Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. (NYSE:AJG) Receives $281.76 Average Target Price from Analysts

Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. (NYSE:AJG) has been assigned a consensus recommendation of “Hold” from the nineteen brokerages that are currently covering the stock, MarketBeat.com reports. Eleven research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and eight have assigned a buy rating to the company. The average 12-month target price among brokerages that have issued a report on the stock in the last year is $282.6471.

A number of research analysts recently weighed in on the stock. Wells Fargo & Company decreased their price target on shares of Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. from $311.00 to $298.00 and set an “overweight” rating on the stock in a research note on Friday, January 30th. Weiss Ratings restated a “hold (c+)” rating on shares of Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. in a research report on Monday, December 29th. Cantor Fitzgerald reaffirmed a “neutral” rating on shares of Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. in a research note on Friday, January 30th. Evercore reduced their price objective on Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. from $353.00 to $334.00 and set an “outperform” rating for the company in a research note on Wednesday, December 17th. Finally, Keefe, Bruyette & Woods decreased their price objective on Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. from $279.00 to $249.00 and set a “market perform” rating on the stock in a report on Friday, January 30th.

Insider Buying and Selling at Arthur J. Gallagher & Co.

In related news, VP Scott R. Hudson sold 3,800 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Friday, March 6th. The shares were sold at an average price of $227.57, for a total transaction of $864,766.00. Following the completion of the sale, the vice president owned 85,920 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $19,552,814.40. This represents a 4.24% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through the SEC website. Also, VP Christopher E. Mead sold 4,000 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, March 5th. The stock was sold at an average price of $227.12, for a total transaction of $908,480.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the vice president directly owned 19,306 shares in the company, valued at $4,384,778.72. This trade represents a 17.16% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The SEC filing for this sale provides additional information. Insiders sold a total of 32,650 shares of company stock worth $8,137,686 in the last 90 days. 1.60% of the stock is currently owned by insiders.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Arthur J. Gallagher & Co.

Institutional investors and hedge funds have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the stock. Physician Wealth Advisors Inc. increased its stake in shares of Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. by 870.0% in the 3rd quarter. Physician Wealth Advisors Inc. now owns 97 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $30,000 after acquiring an additional 87 shares during the last quarter. Kemnay Advisory Services Inc. acquired a new position in shares of Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. during the 4th quarter valued at about $26,000. Rakuten Securities Inc. grew its holdings in shares of Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. by 650.0% in the second quarter. Rakuten Securities Inc. now owns 105 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $34,000 after purchasing an additional 91 shares during the period. Financial Life Planners acquired a new stake in Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. during the third quarter worth about $39,000. Finally, MV Capital Management Inc. purchased a new position in Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. during the fourth quarter worth about $34,000. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 85.53% of the company’s stock.

Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. Price Performance

Shares of NYSE AJG opened at $204.13 on Tuesday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.52, a quick ratio of 1.06 and a current ratio of 1.06. The firm has a fifty day moving average of $235.89 and a 200 day moving average of $261.13. The firm has a market cap of $52.48 billion, a PE ratio of 33.19, a PEG ratio of 1.02 and a beta of 0.67. Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. has a one year low of $195.00 and a one year high of $351.23.

Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. (NYSE:AJG) last announced its earnings results on Thursday, January 29th. The financial services provider reported $2.38 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $2.35 by $0.03. The business had revenue of $3.57 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $3.61 billion. Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. had a net margin of 11.84% and a return on equity of 12.13%. The company’s revenue for the quarter was up 33.9% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter last year, the business earned $1.12 earnings per share. As a group, research analysts predict that Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. will post 11.54 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. Increases Dividend

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, March 20th. Stockholders of record on Friday, March 6th will be paid a $0.70 dividend. This is an increase from Arthur J. Gallagher & Co.’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.65. This represents a $2.80 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 1.4%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, March 6th. Arthur J. Gallagher & Co.’s payout ratio is 45.53%.

Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. Company Profile

Arthur J. Gallagher & Co is a global insurance brokerage and risk management firm headquartered in Rolling Meadows, Illinois. Founded in 1927 by Arthur J. Gallagher, the company has grown from a regional broker into an international professional services organization that arranges insurance, provides consulting and designs risk-transfer solutions for commercial, industrial, public sector and individual clients.

The company’s core activities include property and casualty insurance brokerage, employee benefits consulting and administration, and a range of risk management services.