Cantor Fitzgerald Has Lowered Expectations for Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. (NYSE:AJG) Stock Price

Key Points

• Cantor Fitzgerald lowered its price target for Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. from $300 to $280 while maintaining a “neutral” rating. The new target implies approximately 21.7% upside from the prior close.
• Analyst sentiment remains broadly positive, with 14 “buy” ratings and six “hold” ratings producing a “Moderate Buy” consensus and an average price target of $285.67.
• Gallagher exceeded quarterly EPS expectations, reporting $2.84 versus the $2.81 consensus, while revenue rose 24.3% year over year to $3.95 billion. Insiders sold 28,500 shares worth about $7.6 million over the past 90 days, while institutional investors own 85.53% of the stock.

Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. (NYSE:AJG - Get Free Report) had its price target dropped by investment analysts at Cantor Fitzgerald from $300.00 to $280.00 in a research report issued on Wednesday, Benzinga reports. The firm currently has a "neutral" rating on the financial services provider's stock. Cantor Fitzgerald's price objective would indicate a potential upside of 21.70% from the company's previous close.

A number of other research analysts also recently issued reports on the stock. Weiss Ratings raised shares of Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. from a "hold (c-)" rating to a "hold (c)" rating in a research report on Monday, July 13th. Wells Fargo & Company lowered their price objective on shares of Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. from $296.00 to $291.00 and set an "overweight" rating for the company in a report on Thursday, September 24th. Barclays lifted their price objective on Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. from $275.00 to $292.00 and gave the company an "overweight" rating in a research report on Tuesday, July 7th. Argus increased their target price on Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. from $267.00 to $300.00 and gave the stock a "buy" rating in a research report on Monday, August 17th. Finally, Keefe, Bruyette & Woods restated a "market perform" rating on shares of Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. in a research note on Thursday, September 24th. Fourteen research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and six have issued a Hold rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the stock presently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average price target of $285.67.

Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. Trading Up 1.2%

AJG opened at $230.08 on Wednesday. Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. has a one year low of $190.75 and a one year high of $313.09. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.50, a current ratio of 1.05 and a quick ratio of 1.05. The business has a 50 day simple moving average of $248.78 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $230.89. The firm has a market capitalization of $58.97 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 38.16, a PEG ratio of 1.38 and a beta of 0.55.

Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. (NYSE:AJG - Get Free Report) last posted its earnings results on Thursday, July 30th. The financial services provider reported $2.84 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $2.81 by $0.03. The firm had revenue of $3.95 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $4.01 billion. Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. had a return on equity of 13.28% and a net margin of 9.96%.The business's revenue was up 24.3% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period in the previous year, the firm earned $2.33 earnings per share. Analysts predict that Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. will post 13.27 EPS for the current year.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other news, VP Scott Hudson sold 12,000 shares of the stock in a transaction on Wednesday, September 2nd. The stock was sold at an average price of $264.13, for a total value of $3,169,560.00. Following the sale, the vice president directly owned 90,262 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $23,840,902.06. This represents a 11.73% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is accessible through this link. Also, General Counsel Walter Bay sold 12,000 shares of the company's stock in a transaction dated Monday, August 24th. The stock was sold at an average price of $270.08, for a total transaction of $3,240,960.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the general counsel owned 71,292 shares in the company, valued at approximately $19,254,543.36. The trade was a 14.41% decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale is available in the SEC filing. Over the last ninety days, insiders sold 28,500 shares of company stock valued at $7,562,950. 1.40% of the stock is owned by insiders.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Several hedge funds have recently modified their holdings of AJG. Parkside Financial Bank & Trust increased its position in shares of Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. by 4.9% during the 2nd quarter. Parkside Financial Bank & Trust now owns 811 shares of the financial services provider's stock valued at $186,000 after purchasing an additional 38 shares during the last quarter. Archford Capital Strategies LLC boosted its holdings in shares of Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. by 2.4% in the second quarter. Archford Capital Strategies LLC now owns 1,871 shares of the financial services provider's stock worth $430,000 after buying an additional 43 shares during the last quarter. Pure Financial Advisors LLC grew its position in Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. by 6.4% during the fourth quarter. Pure Financial Advisors LLC now owns 809 shares of the financial services provider's stock valued at $209,000 after buying an additional 49 shares during the period. Aaron Wealth Advisors LLC increased its holdings in Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. by 3.2% during the first quarter. Aaron Wealth Advisors LLC now owns 1,716 shares of the financial services provider's stock valued at $372,000 after buying an additional 54 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Cahaba Wealth Management Inc. boosted its stake in shares of Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. by 5.5% during the 1st quarter. Cahaba Wealth Management Inc. now owns 1,132 shares of the financial services provider's stock worth $245,000 after acquiring an additional 59 shares during the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 85.53% of the company's stock.

About Arthur J. Gallagher & Co.

Arthur J. Gallagher & Co is a global insurance brokerage, risk management and consulting company headquartered in Rolling Meadows, Illinois. The company helps businesses, public entities and individuals identify, manage and transfer risk through insurance brokerage, employee benefits consulting, risk management and related advisory services.

Gallagher operates through several businesses, including retail insurance brokerage, wholesale brokerage and reinsurance brokerage. Its Gallagher Re business provides reinsurance broking and advisory services, while Gallagher Bassett provides third-party claims administration and related risk management services.

This instant news alert was generated by narrative science technology and financial data from MarketBeat in order to provide readers with the fastest reporting and unbiased coverage. Please send any questions or comments about this story to contact@marketbeat.com.