Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. (NYSE:AJG) Given Average Recommendation of “Moderate Buy” by Brokerages

Shares of Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. (NYSE:AJG) have been assigned a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” from the twenty analysts that are presently covering the company, MarketBeat.com reports. One research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, nine have assigned a hold rating, nine have issued a buy rating and one has issued a strong buy rating on the company. The average 1 year price objective among brokerages that have issued a report on the stock in the last year is $302.2222.

A number of research analysts have issued reports on the stock. UBS Group decreased their price target on shares of Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. from $329.00 to $285.00 and set a “neutral” rating for the company in a report on Wednesday, December 17th. Wall Street Zen lowered Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. from a “hold” rating to a “sell” rating in a research note on Saturday, November 1st. Weiss Ratings reaffirmed a “hold (c+)” rating on shares of Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. in a research report on Monday. The Goldman Sachs Group set a $293.00 price objective on Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. in a report on Wednesday, December 17th. Finally, Mizuho initiated coverage on Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. in a report on Monday, December 15th. They set a “neutral” rating and a $276.00 target price for the company.

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

In other Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. news, CAO Richard C. Cary sold 6,000 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on Tuesday, November 18th. The shares were sold at an average price of $261.00, for a total value of $1,566,000.00. Following the sale, the chief accounting officer directly owned 50,668 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $13,224,348. This represents a 10.59% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this link. Also, General Counsel Walter D. Bay sold 15,850 shares of Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. stock in a transaction dated 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 transaction, 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. The disclosure for this sale is available in the SEC filing. Insiders have sold 23,100 shares of company stock worth $5,921,175 over the last ninety days. 1.60% of the stock is owned by insiders.

Institutional Trading of Arthur J. Gallagher & Co.

Several hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently bought and sold shares of AJG. Norges Bank acquired a new position in Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. in the second quarter valued at approximately $1,536,230,000. JPMorgan Chase & Co. lifted its stake in shares of Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. by 19.6% in 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 during the period. Sands Capital Management LLC boosted its holdings in Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. by 453.3% during the second quarter. Sands Capital Management LLC now owns 1,121,249 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $358,934,000 after buying an additional 918,618 shares in the last quarter. Balyasny Asset Management L.P. grew its position in Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. by 41,475.5% during the second quarter. Balyasny Asset Management L.P. now owns 770,394 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $246,619,000 after buying an additional 768,541 shares during the period. Finally, Mitsubishi UFJ Asset Management Co. Ltd. grew its position in Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. by 30.5% during the third quarter. Mitsubishi UFJ Asset Management Co. Ltd. now owns 3,107,390 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $962,483,000 after buying an additional 725,555 shares during the period. 85.53% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. Price Performance

Shares of NYSE AJG opened at $260.77 on Thursday. Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. has a fifty-two week low of $236.34 and a fifty-two week high of $351.23. The company has a market cap of $66.97 billion, a PE ratio of 38.98 and a beta of 0.69. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.52, a quick ratio of 1.06 and a current ratio of 1.06. The business has a 50-day simple moving average of $255.88 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $287.76.

Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. (NYSE:AJG) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, October 30th. The financial services provider reported $2.32 EPS for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $2.51 by ($0.19). The company had revenue of $3.33 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $3.34 billion. Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. had a net margin of 13.58% and a return on equity of 11.98%. The business’s revenue for the quarter was up 20.2% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period in the previous year, the business earned $2.26 earnings per share. As a group, equities analysts expect that Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. will post 11.54 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. Announces Dividend

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, December 19th. Shareholders of record on Friday, December 5th were paid a dividend of $0.65 per share. This represents a $2.60 annualized dividend and a yield of 1.0%. The ex-dividend date was Friday, December 5th. Arthur J. Gallagher & Co.’s payout ratio is presently 38.86%.

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.