Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. (NYSE:AJG) Price Target Raised to $290.00 at Morgan Stanley

Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. (NYSE:AJG) had its price target lifted by equities research analysts at Morgan Stanley from $270.00 to $290.00 in a report issued on Wednesday,Benzinga reports. The brokerage currently has an “overweight” rating on the financial services provider’s stock. Morgan Stanley’s price target indicates a potential upside of 16.80% from the stock’s previous close.

Several other equities research analysts have also weighed in on AJG. Royal Bank Of Canada lifted their price objective on Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. from $300.00 to $310.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a report on Friday, July 31st. Cantor Fitzgerald increased their target price on shares of Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. from $285.00 to $300.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a research report on Thursday, July 9th. Wells Fargo & Company reduced their target price on shares of Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. from $299.00 to $296.00 and set an “overweight” rating for the company in a research note on Monday, August 3rd. Citigroup boosted their price target on shares of Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. from $250.00 to $285.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research report on Tuesday, August 4th. Finally, Argus raised their price objective on shares of Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. from $267.00 to $300.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a report on Monday. Fourteen equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and five have assigned a Hold rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat.com, Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $290.28.

Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. Price Performance

Shares of NYSE AJG opened at $248.29 on Wednesday. The company has a current ratio of 1.05, a quick ratio of 1.05 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.50. The stock has a fifty day simple moving average of $242.09 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $224.61. Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. has a 1-year low of $190.75 and a 1-year high of $313.55. The firm has a market cap of $63.64 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 41.18, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.29 and a beta of 0.50.

Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. (NYSE:AJG) last issued its earnings results on Thursday, July 30th. The financial services provider reported $2.84 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $2.81 by $0.03. Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. had a return on equity of 13.28% and a net margin of 9.96%.The firm had revenue of $3.95 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $4.01 billion. During the same period in the previous year, the company posted $2.33 earnings per share. The business’s revenue was up 24.3% on a year-over-year basis. Analysts anticipate that Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. will post 13.27 earnings per share for the current year.

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

In other news, CAO Richard C. Cary sold 3,000 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, June 2nd. The shares were sold at an average price of $206.00, for a total value of $618,000.00. Following the sale, the chief accounting officer directly owned 47,819 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $9,850,714. This represents a 5.90% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through the SEC website. 1.40% of the stock is currently owned by corporate insiders.

Institutional Trading of Arthur J. Gallagher & Co.

A number of hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently bought and sold shares of AJG. Norges Bank purchased a new position in shares of Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. during the fourth quarter worth about $1,925,062,000. T. Rowe Price Investment Management Inc. increased its position in shares of Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. by 123.5% in the fourth quarter. T. Rowe Price Investment Management Inc. now owns 5,887,538 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $1,523,636,000 after purchasing an additional 3,253,498 shares during the last quarter. Gtcr LLC bought a new stake in Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. during the first quarter valued at approximately $514,112,000. Bank of New York Mellon Corp bought a new stake in Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. during the second quarter valued at approximately $289,484,000. Finally, Northwestern Mutual Wealth Management Co. grew its stake in Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. by 9,244.9% in the 4th quarter. Northwestern Mutual Wealth Management Co. now owns 1,053,636 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $272,670,000 after buying an additional 1,042,361 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors own 85.53% of the company’s stock.

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.