Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. (NYSE:AJG) Given New $309.00 Price Target at Wells Fargo & Company

Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. (NYSE:AJG) had its price objective boosted by Wells Fargo & Company from $301.00 to $309.00 in a report published on Friday morning, Benzinga reports. The brokerage currently has an overweight rating on the financial services provider’s stock.

A number of other brokerages have also recently commented on AJG. BMO Capital Markets lifted their price target on Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. from $275.00 to $295.00 and gave the stock an outperform rating in a research report on Friday, July 26th. Jefferies Financial Group lifted their target price on Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. from $264.00 to $267.00 in a report on Friday, July 26th. Royal Bank of Canada increased their price target on shares of Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. from $310.00 to $320.00 and gave the stock an outperform rating in a report on Friday. Bank Of America (Bofa) upped their price objective on shares of Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. from $255.00 to $265.00 and gave the company an underperform rating in a report on Friday, July 26th. Finally, Piper Sandler raised their target price on shares of Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. from $252.00 to $254.00 and gave the stock a neutral rating in a report on Friday, July 26th. Three investment analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, eight have issued a hold rating and five have given a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the company presently has an average rating of Hold and an average price target of $282.93.

Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. Trading Up 2.1 %

NYSE AJG opened at $281.93 on Friday. Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. has a 52 week low of $218.63 and a 52 week high of $301.04. The company has a 50 day moving average price of $285.71 and a 200 day moving average price of $263.17. The company has a quick ratio of 1.04, a current ratio of 1.04 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.67. The firm has a market cap of $61.60 billion, a PE ratio of 57.07, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.47 and a beta of 0.72.

Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. (NYSE:AJG) last released its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, July 25th. The financial services provider reported $2.26 EPS for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $2.24 by $0.02. The company had revenue of $2.73 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $2.77 billion. Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. had a return on equity of 19.25% and a net margin of 10.41%. The firm’s revenue was up 14.3% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period last year, the business posted $1.90 earnings per share. As a group, sell-side analysts forecast that Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. will post 10.16 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. Dividend Announcement

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, September 20th. Investors of record on Friday, September 6th were issued a $0.60 dividend. This represents a $2.40 annualized dividend and a yield of 0.85%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Friday, September 6th. Arthur J. Gallagher & Co.’s payout ratio is presently 48.58%.

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

In other Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. news, President Thomas Joseph Gallagher sold 15,000 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, August 8th. The stock was sold at an average price of $282.96, for a total transaction of $4,244,400.00. Following the completion of the sale, the president now directly owns 329,099 shares in the company, valued at approximately $93,121,853.04. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available through this link. In other Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. news, President Thomas Joseph Gallagher sold 15,000 shares of Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. stock in a transaction on Thursday, August 8th. The shares were sold at an average price of $282.96, for a total transaction of $4,244,400.00. Following the sale, the president now owns 329,099 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $93,121,853.04. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available at the SEC website. Also, General Counsel Walter D. Bay sold 6,335 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, July 30th. The shares were sold at an average price of $284.06, for a total transaction of $1,799,520.10. Following the completion of the sale, the general counsel now owns 30,053 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $8,536,855.18. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders have sold a total of 44,145 shares of company stock valued at $12,622,660 over the last ninety days. Corporate insiders own 1.60% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Arthur J. Gallagher & Co.

A number of large investors have recently made changes to their positions in the stock. Signaturefd LLC increased its holdings in Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. by 1.0% during the 2nd quarter. Signaturefd LLC now owns 3,825 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $992,000 after purchasing an additional 39 shares during the period. Trueblood Wealth Management LLC raised its holdings in Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. by 0.4% in the second quarter. Trueblood Wealth Management LLC now owns 9,290 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $2,409,000 after acquiring an additional 40 shares in the last quarter. J.W. Cole Advisors Inc. lifted its stake in Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. by 4.7% in the first quarter. J.W. Cole Advisors Inc. now owns 983 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $246,000 after acquiring an additional 44 shares during the last quarter. ERn Financial LLC raised its holdings in shares of Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. by 1.9% in the 1st quarter. ERn Financial LLC now owns 2,542 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $636,000 after purchasing an additional 47 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Signature Estate & Investment Advisors LLC lifted its position in shares of Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. by 0.8% during the 2nd quarter. Signature Estate & Investment Advisors LLC now owns 6,331 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $1,642,000 after purchasing an additional 48 shares during the last quarter. 85.53% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other 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.