Argus Raises Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. (NYSE:AJG) Price Target to $300.00

Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. (NYSE:AJG) had its price target hoisted by stock analysts at Argus from $267.00 to $300.00 in a note issued to investors on Monday,Benzinga reports. The brokerage presently has a “buy” rating on the financial services provider’s stock. Argus’ price target would indicate a potential upside of 19.49% from the company’s current price.

A number of other equities research analysts have also recently commented on the company. UBS Group lifted their price objective on Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. from $291.00 to $299.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research note on Monday, August 3rd. Barclays raised their target price on Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. from $275.00 to $292.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a report on Tuesday, July 7th. Morgan Stanley reaffirmed an “overweight” rating and issued a $270.00 price target on shares of Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. in a research note on Monday, August 10th. Cantor Fitzgerald increased their price target on shares of Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. from $285.00 to $300.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a research report on Thursday, July 9th. Finally, Wolfe Research cut shares of Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. from an “outperform” rating to a “peer perform” rating in a report on Thursday, July 9th. Fourteen investment analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and five have assigned a Hold rating to the company. According to MarketBeat.com, the company currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $289.17.

Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. Stock Performance

Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. stock opened at $251.07 on Monday. The company’s 50-day moving average is $240.77 and its two-hundred day moving average is $224.53. Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. has a 1 year low of $190.75 and a 1 year high of $313.55. The company has a market cap of $64.35 billion, a PE ratio of 41.64, a PEG ratio of 1.29 and a beta of 0.50. The company has a current ratio of 1.05, a quick ratio of 1.05 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.50.

Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. (NYSE:AJG) last released its earnings results on Thursday, July 30th. The financial services provider reported $2.84 EPS for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $2.81 by $0.03. The firm had revenue of $3.95 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $4.01 billion. Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. had a net margin of 9.96% and a return on equity of 13.28%. The business’s quarterly revenue was up 24.3% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter in the previous year, the business earned $2.33 EPS. Equities analysts anticipate that Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. will post 13.28 earnings per share for the current year.

Insider Activity

In related news, CAO Richard C. Cary sold 3,000 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction on Tuesday, June 2nd. The shares were sold at an average price of $206.00, for a total transaction of $618,000.00. Following the sale, the chief accounting officer directly owned 47,819 shares in the company, valued at $9,850,714. This trade represents a 5.90% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available at this hyperlink. 1.40% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

Institutional Trading of Arthur J. Gallagher & Co.

Several hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently modified their holdings of the company. Kemnay Advisory Services Inc. bought a new position in shares of Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. during the fourth quarter worth about $26,000. Axiom Investment Management LLC bought a new stake in Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. in the 1st quarter valued at approximately $28,000. Cassaday & Co Wealth Management LLC acquired a new position in Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. during the 1st quarter worth approximately $29,000. MV Capital Management Inc. bought a new position in shares of Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. during the 4th quarter worth approximately $34,000. Finally, Rakuten Securities Inc. grew its stake in shares of Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. by 650.0% during the 2nd quarter. Rakuten Securities Inc. now owns 105 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $34,000 after acquiring an additional 91 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 85.53% of the company’s stock.

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.