Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. (NYSE:AJG) Coverage Initiated at Mizuho

Investment analysts at Mizuho assumed coverage on shares of Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. (NYSE:AJG) in a research note issued on Monday, Marketbeat reports. The brokerage set a “neutral” rating and a $276.00 price target on the financial services provider’s stock. Mizuho’s price objective would suggest a potential upside of 9.32% from the company’s previous close.

A number of other equities analysts also recently issued reports on the company. Wolfe Research set a $289.00 target price on Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a research note on Wednesday. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods dropped their price objective on shares of Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. from $315.00 to $275.00 and set a “market perform” rating for the company in a research note on Friday, October 31st. Citigroup reduced their target price on shares of Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. from $330.00 to $277.00 and set a “neutral” rating on the stock in a report on Monday, November 3rd. Barclays downgraded shares of Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. from an “equal weight” rating to an “underweight” rating and lowered their price target for the stock from $328.00 to $250.00 in a report on Thursday, November 20th. Finally, Truist Financial reduced their price objective on shares of Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. from $290.00 to $280.00 and set a “hold” rating on the stock in a research note on Tuesday. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, eight have assigned a Buy rating, nine have issued a Hold rating and one has issued a Sell rating to the company. According to MarketBeat, the company has a consensus rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $306.81.

Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. Price Performance

Shares of NYSE:AJG opened at $252.48 on Monday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.52, a quick ratio of 1.06 and a current ratio of 1.06. Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. has a one year low of $236.34 and a one year high of $351.23. The company has a 50-day simple moving average of $261.36 and a 200-day simple moving average of $290.87. The stock has a market capitalization of $64.84 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 37.78 and a beta of 0.69.

Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. (NYSE:AJG) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, October 30th. The financial services provider reported $2.32 EPS for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $2.51 by ($0.19). The company had revenue of $3.33 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $3.34 billion. Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. had a net margin of 13.58% and a return on equity of 11.98%. The firm’s revenue was up 20.2% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period in the prior year, the company earned $2.26 earnings per share. On average, analysts predict that Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. will post 11.54 EPS for the current year.

Insider Transactions at Arthur J. Gallagher & Co.

In other news, VP Christopher E. Mead sold 1,250 shares of Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. stock in a transaction dated Friday, November 21st. The stock was sold at an average price of $250.74, for a total value of $313,425.00. Following the transaction, the vice president directly owned 17,327 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $4,344,571.98. The trade was a 6.73% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available at this link. Also, CAO Richard C. Cary sold 6,000 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, November 18th. The stock was sold at an average price of $261.00, for a total transaction of $1,566,000.00. Following the sale, the chief accounting officer directly owned 50,668 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $13,224,348. This trade represents a 10.59% decrease in their position. Additional details regarding this sale are available in the official SEC disclosure. Over the last quarter, insiders sold 21,250 shares of company stock valued at $6,071,365. Corporate insiders own 1.30% of the company’s stock.

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

Hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently made changes to their positions in the business. SeaCrest Wealth Management LLC increased its stake in Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. by 2.3% in the second quarter. SeaCrest Wealth Management LLC now owns 1,542 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $494,000 after acquiring an additional 34 shares during the period. Ashton Thomas Private Wealth LLC lifted its position in shares of Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. by 1.3% during the 1st quarter. Ashton Thomas Private Wealth LLC now owns 2,746 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $948,000 after buying an additional 35 shares during the period. Contravisory Investment Management Inc. grew its position in Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. by 0.6% in the second quarter. Contravisory Investment Management Inc. now owns 5,501 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $1,761,000 after acquiring an additional 35 shares during the period. Tritonpoint Wealth LLC lifted its holdings in shares of Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. by 1.1% during the second quarter. Tritonpoint Wealth LLC now owns 3,222 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $1,032,000 after acquiring an additional 35 shares during the period. Finally, D.A. Davidson & CO. lifted its holdings in Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. by 1.2% during the 2nd quarter. D.A. Davidson & CO. now owns 2,892 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $926,000 after purchasing an additional 35 shares during 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 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.