Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. (NYSE:AJG) Price Target Raised to $370.00

Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. (NYSE:AJG) had its target price upped by Wells Fargo & Company from $341.00 to $370.00 in a report issued on Friday,Benzinga reports. Wells Fargo & Company currently has an overweight rating on the financial services provider’s stock.

A number of other research analysts have also weighed in on AJG. TD Cowen upgraded Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating and raised their price objective for the company from $295.00 to $377.00 in a report on Friday, January 10th. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods raised their price target on shares of Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. from $308.00 to $314.00 and gave the stock a “market perform” rating in a research note on Friday. Truist Financial upped their price objective on shares of Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. from $275.00 to $290.00 and gave the company a “hold” rating in a research note on Friday, January 31st. Royal Bank of Canada upped their price target on Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. from $320.00 to $340.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a research report on Friday, January 31st. Finally, Barclays lifted their price objective on Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. from $300.00 to $308.00 and gave the stock an “equal weight” rating in a research report on Thursday, November 21st. Two research analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, six have given a hold rating and six have issued a buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the company currently has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus target price of $310.43.

Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. Stock Down 0.7 %

Shares of NYSE AJG opened at $332.02 on Friday. The firm has a market cap of $84.57 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 50.92 and a beta of 0.75. The company’s 50-day simple moving average is $316.96 and its 200-day simple moving average is $299.51. The company has a quick ratio of 1.51, a current ratio of 1.51 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.63. Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. has a 52-week low of $230.08 and a 52-week high of $345.43.

Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. (NYSE:AJG) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, January 30th. The financial services provider reported $2.13 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $2.03 by $0.10. Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. had a return on equity of 16.47% and a net margin of 12.70%. Equities analysts predict that Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. will post 11.54 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. Increases Dividend

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, March 21st. Shareholders of record on Friday, March 7th were given a dividend of $0.65 per share. The ex-dividend date was Friday, March 7th. This is a boost from Arthur J. Gallagher & Co.’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.60. This represents a $2.60 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 0.78%. Arthur J. Gallagher & Co.’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 39.88%.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other news, CAO Richard C. Cary sold 10,000 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Monday, February 10th. The shares were sold at an average price of $322.99, for a total transaction of $3,229,900.00. Following the sale, the chief accounting officer now owns 69,774 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $22,536,304.26. This represents a 12.54 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through the SEC website. Also, VP Christopher E. Mead sold 2,900 shares of Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, February 3rd. The shares were sold at an average price of $302.61, for a total transaction of $877,569.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the vice president now owns 14,674 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $4,440,499.14. This trade represents a 16.50 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last quarter, insiders sold 23,235 shares of company stock valued at $7,478,224. Company insiders own 1.60% of the company’s stock.

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

Institutional investors have recently modified their holdings of the business. Valley National Advisers Inc. purchased a new position in Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. in the fourth quarter valued at $25,000. Pin Oak Investment Advisors Inc. grew its position in shares of Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. by 543.8% during the third quarter. Pin Oak Investment Advisors Inc. now owns 103 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $28,000 after buying an additional 87 shares in the last quarter. MRP Capital Investments LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. during the fourth quarter worth approximately $28,000. New Age Alpha Advisors LLC raised its holdings in Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. by 81.7% in the fourth quarter. New Age Alpha Advisors LLC now owns 109 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $31,000 after acquiring an additional 49 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Johnson Financial Group Inc. lifted its stake in Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. by 205.4% in the fourth quarter. Johnson Financial Group Inc. now owns 113 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $34,000 after acquiring an additional 76 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 85.53% of the company’s stock.

About Arthur J. Gallagher & Co.

Arthur J. Gallagher & Co engages in the provision of insurance brokerage, reinsurance brokerage, consulting, and third-party claims settlement and administration services. It operates through the following segments: Brokerage, Risk Management, and Corporate. The Brokerage segment consists of retail and wholesale insurance brokerage operations.