Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. (NYSE:AJG) Hits New 52-Week High – Should You Buy?

Shares of Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. (NYSE:AJG) hit a new 52-week high during mid-day trading on Monday . The stock traded as high as $346.95 and last traded at $343.93, with a volume of 85547 shares trading hands. The stock had previously closed at $340.76.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several research firms have commented on AJG. Truist Financial upped their price objective on Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. from $275.00 to $290.00 and gave the stock a “hold” rating in a research report on Friday, January 31st. Redburn Atlantic began coverage on Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. in a research report on Tuesday, March 25th. They issued a “neutral” rating and a $352.00 target price on the stock. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods upped their price objective on shares of Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. from $308.00 to $314.00 and gave the company a “market perform” rating in a research note on Friday, March 21st. TD Cowen upgraded Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating and lifted their price target for the stock from $295.00 to $377.00 in a report on Friday, January 10th. Finally, Royal Bank of Canada upped their price objective on Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. from $320.00 to $340.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a report on Friday, January 31st. Two analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, seven have assigned a hold rating and six have issued a buy rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the stock has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus target price of $313.20.

Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. Stock Performance

The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.63, a current ratio of 1.51 and a quick ratio of 1.51. The company has a market capitalization of $88.16 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 52.93 and a beta of 0.75. The stock has a 50 day simple moving average of $321.73 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $301.01.

Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. (NYSE:AJG) last announced its earnings results on Thursday, January 30th. The financial services provider reported $2.13 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $2.03 by $0.10. Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. had a return on equity of 16.47% and a net margin of 12.70%. As a group, analysts anticipate that Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. will post 11.54 earnings per share for the current year.

Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. Increases Dividend

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, March 21st. Stockholders of record on Friday, March 7th were issued a $0.65 dividend. The ex-dividend date was Friday, March 7th. This represents a $2.60 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 0.75%. This is a positive change from Arthur J. Gallagher & Co.’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.60. Arthur J. Gallagher & Co.’s payout ratio is presently 39.88%.

Insider Activity

In other Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. news, VP Christopher E. Mead sold 2,900 shares of the stock in a transaction on Monday, February 3rd. The stock was sold at an average price of $302.61, for a total value of $877,569.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the vice president now owns 14,674 shares in the company, valued at approximately $4,440,499.14. This represents a 16.50 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through this link. Also, Director David S. Johnson sold 325 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, February 12th. The shares were sold at an average price of $322.06, for a total transaction of $104,669.50. Following the completion of the transaction, the director now directly owns 44,783 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $14,422,812.98. This trade represents a 0.72 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders have sold a total of 23,235 shares of company stock valued at $7,478,224 over the last quarter. Corporate insiders own 1.60% of the company’s stock.

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

Several hedge funds have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the business. Wealth Enhancement Advisory Services LLC grew its position in shares of Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. by 23.0% in the fourth quarter. Wealth Enhancement Advisory Services LLC now owns 68,124 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $19,337,000 after purchasing an additional 12,730 shares during the last quarter. IronOak Wealth LLC. acquired a new position in shares of Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. in the fourth quarter worth $548,000. TFR Capital LLC. purchased a new stake in shares of Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. in the fourth quarter valued at $770,000. REAP Financial Group LLC boosted its stake in shares of Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. by 50.0% during the fourth quarter. REAP Financial Group LLC now owns 213 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $60,000 after acquiring an additional 71 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Jefferies Financial Group Inc. increased its position in Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. by 473.6% during the 4th quarter. Jefferies Financial Group Inc. now owns 5,770 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $1,638,000 after purchasing an additional 4,764 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.