Citigroup Inc. Reduces Position in Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. $AJG

Citigroup Inc. trimmed its holdings in Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. (NYSE:AJG) by 5.1% during the second quarter, HoldingsChannel reports. The firm owned 254,448 shares of the financial services provider’s stock after selling 13,744 shares during the period. Citigroup Inc.’s holdings in Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. were worth $81,454,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Other large investors have also made changes to their positions in the company. AlphaQuest LLC acquired a new position in Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. during the first quarter worth $33,000. Saudi Central Bank purchased a new position in shares of Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. during the 1st quarter worth $34,000. J.Safra Asset Management Corp boosted its position in shares of Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. by 209.1% during the 2nd quarter. J.Safra Asset Management Corp now owns 102 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $32,000 after acquiring an additional 69 shares during the last quarter. Motco grew its holdings in shares of Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. by 700.0% in the first quarter. Motco now owns 112 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $39,000 after purchasing an additional 98 shares during the period. Finally, SouthState Corp acquired a new stake in Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. during the first quarter worth about $39,000. 85.53% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Insider Activity

In other Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. news, CFO Douglas K. Howell sold 8,000 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred 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 sale, the chief financial officer directly owned 100,777 shares in the company, valued at $30,186,742.58. This represents a 7.35% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this link. Also, VP Michael Robert Pesch purchased 4,000 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on Monday, November 3rd. The stock was acquired at an average price of $247.12 per share, with a total value of $988,480.00. Following the purchase, the vice president owned 41,849 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $10,341,724.88. This represents a 10.57% increase in their ownership of the stock. The SEC filing for this purchase provides additional information. Over the last quarter, insiders sold 29,855 shares of company stock valued at $8,916,928. 1.60% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

AJG has been the topic of several recent analyst reports. UBS Group boosted their target price on shares of Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. from $322.00 to $329.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a report on Friday, September 19th. Erste Group Bank reiterated a “hold” rating on shares of Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. in a report on Wednesday, July 23rd. Cantor Fitzgerald upgraded Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. to a “strong-buy” rating in a research report on Wednesday, August 13th. Piper Sandler decreased their price target on Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. from $340.00 to $295.00 and set an “overweight” rating on the stock in a research note on Friday, October 31st. Finally, Evercore ISI cut their price objective on Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. from $370.00 to $353.00 and set an “outperform” rating for the company in a research report on Friday, October 31st. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, eight have issued a Buy rating and eight have given a Hold rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat, the stock presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $323.64.

Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. Stock Down 0.3%

NYSE:AJG opened at $258.44 on Wednesday. Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. has a 52 week low of $239.47 and a 52 week high of $351.23. The stock’s fifty day moving average is $283.25 and its two-hundred day moving average is $303.75. The stock has a market capitalization of $66.37 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 36.71 and a beta of 0.71. The company has a quick ratio of 1.36, a current ratio of 1.36 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.52.

Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. (NYSE:AJG) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, October 30th. The financial services provider reported $2.32 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $2.51 by ($0.19). Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. had a net margin of 14.54% and a return on equity of 13.17%. The firm had revenue of $3.33 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $3.34 billion. During the same quarter in the prior year, the firm posted $2.26 EPS. Arthur J. Gallagher & Co.’s quarterly revenue was up 20.2% compared to the same quarter last year. Research analysts anticipate that Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. will post 11.54 EPS for the current year.

Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. Announces Dividend

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, December 19th. Stockholders of record on Friday, December 5th will be given a dividend of $0.65 per share. This represents a $2.60 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 1.0%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, December 5th. Arthur J. Gallagher & Co.’s dividend payout ratio is currently 38.86%.

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