Piper Sandler Lowers Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. (NYSE:AJG) Price Target to $226.00

Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. (NYSE:AJG) had its price target cut by investment analysts at Piper Sandler from $249.00 to $226.00 in a research note issued to investors on Monday,Benzinga reports. The brokerage presently has a “neutral” rating on the financial services provider’s stock. Piper Sandler’s target price would indicate a potential upside of 4.37% from the company’s previous close.

Several other research analysts have also recently commented on AJG. The Goldman Sachs Group reiterated a “buy” rating and issued a $292.00 target price on shares of Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. in a report on Wednesday, January 7th. Mizuho set a $277.00 price objective on shares of Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. in a research note on Wednesday, January 14th. Wells Fargo & Company cut their target price 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. Citigroup lifted their price target on Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. from $277.00 to $280.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a report on Monday, February 2nd. Finally, Truist Financial set a $271.00 price objective on Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. in a research note on Friday, January 30th. Six investment analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, twelve have issued a Hold rating and one has given a Sell rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. has a consensus rating of “Hold” and an average price target of $282.76.

Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. Stock Performance

Shares of NYSE AJG opened at $216.54 on Monday. The stock’s fifty day simple moving average is $246.39 and its 200 day simple moving average is $268.08. The stock has a market capitalization of $55.67 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 35.21, a PEG ratio of 1.17 and a beta of 0.66. The company has a quick ratio of 1.06, a current ratio of 1.06 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.52. Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. has a 52-week low of $195.00 and a 52-week 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 EPS for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $2.35 by $0.03. The business had revenue of $3.57 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $3.61 billion. Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. had a return on equity of 12.13% and a net margin of 11.84%.Arthur J. Gallagher & Co.’s revenue was up 33.9% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period in the prior year, the business posted $1.12 earnings per share. As a group, sell-side analysts forecast that Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. will post 11.54 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Insider Activity at Arthur J. Gallagher & Co.

In related news, General Counsel Walter D. Bay sold 15,850 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, December 19th. The stock was sold at an average price of $255.00, for a total value of $4,041,750.00. Following the transaction, the general counsel owned 79,549 shares in the company, valued at approximately $20,284,995. This represents a 16.61% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is accessible through this link. Also, VP Christopher E. Mead sold 4,000 shares of Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, December 23rd. The shares were sold at an average price of $258.11, for a total transaction of $1,032,440.00. Following the completion of the sale, the vice president owned 17,327 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $4,472,271.97. This trade represents a 18.76% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The SEC filing for this sale provides additional information. In the last quarter, insiders sold 24,850 shares of company stock valued at $6,364,440. 1.30% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

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

Several hedge funds have recently bought and sold shares of the business. Caprock Group LLC bought a new position in Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. during the third quarter worth about $9,877,000. JPMorgan Chase & Co. lifted its holdings in shares of Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. by 19.6% during the 3rd quarter. JPMorgan Chase & Co. now owns 20,338,533 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $6,299,674,000 after purchasing an additional 3,330,205 shares in the last quarter. Factory Mutual Insurance Co. grew its position in shares of Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. by 107.1% in the 2nd quarter. Factory Mutual Insurance Co. now owns 14,500 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $4,642,000 after purchasing an additional 7,500 shares during the period. Fairfield Financial Advisors LTD raised its holdings in Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. by 21.4% during the 2nd quarter. Fairfield Financial Advisors LTD now owns 9,961 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $3,189,000 after buying an additional 1,758 shares during the period. Finally, Petra Financial Advisors Inc. bought a new position in Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. in the second quarter valued at approximately $812,000. 85.53% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

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.