Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. (NYSE:AJG) Sees Large Decline in Short Interest

Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. (NYSE:AJG) was the target of a significant decrease in short interest in the month of September. As of September 30th, there was short interest totalling 2,370,000 shares, a decrease of 16.3% from the September 15th total of 2,830,000 shares. Based on an average daily volume of 818,600 shares, the short-interest ratio is currently 2.9 days.

Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. Stock Performance

Shares of NYSE:AJG traded up $1.95 during midday trading on Wednesday, reaching $289.52. 998,906 shares of the company’s stock traded hands, compared to its average volume of 847,825. Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. has a one year low of $218.63 and a one year high of $301.04. The stock has a 50 day moving average of $288.39 and a 200 day moving average of $267.04. The company has a market cap of $63.26 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 58.61, a P/E/G ratio of 2.53 and a beta of 0.72. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.67, a quick ratio of 1.04 and a current ratio of 1.04.

Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. (NYSE:AJG) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, July 25th. The financial services provider reported $2.26 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $2.24 by $0.02. Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. had a net margin of 10.41% and a return on equity of 19.25%. The firm had revenue of $2.73 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $2.77 billion. During the same quarter last year, the firm posted $1.90 EPS. The business’s quarterly revenue was up 14.3% compared to the same quarter last year. As a group, equities research analysts anticipate that Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. will post 10.11 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. Dividend Announcement

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, September 20th. Stockholders of record on Friday, September 6th were issued a dividend of $0.60 per share. The ex-dividend date was Friday, September 6th. This represents a $2.40 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 0.83%. Arthur J. Gallagher & Co.’s payout ratio is 48.58%.

Insider Activity at Arthur J. Gallagher & Co.

In related news, President Thomas Joseph Gallagher sold 15,000 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Thursday, August 8th. The stock was sold at an average price of $282.96, for a total transaction of $4,244,400.00. Following the sale, the president now owns 329,099 shares in the company, valued at $93,121,853.04. This represents a 0.00 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at the SEC website. In other Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. news, President Thomas Joseph Gallagher sold 15,000 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction on Thursday, August 8th. The shares were sold at an average price of $282.96, for a total value of $4,244,400.00. Following the transaction, the president now directly owns 329,099 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $93,121,853.04. This trade represents a 0.00 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this hyperlink. Also, President Michael Robert Pesch sold 7,100 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Friday, September 13th. The stock was sold at an average price of $296.20, for a total transaction of $2,103,020.00. Following the completion of the sale, the president now owns 33,267 shares in the company, valued at $9,853,685.40. This represents a 0.00 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders sold 44,145 shares of company stock worth $12,622,660 over the last three months. Company insiders own 1.60% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Trading of Arthur J. Gallagher & Co.

Several large investors have recently modified their holdings of the company. Norden Group LLC bought a new stake in Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. during the first quarter valued at approximately $3,841,000. Brookstone Capital Management grew its position in shares of Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. by 70.4% during the 1st quarter. Brookstone Capital Management now owns 12,851 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $3,213,000 after acquiring an additional 5,308 shares during the period. Sei Investments Co. increased its stake in shares of Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. by 11.7% in the 1st quarter. Sei Investments Co. now owns 194,568 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $48,649,000 after purchasing an additional 20,302 shares in the last quarter. Nomura Holdings Inc. bought a new position in Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. in the 4th quarter worth $979,000. Finally, BRITISH COLUMBIA INVESTMENT MANAGEMENT Corp lifted its position in Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. by 29.9% during the second quarter. BRITISH COLUMBIA INVESTMENT MANAGEMENT Corp now owns 161,028 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $41,756,000 after purchasing an additional 37,070 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors own 85.53% of the company’s stock.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several research firms have recently issued reports on AJG. TD Cowen upped their target price on Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. from $273.00 to $288.00 and gave the company a “hold” rating in a report on Tuesday, August 13th. Jefferies Financial Group boosted their target price on shares of Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. from $269.00 to $274.00 and gave the company a “hold” rating in a report on Wednesday, October 9th. The Goldman Sachs Group raised their price target on shares of Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. from $272.00 to $286.00 in a report on Friday, July 26th. UBS Group boosted their price objective on Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. from $260.00 to $292.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a report on Wednesday, July 31st. Finally, Bank of America raised their target price on shares of Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. from $271.00 to $293.00 and gave the company an “underperform” rating in a research note on Thursday, October 10th. Three investment analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, seven have assigned a hold rating and four have assigned a buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the stock presently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $287.00.

About Arthur J. Gallagher & Co.

Arthur J. Gallagher & Co, together with its subsidiaries, provides insurance and reinsurance brokerage, consulting, and third-party property/casualty claims settlement and administration services to entities and individuals worldwide. It operates in Brokerage and Risk Management segments. The Brokerage segment offers retail and wholesale insurance and reinsurance brokerage services; assists retail brokers and other non-affiliated brokers in the placement of specialized and hard-to-place insurance; and acts as a brokerage wholesaler, managing general agent, and managing general underwriter for distributing specialized insurance coverages to underwriting enterprises.