Hantz Financial Services Inc. Cuts Holdings in Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. (NYSE:AJG)

Hantz Financial Services Inc. reduced its stake in shares of Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. (NYSE:AJG) by 2.3% in the third quarter, HoldingsChannel.com reports. The fund owned 51,956 shares of the financial services provider’s stock after selling 1,210 shares during the quarter. Hantz Financial Services Inc.’s holdings in Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. were worth $14,619,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

A number of other institutional investors have also added to or reduced their stakes in AJG. Mark Sheptoff Financial Planning LLC bought a new position in Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. in the second quarter valued at $26,000. Strategic Investment Solutions Inc. IL bought a new position in Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. in the second quarter valued at $26,000. Pin Oak Investment Advisors Inc. boosted its position in Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. by 543.8% during the third quarter. Pin Oak Investment Advisors Inc. now owns 103 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $28,000 after buying an additional 87 shares during the period. DiNuzzo Private Wealth Inc. boosted its position in Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. by 89.7% during the second quarter. DiNuzzo Private Wealth Inc. now owns 110 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $29,000 after buying an additional 52 shares during the period. Finally, Quarry LP purchased a new stake in Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. during the second quarter valued at about $29,000. Institutional investors own 85.53% of the company’s stock.

Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. Trading Up 0.7 %

NYSE:AJG opened at $315.16 on Friday. Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. has a one year low of $218.63 and a one year high of $315.73. The company’s 50-day simple moving average is $290.17 and its 200 day simple moving average is $278.55. The firm has a market capitalization of $69.15 billion, a P/E ratio of 60.03, a PEG ratio of 2.61 and a beta of 0.72. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.64, a current ratio of 1.06 and a quick ratio of 1.06.

Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. (NYSE:AJG) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, October 24th. The financial services provider reported $2.26 earnings per share for the quarter, hitting the consensus estimate of $2.26. The company had revenue of $2.77 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $2.78 billion. Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. had a return on equity of 19.12% and a net margin of 10.40%. The firm’s quarterly revenue was up 12.8% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter in the prior year, the business posted $2.00 EPS. As a group, analysts forecast that Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. will post 10.12 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. Dividend Announcement

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 given a dividend of $0.60 per share. This represents a $2.40 annualized dividend and a yield of 0.76%. The ex-dividend date is Friday, December 6th. Arthur J. Gallagher & Co.’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 45.71%.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several research analysts recently commented on AJG shares. BMO Capital Markets lifted their target price on shares of Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. from $312.00 to $325.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a research note on Tuesday, November 12th. Jefferies Financial Group raised their target price on Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. from $269.00 to $274.00 and gave the stock a “hold” rating in a research note on Wednesday, October 9th. Royal Bank of Canada upped their price target on Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. from $310.00 to $320.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a research report on Friday, September 20th. Barclays upped their target price on Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. from $300.00 to $308.00 and gave the company an “equal weight” rating in a report on Thursday, November 21st. Finally, TD Cowen upped their price objective on shares of Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. from $273.00 to $288.00 and gave the stock a “hold” rating in a report on Tuesday, August 13th. Three research analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, eight have given a hold rating and four have given a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the company presently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and an average price target of $291.64.

Insider Transactions at Arthur J. Gallagher & Co.

In related news, CFO Douglas K. Howell sold 7,000 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction that occurred 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 transaction, the chief financial officer now directly owns 75,963 shares in the company, valued at $21,625,146.84. The trade was a 8.44 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at the SEC website. Also, VP Christopher E. Mead sold 2,800 shares of the stock in a transaction on Monday, October 28th. The shares were sold at an average price of $287.00, for a total value of $803,600.00. Following the sale, the vice president now owns 14,674 shares in the company, valued at approximately $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 have sold 23,900 shares of company stock worth $6,892,280. Corporate insiders own 1.60% of the company’s stock.

Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. Company Profile

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.