Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. (NYSE:AJG) Price Target Raised to $275.00

Key Points

• Barclays raised its price target on Arthur J. Gallagher to $275 from $262 and kept an overweight rating, implying roughly a 24.2% upside from the prior close.
• The analyst landscape is mixed but leans positive with a consensus of Moderate Buy and a consensus price target of $274.41—Wolfe Research sits at $289 (outperform) and BMO recently upgraded to outperform at $278, while some firms trimmed targets.
• Shares traded up to $221.37 after the company reported quarterly EPS of $2.38 (vs. $2.35 est.) and revenue of $3.57B (+33.9% y/y) that was slightly below expectations; insiders have sold small stakes and institutions own about 85.5% of the stock.

Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. (NYSE:AJG - Get Free Report) had its price target raised by equities researchers at Barclays from $262.00 to $275.00 in a research note issued on Wednesday,Benzinga reports. The firm currently has an "overweight" rating on the financial services provider's stock. Barclays's target price would suggest a potential upside of 24.22% from the company's previous close.

A number of other research firms also recently issued reports on AJG. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods dropped their price objective on shares of Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. from $249.00 to $246.00 and set a "market perform" rating on the stock in a research note on Tuesday. Wolfe Research set a $289.00 price objective on shares of Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. and gave the stock an "outperform" rating in a research note on Wednesday, December 17th. Weiss Ratings reaffirmed a "hold (c+)" rating on shares of Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. in a research report on Monday, December 29th. Piper Sandler cut their price target on Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. from $249.00 to $226.00 and set a "neutral" rating on the stock in a report on Monday, February 23rd. Finally, BMO Capital Markets upgraded Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. from a "market perform" rating to an "outperform" rating and upped their price objective for the stock from $275.00 to $278.00 in a research note on Tuesday, March 24th. Ten investment analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and nine have assigned a Hold rating to the company's stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the stock presently has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus price target of $274.41.

Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. Stock Up 1.7%

Shares of Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. stock traded up $3.80 during trading on Wednesday, hitting $221.37. 266,975 shares of the stock traded hands, compared to its average volume of 2,385,832. The company has a current ratio of 1.06, a quick ratio of 1.06 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.52. The stock's fifty day simple moving average is $220.32 and its 200 day simple moving average is $249.90. The firm has a market cap of $56.92 billion, a P/E ratio of 35.97, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.08 and a beta of 0.68. Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. has a 52-week low of $195.00 and a 52-week high of $351.23.

Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. (NYSE:AJG - Get Free Report) last issued its earnings results on Thursday, January 29th. The financial services provider reported $2.38 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $2.35 by $0.03. The company had revenue of $3.57 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $3.61 billion. Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. had a net margin of 11.84% and a return on equity of 12.13%. The firm's quarterly revenue was up 33.9% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period in the prior year, the business earned $1.12 EPS. On average, equities analysts predict that Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. will post 11.54 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

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

In other Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. news, VP Christopher E. Mead sold 4,000 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Thursday, March 5th. The stock was sold at an average price of $227.12, for a total value of $908,480.00. Following the completion of the sale, the vice president directly owned 19,306 shares in the company, valued at approximately $4,384,778.72. This trade represents a 17.16% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through the SEC website. Also, VP Scott R. Hudson sold 3,800 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction dated Friday, March 6th. The stock was sold at an average price of $227.57, for a total value of $864,766.00. Following the completion of the sale, the vice president directly owned 85,920 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $19,552,814.40. This represents a 4.24% decrease in their position. Additional details regarding this sale are available in the official SEC disclosure. Corporate insiders own 1.60% of the company's stock.

Institutional Trading of Arthur J. Gallagher & Co.

A number of institutional investors have recently bought and sold shares of AJG. CX Institutional lifted its stake in shares of Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. by 2.1% during the third quarter. CX Institutional now owns 1,782 shares of the financial services provider's stock worth $552,000 after buying an additional 36 shares during the period. D.A. Davidson & CO. raised its stake in Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. by 1.3% in the 3rd quarter. D.A. Davidson & CO. now owns 2,930 shares of the financial services provider's stock worth $908,000 after acquiring an additional 38 shares during the last quarter. Citizens Financial Group Inc. RI lifted its position in Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. by 1.0% during the 3rd quarter. Citizens Financial Group Inc. RI now owns 3,958 shares of the financial services provider's stock worth $1,226,000 after acquiring an additional 38 shares during the period. Central Pacific Bank Trust Division grew its stake in Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. by 40.6% during the 3rd quarter. Central Pacific Bank Trust Division now owns 135 shares of the financial services provider's stock valued at $42,000 after purchasing an additional 39 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Syntegra Private Wealth Group LLC increased its holdings in shares of Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. by 3.3% in the third quarter. Syntegra Private Wealth Group LLC now owns 1,248 shares of the financial services provider's stock valued at $387,000 after purchasing an additional 40 shares during the period. 85.53% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

About Arthur J. Gallagher & Co.

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.

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