Westfield Capital Management Co. LP Acquires 7,880 Shares of Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. (NYSE:AJG)

Westfield Capital Management Co. LP boosted its holdings in Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. (NYSE:AJG) by 2.2% in the 4th quarter, according to its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The firm owned 368,976 shares of the financial services provider’s stock after purchasing an additional 7,880 shares during the quarter. Westfield Capital Management Co. LP’s holdings in Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. were worth $82,975,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

A number of other institutional investors have also added to or reduced their stakes in AJG. Beaird Harris Wealth Management LLC boosted its position in shares of Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. by 175.6% during the third quarter. Beaird Harris Wealth Management LLC now owns 113 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $26,000 after acquiring an additional 72 shares during the last quarter. Annis Gardner Whiting Capital Advisors LLC purchased a new stake in Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. in the 3rd quarter worth $28,000. SJS Investment Consulting Inc. boosted its holdings in shares of Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. by 460.9% during the 4th quarter. SJS Investment Consulting Inc. now owns 129 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $29,000 after purchasing an additional 106 shares during the last quarter. Ruedi Wealth Management Inc. purchased a new position in shares of Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. during the fourth quarter valued at about $33,000. Finally, Milestone Investment Advisors LLC bought a new stake in shares of Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. in the third quarter worth about $45,000. 85.53% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. Stock Up 0.4 %

NYSE AJG traded up $1.10 on Friday, reaching $252.06. 550,105 shares of the stock traded hands, compared to its average volume of 737,974. Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. has a 12 month low of $198.52 and a 12 month high of $259.35. The company has a market cap of $55.08 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 51.02, a PEG ratio of 2.28 and a beta of 0.69. The company has a fifty day moving average price of $244.54 and a 200-day moving average price of $240.80. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.70, a quick ratio of 1.05 and a current ratio of 1.05.

Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. (NYSE:AJG) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, April 25th. The financial services provider reported $3.49 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $3.41 by $0.08. The company had revenue of $3.22 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $3.18 billion. Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. had a net margin of 10.27% and a return on equity of 18.94%. Arthur J. Gallagher & Co.’s revenue was up 20.4% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period last year, the company posted $3.03 earnings per share. As a group, research analysts forecast that Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. will post 10.08 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, June 21st. Stockholders of record on Friday, June 7th will be issued a $0.60 dividend. This represents a $2.40 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 0.95%. The ex-dividend date is Friday, June 7th. Arthur J. Gallagher & Co.’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 48.58%.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other news, Director David S. Johnson sold 850 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, May 22nd. The stock was sold at an average price of $257.84, for a total value of $219,164.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the director now owns 45,108 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $11,630,646.72. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is accessible through this link. In other news, CAO Richard C. Cary sold 3,395 shares of Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, May 16th. The shares were sold at an average price of $254.00, for a total transaction of $862,330.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief accounting officer now directly owns 38,314 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $9,731,756. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available through the SEC website. Also, Director David S. Johnson sold 850 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction on Wednesday, May 22nd. The shares were sold at an average price of $257.84, for a total transaction of $219,164.00. Following the sale, the director now owns 45,108 shares in the company, valued at approximately $11,630,646.72. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last three months, insiders have sold 51,069 shares of company stock valued at $12,946,945. Company insiders own 1.60% of the company’s stock.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several research firms have weighed in on AJG. Bank of America raised their price target on Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. from $233.00 to $255.00 and gave the company an “underperform” rating in a report on Wednesday. Argus upped their price target on shares of Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. from $264.00 to $270.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research note on Tuesday, May 14th. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods dropped their price objective on shares of Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. from $246.00 to $240.00 and set an “underperform” rating for the company in a research note on Wednesday, April 10th. Truist Financial restated a “hold” rating and issued a $255.00 target price (down from $280.00) on shares of Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. in a report on Wednesday, April 10th. Finally, TD Cowen lifted their price target on Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. from $249.00 to $273.00 and gave the stock a “hold” rating in a research report on Tuesday, April 2nd. Two research analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, six have assigned a hold rating and five have issued a buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $255.71.

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.