Wolfe Research Begins Coverage on Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. (NYSE:AJG)

Investment analysts at Wolfe Research started coverage on shares of Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. (NYSE:AJG) in a research note issued to investors on Thursday, MarketBeat Ratings reports. The firm set an “outperform” rating and a $291.00 price target on the financial services provider’s stock. Wolfe Research’s price target would suggest a potential upside of 15.80% from the stock’s previous close.

A number of other equities research analysts also recently commented on the company. Cowen reaffirmed a “buy” rating on shares of Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. in a report on Friday, October 31st. Wells Fargo & Company lifted their price objective on shares of Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. from $365.00 to $366.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research note on Wednesday, October 8th. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods cut their price objective on shares of Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. from $315.00 to $275.00 and set a “market perform” rating on the stock in a research note on Friday, October 31st. The Goldman Sachs Group decreased their target price on shares of Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. from $361.00 to $315.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a research report on Friday, October 31st. Finally, Citigroup cut their price target on Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. from $330.00 to $277.00 and set a “neutral” rating on the stock in a research report on Monday, November 3rd. One analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, nine have assigned a Buy rating, seven have assigned a Hold rating and one has given a Sell rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the stock has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $316.33.

Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. Stock Up 1.6%

NYSE:AJG opened at $251.29 on Thursday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.52, a quick ratio of 1.36 and a current ratio of 1.36. The stock has a market capitalization of $64.53 billion, a P/E ratio of 35.69 and a beta of 0.71. The company’s 50-day simple moving average is $280.38 and its 200-day simple moving average is $302.39. Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. has a fifty-two week low of $239.47 and a fifty-two week high of $351.23.

Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. (NYSE:AJG) last announced its earnings results on Thursday, October 30th. The financial services provider reported $2.32 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $2.51 by ($0.19). Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. had a net margin of 14.54% and a return on equity of 13.17%. The business had revenue of $3.33 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $3.34 billion. During the same period in the prior year, the company earned $2.26 earnings per share. The company’s quarterly revenue was up 20.2% on a year-over-year basis. On average, equities analysts anticipate that Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. will post 11.54 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Insider Activity at Arthur J. Gallagher & Co.

In related news, VP Scott R. Hudson sold 12,855 shares of Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. stock in a transaction dated Monday, September 8th. The stock was sold at an average price of $297.60, for a total value of $3,825,648.00. Following the sale, the vice president directly owned 85,920 shares in the company, valued at approximately $25,569,792. The trade was a 13.01% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is accessible through this hyperlink. Also, CFO Douglas K. Howell sold 8,000 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, September 22nd. The shares were sold at an average price of $299.54, for a total value of $2,396,320.00. Following the transaction, the chief financial officer directly owned 100,777 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $30,186,742.58. The trade was a 7.35% decrease in their position. The SEC filing for this sale provides additional information. In the last three months, insiders sold 35,855 shares of company stock valued at $10,482,928. 1.60% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

Institutional Trading of Arthur J. Gallagher & Co.

Several large investors have recently made changes to their positions in the company. Factory Mutual Insurance Co. increased its holdings in Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. by 107.1% in the 2nd quarter. Factory Mutual Insurance Co. now owns 14,500 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $4,642,000 after purchasing an additional 7,500 shares during the last quarter. Fairfield Financial Advisors LTD boosted its position in shares of Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. by 21.4% during the second quarter. Fairfield Financial Advisors LTD now owns 9,961 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $3,189,000 after buying an additional 1,758 shares during the period. Petra Financial Advisors Inc. acquired a new stake in shares of Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. in the second quarter valued at $812,000. Boston Partners raised its holdings in shares of Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. by 0.4% in the 2nd quarter. Boston Partners now owns 735,759 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $234,226,000 after buying an additional 2,806 shares during the period. Finally, Mitsubishi UFJ Asset Management Co. Ltd. lifted its stake in Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. by 4.2% during the 2nd quarter. Mitsubishi UFJ Asset Management Co. Ltd. now owns 2,381,835 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $762,473,000 after acquiring an additional 94,940 shares in the last quarter. 85.53% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

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.