Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. (NYSE:AJG) Sees Significant Decrease in Short Interest

by · The Markets Daily

Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. (NYSE:AJG – Get Free Report) was the target of a significant decrease in short interest in 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 trading volume of 818,600 shares, the short-interest ratio is presently 2.9 days.

Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. Trading Up 0.6 %

NYSE:AJG traded up $1.80 on Monday, reaching $289.71. 733,956 shares of the stock traded hands, compared to its average volume of 846,627. The firm has a market capitalization of $63.30 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 58.28, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.53 and a beta of 0.72. The company’s 50 day moving average is $288.04 and its 200-day moving average is $266.50. The company has a current ratio of 1.04, a quick ratio of 1.04 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.67. Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. has a 1-year low of $218.63 and a 1-year high of $301.04.

Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. (NYSE:AJG – Get Free Report) last released its earnings results on Thursday, July 25th. The financial services provider reported $2.26 earnings per share for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $2.24 by $0.02. The business had revenue of $2.73 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $2.77 billion. Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. had a net margin of 10.41% and a return on equity of 19.25%. The company’s revenue for the quarter was up 14.3% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter in the prior year, the firm posted $1.90 EPS. 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 announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, September 20th. Shareholders of record on Friday, September 6th were given a dividend of $0.60 per share. This represents a $2.40 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 0.83%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Friday, September 6th. Arthur J. Gallagher & Co.’s dividend payout ratio is presently 48.58%.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of research analysts have recently commented on AJG shares. UBS Group increased their target price on shares of Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. from $260.00 to $292.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a report on Wednesday, July 31st. Wells Fargo & Company increased their target price on shares of Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. from $309.00 to $315.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a report on Thursday. Bank of America increased their target price on shares of Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. from $271.00 to $293.00 and gave the stock an “underperform” rating in a report on Thursday. The Goldman Sachs Group increased their target price on shares of Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. from $272.00 to $286.00 in a report on Friday, July 26th. Finally, Bank Of America (Bofa) raised their price objective on shares of Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. from $255.00 to $265.00 and gave the company an “underperform” rating in a report on Friday, July 26th. Three research analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, seven have given a hold rating and four have assigned a buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat, Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. presently has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $287.00.

Read Our Latest Report on Arthur J. Gallagher & Co.

Insider Activity at Arthur J. Gallagher & Co.

In related news, CFO Douglas K. Howell sold 7,000 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Thursday, September 19th. The shares were sold at an average price of $284.68, for a total transaction of $1,992,760.00. Following the completion of the sale, the chief financial officer now owns 75,963 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $21,625,146.84. This represents a 0.00 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available through the SEC website. In related news, CFO Douglas K. Howell sold 7,000 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Thursday, September 19th. The shares were sold at an average price of $284.68, for a total transaction of $1,992,760.00. Following the completion of the sale, the chief financial officer now owns 75,963 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $21,625,146.84. This represents a 0.00 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available through the SEC website. Also, General Counsel Walter D. Bay sold 6,335 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, July 30th. The stock was sold at an average price of $284.06, for a total transaction of $1,799,520.10. Following the sale, the general counsel now directly owns 30,053 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $8,536,855.18. This represents a 0.00 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Over the last three months, insiders have sold 44,145 shares of company stock worth $12,622,660. Corporate 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 stock. Creative Planning grew its position in shares of Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. by 4.4% during the 3rd quarter. Creative Planning now owns 59,653 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $16,785,000 after buying an additional 2,537 shares during the period. Procyon Advisors LLC lifted its stake in Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. by 47.4% during the 3rd quarter. Procyon Advisors LLC now owns 2,273 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $639,000 after acquiring an additional 731 shares in the last quarter. McGlone Suttner Wealth Management Inc. lifted its stake in Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. by 13.0% during the 3rd quarter. McGlone Suttner Wealth Management Inc. now owns 2,583 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $727,000 after acquiring an additional 297 shares in the last quarter. Crestmont Private Wealth LLC bought a new position in Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. during the 3rd quarter valued at $220,000. Finally, Renaissance Investment Group LLC lifted its stake in Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. by 5.2% during the 3rd quarter. Renaissance Investment Group LLC now owns 33,377 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $9,391,000 after acquiring an additional 1,636 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 85.53% of the company’s stock.

Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. Company Profile

(Get Free Report)

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.

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