Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. (NYSE:AJG) Price Target Raised to $286.00

Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. (NYSE:AJG) had its price target increased by The Goldman Sachs Group from $272.00 to $286.00 in a research report released on Friday.

A number of other equities analysts also recently commented on the stock. Piper Sandler lifted their target price on shares of Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. from $252.00 to $254.00 and gave the stock a neutral rating in a research note on Friday. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods upped their price objective on Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. from $241.00 to $252.00 and gave the company an underperform rating in a report on Friday. Royal Bank of Canada raised their target price on Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. from $290.00 to $310.00 and gave the stock an outperform rating in a research note on Friday. TD Cowen lifted their target price on Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. from $249.00 to $273.00 and gave the company a hold rating in a research report on Tuesday, April 2nd. Finally, Argus increased their price target on Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. from $264.00 to $270.00 and gave the stock a buy rating in a report on Tuesday, May 14th. Three research analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, six have issued a hold rating and six have given a buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat, the stock has an average rating of Hold and a consensus target price of $273.27.

Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. Trading Up 3.5 %

Shares of Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. stock opened at $283.58 on Friday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.70, a current ratio of 1.05 and a quick ratio of 1.05. The stock’s 50 day simple moving average is $261.33 and its 200-day simple moving average is $248.74. The stock has a market cap of $61.96 billion, a P/E ratio of 57.40, a P/E/G ratio of 2.53 and a beta of 0.72. Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. has a 1-year low of $214.13 and a 1-year high of $283.90.

Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. (NYSE:AJG) last released its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, July 25th. The financial services provider reported $2.26 earnings per share for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $2.24 by $0.02. Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. had a return on equity of 19.56% and a net margin of 10.41%. The company had revenue of $2.73 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $2.77 billion. During the same quarter in the previous year, the company posted $1.90 earnings per share. The firm’s revenue for the quarter was up 14.3% compared to the same quarter last year. Analysts predict that Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. will post 10.13 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. Announces Dividend

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, September 20th. Investors of record on Friday, September 6th will be paid a dividend of $0.60 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, September 6th. This represents a $2.40 annualized dividend and a yield of 0.85%. Arthur J. Gallagher & Co.’s payout ratio is 48.58%.

Insider Buying and Selling

In related news, General Counsel Walter D. Bay sold 8,303 shares of the stock in a transaction on Tuesday, June 18th. The stock was sold at an average price of $262.74, for a total value of $2,181,530.22. Following the transaction, the general counsel now owns 36,388 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $9,560,583.12. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this link. In other Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. news, General Counsel Walter D. Bay sold 8,303 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, June 18th. The shares were sold at an average price of $262.74, for a total value of $2,181,530.22. Following the transaction, the general counsel now directly owns 36,388 shares in the company, valued at $9,560,583.12. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through the SEC website. Also, CFO Douglas K. Howell sold 16,000 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction on Friday, May 10th. The shares were sold at an average price of $248.41, for a total transaction of $3,974,560.00. Following the completion of the sale, the chief financial officer now directly owns 80,952 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $20,109,286.32. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Over the last ninety days, insiders have sold 53,165 shares of company stock worth $13,629,049. Company insiders own 1.60% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Trading of Arthur J. Gallagher & Co.

A number of hedge funds have recently added to or reduced their stakes in AJG. Creekmur Asset Management LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. in the 1st quarter worth $27,000. Richardson Financial Services Inc. acquired a new stake in Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. in the fourth quarter valued at about $27,000. Transcendent Capital Group LLC purchased a new stake in Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. in the 4th quarter valued at approximately $31,000. Ruedi Wealth Management Inc. acquired a new position in Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. during the 4th quarter worth approximately $33,000. Finally, Security National Bank purchased a new position in shares of Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. during the 4th quarter worth approximately $33,000. 85.53% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

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.