Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. (NYSE:AJG) Short Interest Update

Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. (NYSE:AJG) was the recipient of a large drop in short interest in the month of March. As of March 15th, there was short interest totalling 3,240,000 shares, a drop of 16.7% from the February 28th total of 3,890,000 shares. Approximately 1.3% of the company’s shares are short sold. Based on an average daily volume of 1,810,000 shares, the short-interest ratio is currently 1.8 days.

Insider Buying and Selling

In related news, CAO Richard C. Cary sold 10,000 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Monday, February 10th. The stock was sold at an average price of $322.99, for a total transaction of $3,229,900.00. Following the transaction, the chief accounting officer now owns 69,774 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $22,536,304.26. This represents a 12.54 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this hyperlink. Also, VP Christopher E. Mead sold 2,900 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated Monday, February 3rd. The stock was sold at an average price of $302.61, for a total transaction of $877,569.00. Following the sale, the vice president now owns 14,674 shares in the company, valued at $4,440,499.14. This trade represents a 16.50 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last quarter, insiders sold 23,235 shares of company stock valued at $7,478,224. Company insiders own 1.60% of the company’s stock.

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

Hedge funds have recently modified their holdings of the business. CreativeOne Wealth LLC grew its position in Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. by 11.2% during the 3rd quarter. CreativeOne Wealth LLC now owns 1,969 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $554,000 after purchasing an additional 199 shares during the last quarter. Rockefeller Capital Management L.P. grew its holdings in shares of Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. by 18.9% during the third quarter. Rockefeller Capital Management L.P. now owns 17,750 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $4,990,000 after buying an additional 2,819 shares during the last quarter. Erste Asset Management GmbH acquired a new position in Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. in the 3rd quarter valued at about $8,020,000. Benjamin Edwards Inc. raised its stake in Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. by 1,486.5% during the 3rd quarter. Benjamin Edwards Inc. now owns 101,172 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $28,473,000 after acquiring an additional 94,795 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Centiva Capital LP purchased a new position in shares of Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. in the 3rd quarter valued at approximately $582,000. 85.53% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. Stock Up 0.2 %

Shares of NYSE AJG traded up $0.56 during mid-day trading on Wednesday, reaching $344.42. The company had a trading volume of 1,271,522 shares, compared to its average volume of 1,220,676. Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. has a 52-week low of $230.08 and a 52-week high of $355.16. The stock has a market cap of $88.08 billion, a P/E ratio of 52.83 and a beta of 0.75. The company has a current ratio of 1.51, a quick ratio of 1.51 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.63. The firm has a 50 day simple moving average of $323.67 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $301.67.

Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. (NYSE:AJG) last posted its earnings results on Thursday, January 30th. The financial services provider reported $2.13 EPS for the quarter, topping 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%. Sell-side analysts predict that Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. will post 11.54 earnings per share for the current year.

Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. Increases Dividend

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

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of equities research analysts have issued reports on AJG shares. Wells Fargo & Company increased their target price on shares of Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. from $341.00 to $370.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a report on Friday, March 21st. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods boosted their target price on Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. from $308.00 to $314.00 and gave the stock a “market perform” rating in a research note on Friday, March 21st. Royal Bank of Canada increased their price target on Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. from $320.00 to $340.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a research report on Friday, January 31st. Truist Financial boosted 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. Finally, Redburn Atlantic began coverage on shares of Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. in a report on Tuesday, March 25th. They issued a “neutral” rating and a $352.00 target price on the stock. Two equities research analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, seven have issued a hold rating and six have issued a buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat.com, Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. has a consensus rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $313.20.

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.