC owned approximately 0.93% of Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. worth $662,507,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Other institutional investors have also added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Catalina Capital Group LLC increased its holdings in shares of Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. by 1.0% in the fourth 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 period. W Advisors LLC raised its stake in Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. by 2.4% in the third quarter. W Advisors LLC now owns 1,514 shares of the financial services provider's stock valued at $426,000 after purchasing an additional 36 shares in the last quarter. Greenleaf Trust raised its position in shares of Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. by 1.1% during the 4th quarter. Greenleaf Trust now owns 3,310 shares of the financial services provider's stock valued at $940,000 after buying an additional 36 shares in the last quarter. Covenant Partners LLC raised its position in Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. by 0.7% during the third quarter. Covenant Partners LLC now owns 5,326 shares of the financial services provider's stock valued at $1,499,000 after purchasing an additional 38 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Disciplined Investments LLC raised its holdings in shares of Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. by 0.7% during the 3rd quarter. Disciplined Investments LLC now owns 5,849 shares of the financial services provider's stock valued at $1,635,000 after buying an additional 38 shares in the last quarter. 85.53% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

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

In other Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. news, VP Christopher E. Mead sold 2,900 shares of the company's stock in a transaction that occurred 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 completion of the transaction, the vice president now directly owns 14,674 shares in the company, valued at $4,440,499.14. This represents a 16.50 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available through this hyperlink. Also, CAO Richard C. Cary sold 10,000 shares of the business's stock in a transaction dated Monday, February 10th. The shares were sold at an average price of $322.99, for a total value of $3,229,900.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief accounting officer now owns 69,774 shares in the company, valued at $22,536,304.26. The trade was a 12.54 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Over the last ninety days, insiders sold 15,725 shares of company stock valued at $4,972,964. Insiders own 1.60% of the company's stock.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of equities research analysts have recently weighed in on the stock. Piper Sandler upgraded shares of Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. from a "neutral" rating to an "overweight" rating and boosted their price objective for the stock from $285.00 to $315.00 in a report on Wednesday, January 8th. Wells Fargo & Company decreased their target price on shares of Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. from $344.00 to $341.00 and set an "overweight" rating on the stock in a research note on Friday, January 31st. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods raised their price target on shares of Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. from $286.00 to $295.00 and gave the stock a "market perform" rating in a report on Friday, January 31st. BMO Capital Markets upped their price objective on shares of Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. from $312.00 to $325.00 and gave the company an "outperform" rating in a research note on Tuesday, November 12th. Finally, Royal Bank of Canada boosted their price target on Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. from $320.00 to $340.00 and gave the company an "outperform" rating in a report on Friday, January 31st. Two investment 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 data from MarketBeat.com, the company presently has an average rating of "Hold" and an average price target of $307.00.

Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. Stock Up 0.9 %

NYSE AJG traded up $2.79 during mid-day trading on Wednesday, reaching $324.79. The stock had a trading volume of 1,099,538 shares, compared to its average volume of 1,863,780. The company has a fifty day moving average price of $292.59 and a 200 day moving average price of $291.12. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.63, a current ratio of 1.51 and a quick ratio of 1.06. Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. has a 1 year low of $230.08 and a 1 year high of $325.10. The stock has a market cap of $81.13 billion, a PE ratio of 49.81 and a beta of 0.77.

Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. (NYSE:AJG - Get Free Report) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, January 30th. The financial services provider reported $2.13 EPS for the quarter, topping analysts' consensus estimates 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, research analysts expect that Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. will post 11.4 earnings per share for the current year.

Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. Increases Dividend

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

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 business segments: Brokerage, Risk Management, and Corporate. The Brokerage segment consists of retail and wholesale insurance brokerage operations.