Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. (NYSE:AJG) Price Target Cut to $265.00 by Analysts at Jefferies Financial Group

Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. (NYSE:AJG) had its target price decreased by Jefferies Financial Group from $266.00 to $265.00 in a report published on Friday,Benzinga reports. Jefferies Financial Group currently has a hold rating on the financial services provider’s stock.

A number of other research firms also recently commented on AJG. TD Cowen upgraded shares of Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating and increased their price objective for the company from $295.00 to $377.00 in a report on Friday, January 10th. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods lifted their price objective on Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. from $308.00 to $314.00 and gave the stock a “market perform” rating in a research report on Friday, March 21st. Redburn Atlantic began coverage on Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. in a report on Tuesday, March 25th. They issued a “neutral” rating and a $352.00 target price for the company. Royal Bank of Canada lifted their price target on Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. from $320.00 to $340.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a report on Friday, January 31st. Finally, Piper Sandler raised shares of Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. from a “neutral” rating to an “overweight” rating and upped their price objective for the company from $285.00 to $315.00 in a report on Wednesday, January 8th. Two investment analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, seven have issued a hold rating and six have issued a buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat.com, Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $315.27.

Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. Price Performance

Shares of Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. stock opened at $334.60 on Friday. The stock has a market capitalization of $85.57 billion, a P/E ratio of 51.32 and a beta of 0.64. The business has a 50 day simple moving average of $329.06 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $304.16. Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. has a 12 month low of $230.08 and a 12 month high of $350.70. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.63, a current ratio of 1.51 and a quick ratio of 1.51.

Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. (NYSE:AJG) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, January 30th. The financial services provider reported $2.13 earnings per share for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates 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%. As a group, 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 disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, March 21st. Investors of record on Friday, March 7th were given a dividend of $0.65 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Friday, March 7th. This represents a $2.60 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 0.78%. This is a boost from Arthur J. Gallagher & Co.’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.60. Arthur J. Gallagher & Co.’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 39.88%.

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

In other Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. news, VP Christopher E. Mead sold 2,900 shares of Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. stock in a transaction dated Monday, February 3rd. The stock was sold at an average price of $302.61, for a total value of $877,569.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the vice president now directly owns 14,674 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $4,440,499.14. The trade was a 16.50 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available through this link. Also, VP Scott R. Hudson sold 7,510 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Friday, March 21st. The stock was sold at an average price of $333.59, for a total transaction of $2,505,260.90. Following the sale, the vice president now directly owns 90,020 shares in the company, valued at $30,029,771.80. This represents a 7.70 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders have sold a total of 23,235 shares of company stock valued at $7,478,224 over the last quarter. 1.60% of the stock is owned by company insiders.

Institutional Trading of Arthur J. Gallagher & Co.

A number of large investors have recently modified their holdings of AJG. Valley National Advisers Inc. purchased a new stake in shares of Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. during the fourth quarter worth approximately $25,000. MRP Capital Investments LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. in the 4th quarter valued at approximately $28,000. New Age Alpha Advisors LLC raised its holdings in shares of Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. by 81.7% in the 4th quarter. New Age Alpha Advisors LLC now owns 109 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $31,000 after purchasing an additional 49 shares in the last quarter. Johnson Financial Group Inc. lifted its position in shares of Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. by 205.4% during the 4th quarter. Johnson Financial Group Inc. now owns 113 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $34,000 after purchasing an additional 76 shares during the last quarter. Finally, E Fund Management Hong Kong Co. Ltd. acquired a new position in shares of Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. during the fourth quarter worth $35,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors 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.