Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. (NYSE:AJG) Price Target Raised to $366.00

Key Points

• Wells Fargo & Company has increased its price target for Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. from $365 to $366, indicating a potential upside of 18.37% from the current stock price.
• Various analysts have issued ratings with the consensus being a "Hold," while one analyst rated it a "Strong Buy," and others have given it "Buy" or "Hold" ratings.
• Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. reported a net margin of 14.54% and a year-over-year revenue increase of 16.0%, although it missed EPS estimates by $0.03 in its latest quarterly earnings.

Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. (NYSE:AJG - Get Free Report) had its target price lifted by research analysts at Wells Fargo & Company from $365.00 to $366.00 in a research note issued on Wednesday,Benzinga reports. The firm presently has an "overweight" rating on the financial services provider's stock. Wells Fargo & Company's target price would suggest a potential upside of 18.37% from the company's current price.

Other equities analysts also recently issued research reports about the stock. Cantor Fitzgerald raised shares of Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. to a "strong-buy" rating in a research note on Wednesday, August 13th. Wall Street Zen raised shares of Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. from a "sell" rating to a "hold" rating in a research note on Friday, September 5th. Piper Sandler reduced their price objective on shares of Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. from $352.00 to $340.00 and set an "overweight" rating on the stock in a research note on Thursday, October 2nd. Weiss Ratings reissued a "buy (b-)" rating on shares of Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. in a research note on Saturday, September 27th. Finally, Erste Group Bank reissued a "hold" rating on shares of Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. in a research note on Wednesday, July 23rd. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, seven have issued a Buy rating, eight have given a Hold rating and one has given a Sell rating to the company's stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. has a consensus rating of "Hold" and an average price target of $328.87.

Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. Price Performance

Shares of Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. stock traded down $0.60 during trading on Wednesday, hitting $309.21. 45,158 shares of the company were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 1,506,383. The company has a quick ratio of 1.36, a current ratio of 1.36 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.52. Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. has a fifty-two week low of $275.56 and a fifty-two week high of $351.23. The stock has a market capitalization of $79.28 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 43.91 and a beta of 0.73. The firm has a 50 day moving average price of $298.03 and a 200 day moving average price of $316.34.

Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. (NYSE:AJG - Get Free Report) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, July 31st. The financial services provider reported $2.33 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $2.36 by ($0.03). Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. had a return on equity of 13.17% and a net margin of 14.54%.The company had revenue of $3.18 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $3.20 billion. During the same quarter in the prior year, the firm earned $2.29 earnings per share. The company's revenue for the quarter was up 16.0% on a year-over-year basis. On average, equities analysts expect that Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. will post 11.54 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other news, VP Scott R. Hudson sold 12,855 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction on Monday, September 8th. The shares were sold at an average price of $297.60, for a total value of $3,825,648.00. Following the transaction, the vice president owned 85,920 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $25,569,792. This trade represents a 13.01% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available at this link. Also, CFO Douglas K. Howell sold 8,000 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction on Monday, September 22nd. The shares were sold at an average price of $299.54, for a total transaction of $2,396,320.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief financial officer directly owned 100,777 shares in the company, valued at approximately $30,186,742.58. This represents a 7.35% decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last three months, insiders sold 29,855 shares of company stock worth $8,916,928. Insiders own 1.30% of the company's stock.

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

Hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. HWG Holdings LP bought a new stake in shares of Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. in the 1st quarter worth about $25,000. AlphaQuest LLC bought a new stake in shares of Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. in the 1st quarter worth about $33,000. Saudi Central Bank bought a new stake in shares of Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. in the 1st quarter worth about $34,000. J.Safra Asset Management Corp increased its position in shares of Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. by 209.1% in the 2nd quarter. J.Safra Asset Management Corp now owns 102 shares of the financial services provider's stock worth $32,000 after purchasing an additional 69 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Rakuten Securities Inc. increased its position in shares of Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. by 650.0% in the 2nd quarter. Rakuten Securities Inc. now owns 105 shares of the financial services provider's stock worth $34,000 after purchasing an additional 91 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 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.

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