Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. (NYSE:AJG) Receives Average Recommendation of “Hold” from Analysts

Shares of Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. (NYSE:AJG) have received a consensus recommendation of “Hold” from the eleven analysts that are currently covering the firm, MarketBeat reports. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a sell recommendation, five have given a hold recommendation and five have assigned a buy recommendation to the company. The average 12-month price objective among brokerages that have covered the stock in the last year is $255.31.

Several equities research analysts recently weighed in on the company. Piper Sandler reduced their target price on Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. from $253.00 to $252.00 and set a “neutral” rating for the company in a report on Monday, April 29th. Jefferies Financial Group lowered shares of Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating and lowered their target price for the company from $279.00 to $233.00 in a research note on Tuesday, January 9th. Truist Financial reissued a “hold” rating and set a $255.00 target price (down previously from $280.00) on shares of Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. in a research report on Wednesday, April 10th. Royal Bank of Canada raised their price target on Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. from $270.00 to $282.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a research report on Friday, March 22nd. Finally, Keefe, Bruyette & Woods cut their price objective on Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. from $246.00 to $240.00 and set an “underperform” rating for the company in a research report on Wednesday, April 10th.

Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. Stock Performance

AJG stock opened at $238.62 on Friday. The firm has a 50 day moving average of $243.83 and a two-hundred day moving average of $239.00. Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. has a 12 month low of $198.52 and a 12 month high of $256.10. The company has a market capitalization of $52.09 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 48.30, a P/E/G ratio of 2.23 and a beta of 0.69. The company has a quick ratio of 1.03, a current ratio of 1.05 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.70.

Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. (NYSE:AJG) last posted its earnings results on Thursday, April 25th. The financial services provider reported $3.49 EPS for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $3.41 by $0.08. Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. had a net margin of 10.27% and a return on equity of 18.94%. The firm had revenue of $3.22 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $3.18 billion. During the same period in the prior year, the business posted $3.03 earnings per share. The business’s quarterly revenue was up 20.4% on a year-over-year basis. As a group, equities analysts anticipate that Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. will post 10.08 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. Announces Dividend

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, June 21st. Investors of record on Friday, June 7th will be given a $0.60 dividend. The ex-dividend date is Friday, June 7th. This represents a $2.40 annualized dividend and a yield of 1.01%. Arthur J. Gallagher & Co.’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 48.58%.

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

In other news, Director David S. Johnson sold 500 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, February 6th. The shares were sold at an average price of $234.04, for a total transaction of $117,020.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the director now directly owns 45,038 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $10,540,693.52. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this hyperlink. In other Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. news, VP Thomas Joseph Gallagher sold 12,309 shares of the stock in a transaction on Thursday, February 8th. The stock was sold at an average price of $237.65, for a total transaction of $2,925,233.85. Following the completion of the transaction, the vice president now directly owns 322,797 shares in the company, valued at $76,712,707.05. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this hyperlink. Also, Director David S. Johnson sold 500 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction on Tuesday, February 6th. The shares were sold at an average price of $234.04, for a total transaction of $117,020.00. Following the completion of the sale, the director now owns 45,038 shares in the company, valued at approximately $10,540,693.52. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders have sold 29,016 shares of company stock valued at $7,176,180 in the last 90 days. 1.60% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

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

Several institutional investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Raymond James Financial Services Advisors Inc. boosted its holdings in shares of Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. by 27.1% in the 3rd quarter. Raymond James Financial Services Advisors Inc. now owns 103,676 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $23,631,000 after acquiring an additional 22,127 shares in the last quarter. Stratos Wealth Advisors LLC increased its stake in shares of Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. by 17.6% in the third quarter. Stratos Wealth Advisors LLC now owns 4,440 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $1,012,000 after buying an additional 666 shares in the last quarter. Mn Services Vermogensbeheer B.V. raised its holdings in shares of Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. by 3.1% in the third quarter. Mn Services Vermogensbeheer B.V. now owns 104,210 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $23,753,000 after buying an additional 3,100 shares during the last quarter. Forsta AP Fonden lifted its position in Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. by 10.6% during the 3rd quarter. Forsta AP Fonden now owns 45,000 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $10,257,000 after buying an additional 4,300 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Kowal Investment Group LLC bought a new stake in Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. during the 3rd quarter worth about $208,000. 85.53% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

About Arthur J. Gallagher & Co.

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.