Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. (NYSE:AJG) Given New $330.00 Price Target at Keefe, Bruyette & Woods

Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. (NYSE:AJG - Free Report) had its price objective hoisted by Keefe, Bruyette & Woods from $326.00 to $330.00 in a research report released on Wednesday morning,Benzinga reports. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods currently has a market perform rating on the financial services provider's stock.

Several other equities research analysts have also recently commented on AJG. Jefferies Financial Group cut their price target on Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. from $266.00 to $265.00 and set a "hold" rating for the company in a report on Friday, April 11th. Redburn Atlantic assumed coverage on shares of Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. in a research report on Tuesday, March 25th. They set a "neutral" rating and a $352.00 price objective for the company. Barclays cut their price objective on shares of Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. from $346.00 to $327.00 and set an "equal weight" rating for the company in a research report on Monday. Finally, Wells Fargo & Company cut their price objective on shares of Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. from $372.00 to $371.00 and set an "overweight" rating for the company in a research report on Monday, June 9th. Two equities research analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, seven have issued a hold rating and five have issued a buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat, Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. currently has a consensus rating of "Hold" and a consensus price target of $318.21.

Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. Price Performance

AJG traded down $2.06 during midday trading on Wednesday, hitting $311.52. 715,217 shares of the company traded hands, compared to its average volume of 1,386,334. The company has a current ratio of 1.44, a quick ratio of 1.44 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.56. The company has a market capitalization of $79.78 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 45.08 and a beta of 0.71. Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. has a 52-week low of $267.00 and a 52-week high of $351.23. The business has a 50 day simple moving average of $327.80 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $320.48.

Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. (NYSE:AJG - Get Free Report) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, May 1st. The financial services provider reported $3.67 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $3.57 by $0.10. The business had revenue of $3.69 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $3.85 billion. Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. had a net margin of 14.39% and a return on equity of 14.83%. The company's revenue was up 14.5% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period last year, the firm posted $3.45 earnings per share. On average, equities analysts forecast that Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. will post 11.54 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, June 20th. Stockholders of record on Friday, June 6th were paid a $0.65 dividend. This represents a $2.60 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 0.83%. The ex-dividend date was Friday, June 6th. Arthur J. Gallagher & Co.'s payout ratio is 37.63%.

Insider Activity

In other news, Director David S. Johnson sold 1,000 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, May 16th. The shares were sold at an average price of $342.04, for a total value of $342,040.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the director owned 45,323 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $15,502,278.92. This trade represents a 2.16% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which can be accessed through the SEC website. Also, VP Scott R. Hudson sold 10,500 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, May 21st. The shares were sold at an average price of $337.17, for a total transaction of $3,540,285.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the vice president directly owned 91,175 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $30,741,474.75. The trade was a 10.33% decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Over the last quarter, insiders sold 25,000 shares of company stock valued at $8,528,080. 1.60% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Arthur J. Gallagher & Co.

A number of institutional investors have recently modified their holdings of the business. Annex Advisory Services LLC increased its holdings in shares of Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. by 16.1% in the 2nd quarter. Annex Advisory Services LLC now owns 76,997 shares of the financial services provider's stock valued at $24,648,000 after acquiring an additional 10,703 shares during the period. Arthur M. Cohen & Associates LLC increased its holdings in shares of Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. by 4.2% in the 2nd quarter. Arthur M. Cohen & Associates LLC now owns 12,975 shares of the financial services provider's stock valued at $4,154,000 after acquiring an additional 526 shares during the period. Busey Bank increased its holdings in shares of Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. by 2.0% in the 2nd quarter. Busey Bank now owns 44,708 shares of the financial services provider's stock valued at $14,312,000 after acquiring an additional 870 shares during the period. UMB Bank n.a. increased its holdings in shares of Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. by 0.5% in the 2nd quarter. UMB Bank n.a. now owns 9,294 shares of the financial services provider's stock valued at $2,975,000 after acquiring an additional 45 shares during the period. Finally, AA Financial Advisors LLC boosted its position in shares of Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. by 165.7% during the 2nd quarter. AA Financial Advisors LLC now owns 1,613 shares of the financial services provider's stock worth $516,000 after purchasing an additional 1,006 shares in the last quarter. 85.53% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. Company Profile

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.