Smithbridge Asset Management Inc. DE Sells 158 Shares of Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. $AJG

Smithbridge Asset Management Inc. DE reduced its stake in Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. (NYSE:AJG) by 0.5% during the second quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the SEC. The fund owned 32,520 shares of the financial services provider’s stock after selling 158 shares during the period. Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. makes up 1.8% of Smithbridge Asset Management Inc. DE’s portfolio, making the stock its 15th largest holding. Smithbridge Asset Management Inc. DE’s holdings in Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. were worth $10,410,000 as of its most recent filing with the SEC.

A number of other institutional investors and hedge funds also recently bought and sold shares of AJG. Checchi Capital Advisers LLC lifted its holdings in Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. by 1.1% during the 1st quarter. Checchi Capital Advisers LLC now owns 2,899 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $1,001,000 after buying an additional 31 shares in the last quarter. Menard Financial Group LLC lifted its holdings in Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. by 0.8% during the 1st quarter. Menard Financial Group LLC now owns 3,812 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $1,289,000 after buying an additional 32 shares in the last quarter. Allen Capital Group LLC lifted its holdings in Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. by 2.1% during the 1st quarter. Allen Capital Group LLC now owns 1,603 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $553,000 after buying an additional 33 shares in the last quarter. SeaCrest Wealth Management LLC raised its holdings in shares of Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. by 2.3% in the 2nd quarter. SeaCrest Wealth Management LLC now owns 1,542 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $494,000 after purchasing an additional 34 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Ashton Thomas Private Wealth LLC raised its holdings in shares of Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. by 1.3% in the 1st quarter. Ashton Thomas Private Wealth LLC now owns 2,746 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $948,000 after purchasing an additional 35 shares in the last quarter. 85.53% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. Stock Down 5.4%

AJG stock opened at $280.09 on Friday. The firm’s fifty day simple moving average is $299.73 and its 200-day simple moving average is $314.50. The company has a market capitalization of $71.82 billion, a P/E ratio of 39.79 and a beta of 0.73. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.52, a current ratio of 1.36 and a quick ratio of 1.36. Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. has a 12 month low of $275.56 and a 12 month high of $351.23.

Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. (NYSE:AJG) last posted its earnings results on Thursday, July 31st. The financial services provider reported $2.33 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $2.36 by ($0.03). Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. had a net margin of 14.54% and a return on equity of 13.17%. The firm had revenue of $3.18 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $3.20 billion. During the same quarter in the prior year, the firm earned $2.29 earnings per share. The business’s revenue for the quarter was up 16.0% on a year-over-year basis. As a group, equities research analysts forecast that Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. will post 11.54 earnings per share for the current year.

Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. Dividend Announcement

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, September 19th. Shareholders of record on Friday, September 5th were given a dividend of $0.65 per share. The ex-dividend date was Friday, September 5th. This represents a $2.60 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 0.9%. Arthur J. Gallagher & Co.’s dividend payout ratio is currently 36.93%.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several equities research analysts have recently commented on the stock. Piper Sandler reduced their price target on shares of Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. from $352.00 to $340.00 and set an “overweight” rating for the company in a report on Thursday, October 2nd. Erste Group Bank restated a “hold” rating on shares of Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. in a report on Wednesday, July 23rd. Barclays reduced their price target on shares of Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. from $346.00 to $327.00 and set an “equal weight” rating for the company in a report on Monday, July 7th. Citigroup began coverage on shares of Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. in a report on Wednesday, August 13th. They issued a “neutral” rating and a $317.00 price target for the company. Finally, The Goldman Sachs Group began coverage on shares of Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. in a research note on Wednesday, September 3rd. They set a “buy” rating and a $344.00 price objective for the company. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, seven have issued a Buy rating and eight have given a Hold rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $331.43.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. news, CFO Douglas K. Howell sold 8,000 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on Monday, September 22nd. The shares were sold at an average price of $299.54, for a total transaction of $2,396,320.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief financial officer directly owned 100,777 shares in the company, valued at approximately $30,186,742.58. This represents a 7.35% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is accessible through this hyperlink. Also, VP Scott R. Hudson sold 12,855 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Monday, September 8th. The shares were sold at an average price of $297.60, for a total transaction of $3,825,648.00. Following the completion of the sale, the vice president owned 85,920 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $25,569,792. This trade represents a 13.01% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders have sold 29,855 shares of company stock valued at $8,916,928 over the last 90 days. 1.60% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. 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 segments: Brokerage, Risk Management, and Corporate. The Brokerage segment consists of retail and wholesale insurance brokerage operations.