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

Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. (NYSE:AJG) had its price objective reduced by Piper Sandler from $249.00 to $226.00 in a research report released on Monday morning, Marketbeat.com reports. They currently have a neutral rating on the financial services provider’s stock.

A number of other equities analysts have also issued reports on AJG. The Goldman Sachs Group reaffirmed a “buy” rating and set a $292.00 price target on shares of Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. in a research note on Wednesday, January 7th. Cantor Fitzgerald restated a “neutral” rating on shares of Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. in a report on Friday, January 30th. Barclays lowered their target price on Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. from $250.00 to $247.00 and set an “underweight” rating on the stock in a report on Thursday, January 8th. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods cut their price target on shares of Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. from $279.00 to $249.00 and set a “market perform” rating for the company in a report on Friday, January 30th. Finally, Wall Street Zen upgraded shares of Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. from a “sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report on Saturday. Six investment analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, twelve have assigned a Hold rating and one has assigned a Sell rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. currently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and an average price target of $282.76.

Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. Stock Performance

Shares of AJG opened at $214.25 on Monday. The firm has a market capitalization of $55.08 billion, a PE ratio of 34.84, a P/E/G 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. The firm has a 50-day moving average price of $245.55 and a 200 day moving average price of $267.54. 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 issued its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, January 29th. The financial services provider reported $2.38 earnings per share for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $2.35 by $0.03. Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. had a net margin of 11.84% and a return on equity of 12.13%. The company had revenue of $3.57 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $3.61 billion. During the same period in the prior year, the business posted $1.12 EPS. The business’s revenue for the quarter was up 33.9% compared to the same quarter last year. On average, sell-side analysts anticipate that Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. will post 11.54 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. Increases Dividend

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, March 20th. Shareholders of record on Friday, March 6th will be issued a dividend of $0.70 per share. This represents a $2.80 annualized dividend and a yield of 1.3%. The ex-dividend date is Friday, March 6th. This is a boost from Arthur J. Gallagher & Co.’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.65. Arthur J. Gallagher & Co.’s dividend payout ratio is presently 42.28%.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. news, 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 transaction, the vice president directly owned 17,327 shares in the company, valued at approximately $4,472,271.97. The trade was a 18.76% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is accessible through this hyperlink. Also, General Counsel Walter D. Bay sold 15,850 shares of the stock in a transaction on Friday, December 19th. The shares were sold at an average price of $255.00, for a total value of $4,041,750.00. Following the completion of the sale, the general counsel owned 79,549 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $20,284,995. The trade was a 16.61% decrease in their position. Additional details regarding this sale are available in the official SEC disclosure. Insiders sold a total of 24,850 shares of company stock worth $6,364,440 over the last ninety days. 1.30% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

Institutional Trading of Arthur J. Gallagher & Co.

Several hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently modified their holdings of the company. Kemnay Advisory Services Inc. acquired a new position in Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. in the 4th quarter worth about $26,000. Physician Wealth Advisors Inc. grew 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 valued at $30,000 after buying an additional 87 shares in the last quarter. MV Capital Management Inc. acquired a new position in Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. in the fourth quarter worth approximately $34,000. Rakuten Securities Inc. raised its position in Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. by 650.0% during the second quarter. Rakuten Securities Inc. now owns 105 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $34,000 after acquiring an additional 91 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Financial Life Planners acquired a new stake in Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. in the third quarter valued at approximately $39,000. 85.53% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

About Arthur J. Gallagher & Co.

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.