Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. (NYSE:AJG) Given Consensus Recommendation of "Moderate Buy" by Brokerages

Shares of Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. (NYSE:AJG - Get Free Report) have earned an average recommendation of "Moderate Buy" from the nineteen brokerages that are presently covering the company, MarketBeat Ratings reports. Five investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold recommendation and fourteen have issued a buy recommendation on the company. The average 12 month price objective among brokerages that have updated their coverage on the stock in the last year is $290.2778.

A number of equities analysts recently issued reports on the company. Wolfe Research downgraded Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. from an "outperform" rating to a "peer perform" rating in a report on Thursday, July 9th. Royal Bank Of Canada boosted their price objective on shares of Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. from $300.00 to $310.00 and gave the stock an "outperform" rating in a research report on Friday, July 31st. Mizuho increased their target price on shares of Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. from $287.00 to $300.00 and gave the company an "outperform" rating in a research report on Friday, July 31st. Barclays lifted their price target on shares of Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. from $275.00 to $292.00 and gave the stock an "overweight" rating in a research note on Tuesday, July 7th. Finally, Keefe, Bruyette & Woods upped their price objective on shares of Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. from $261.00 to $271.00 and gave the company a "market perform" rating in a research note on Friday, July 31st.

Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. Stock Down 1.9%

Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. stock opened at $262.39 on Tuesday. The stock has a market cap of $67.25 billion, a PE ratio of 43.51, a P/E/G ratio of 1.62 and a beta of 0.50. 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 stock's fifty day moving average is $250.70 and its two-hundred day moving average is $226.19. Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. has a 1-year low of $190.75 and a 1-year high of $313.55.

Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. (NYSE:AJG - Get Free Report) last released its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, July 30th. The financial services provider reported $2.84 EPS for the quarter, beating analysts' consensus estimates of $2.81 by $0.03. The business had revenue of $3.95 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate 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 for the quarter was up 24.3% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter in the prior year, the business posted $2.33 EPS. On average, sell-side analysts expect that Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. will post 13.28 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. Announces Dividend

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, September 18th. Investors of record on Tuesday, September 8th will be paid a dividend of $0.70 per share. This represents a $2.80 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 1.1%. The ex-dividend date is Tuesday, September 8th. Arthur J. Gallagher & Co.'s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 46.43%.

Insider Activity at Arthur J. Gallagher & Co.

In other news, VP Christopher E. Mead sold 3,500 shares of Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. stock in a transaction on Wednesday, August 19th. The shares were sold at an average price of $257.02, for a total value of $899,570.00. Following the transaction, the vice president directly owned 22,223 shares of the company's stock, valued at $5,711,755.46. The trade was a 13.61% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available through this link. Also, General Counsel Walter D. Bay sold 12,000 shares of the company's stock in a transaction on Monday, August 24th. The shares were sold at an average price of $270.08, for a total transaction of $3,240,960.00. Following the completion of the sale, the general counsel owned 71,292 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $19,254,543.36. This trade represents a 14.41% decrease in their position. Additional details regarding this sale are available in the official SEC disclosure. Insiders own 1.40% of the company's stock.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

A number of institutional investors have recently bought and sold shares of the business. California State Teachers Retirement System grew its holdings in shares of Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. by 23,248.0% during the second quarter. California State Teachers Retirement System now owns 86,171,395 shares of the financial services provider's stock worth $19,782,367,000 after buying an additional 85,802,321 shares during the last quarter. Norges Bank acquired a new stake in Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. during the 4th quarter worth approximately $1,925,062,000. T. Rowe Price Investment Management Inc. grew its stake in shares of Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. by 123.5% in the 4th quarter. T. Rowe Price Investment Management Inc. now owns 5,887,538 shares of the financial services provider's stock valued at $1,523,636,000 after purchasing an additional 3,253,498 shares during the last quarter. Gtcr LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. during the first quarter worth approximately $514,112,000. Finally, Bank of New York Mellon Corp acquired a new stake in shares of Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. during the second quarter worth $289,484,000. 85.53% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. Company Profile

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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