Franklin Resources Inc. Grows Position in Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. (NYSE:AJG)

Franklin Resources Inc. increased its holdings in shares of Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. (NYSE:AJG) by 0.7% during the fourth quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The fund owned 526,861 shares of the financial services provider’s stock after acquiring an additional 3,537 shares during the quarter. Franklin Resources Inc.’s holdings in Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. were worth $149,549,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Several other large investors also recently bought and sold shares of the business. Valley National Advisers Inc. acquired a new position in shares of Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. during the 4th quarter worth approximately $25,000. MRP Capital Investments LLC acquired a new position in Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. during the fourth quarter worth $28,000. New Age Alpha Advisors LLC grew its holdings in Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. by 81.7% in the 4th quarter. New Age Alpha Advisors LLC now owns 109 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $31,000 after buying an additional 49 shares in the last quarter. E Fund Management Hong Kong Co. Ltd. purchased a new position in shares of Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. during the 4th quarter worth $35,000. Finally, Financial Life Planners acquired a new position in shares of Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. during the 4th quarter valued at about $36,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 85.53% of the company’s stock.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other news, VP Scott R. Hudson sold 7,510 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated Friday, March 21st. The stock was sold at an average price of $333.59, for a total value of $2,505,260.90. Following the completion of the sale, the vice president now directly owns 90,020 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $30,029,771.80. The trade was a 7.70 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this link. Also, Director Sherry S. Barrat sold 2,500 shares of Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, February 3rd. The stock was sold at an average price of $304.33, for a total value of $760,825.00. Following the transaction, the director now directly owns 16,533 shares in the company, valued at approximately $5,031,487.89. This trade represents a 13.14 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders sold 23,235 shares of company stock worth $7,478,224 over the last 90 days. 1.60% of the stock is owned by insiders.

Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. Stock Performance

NYSE:AJG opened at $344.42 on Thursday. Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. has a 52 week low of $230.08 and a 52 week high of $346.95. The company has a fifty day simple moving average of $324.69 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $301.97. The company has a quick ratio of 1.51, a current ratio of 1.51 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.63. The company has a market cap of $88.08 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 52.83 and a beta of 0.75.

Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. (NYSE:AJG) last released its earnings results on Thursday, January 30th. The financial services provider reported $2.13 EPS for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $2.03 by $0.10. Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. had a return on equity of 16.47% and a net margin of 12.70%. As a group, equities analysts anticipate that Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. will post 11.54 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. Increases Dividend

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, March 21st. Investors of record on Friday, March 7th were issued a $0.65 dividend. This is a boost from Arthur J. Gallagher & Co.’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.60. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Friday, March 7th. This represents a $2.60 annualized dividend and a yield of 0.75%. Arthur J. Gallagher & Co.’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 39.88%.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several research firms recently issued reports on AJG. Wells Fargo & Company raised their price objective on shares of Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. from $341.00 to $370.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research report on Friday, March 21st. TD Cowen raised shares of Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating and lifted their price target for the company from $295.00 to $377.00 in a research report on Friday, January 10th. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods raised their target price on Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. from $308.00 to $314.00 and gave the stock a “market perform” rating in a research note on Friday, March 21st. Royal Bank of Canada lifted their target price on Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. from $320.00 to $340.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a research report on Friday, January 31st. Finally, Redburn Atlantic assumed coverage on Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. in a research report on Tuesday, March 25th. They set a “neutral” rating and a $352.00 price objective for the company. Two equities research analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, seven have given a hold rating and six have issued a buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat, the company currently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $313.20.

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.