Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. (NYSE:AJG) Short Interest Up 6.0% in April

Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. (NYSE:AJG) was the recipient of a significant increase in short interest in April. As of April 15th, there was short interest totalling 2,110,000 shares, an increase of 6.0% from the March 31st total of 1,990,000 shares. Based on an average daily trading volume, of 867,500 shares, the short-interest ratio is currently 2.4 days.

Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. Price Performance

NYSE:AJG traded up $0.59 during mid-day trading on Thursday, hitting $239.39. 173,744 shares of the company’s stock traded hands, compared to its average volume of 862,733. The firm’s 50 day simple moving average is $243.95 and its 200 day simple moving average is $239.00. The company has a market cap of $52.26 billion, a PE ratio of 48.30, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.19 and a beta of 0.69. Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. has a 1 year low of $198.52 and a 1 year high of $256.10. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.70, a quick ratio of 1.03 and a current ratio of 1.05.

Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. (NYSE:AJG) last released its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, April 25th. The financial services provider reported $3.49 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $3.41 by $0.08. Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. had a net margin of 10.27% and a return on equity of 18.94%. The firm had revenue of $3.22 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $3.18 billion. During the same quarter in the previous year, the firm posted $3.03 EPS. The firm’s quarterly revenue was up 20.4% on a year-over-year basis. Sell-side analysts expect that Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. will post 10.08 EPS for the current year.

Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. Announces Dividend

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, June 21st. Investors of record on Friday, June 7th will be paid a $0.60 dividend. The ex-dividend date is Friday, June 7th. This represents a $2.40 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 1.00%. Arthur J. Gallagher & Co.’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 48.58%.

Insider Transactions at Arthur J. Gallagher & Co.

In related news, VP Joel D. Cavaness sold 1,207 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, March 18th. The stock was sold at an average price of $255.20, for a total value of $308,026.40. Following the completion of the sale, the vice president now owns 2,023 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $516,269.60. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available through the SEC website. In related news, Director David S. Johnson sold 500 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, February 6th. The stock was sold at an average price of $234.04, for a total transaction of $117,020.00. Following the completion of the sale, the director now directly owns 45,038 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $10,540,693.52. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through the SEC website. Also, VP Joel D. Cavaness sold 1,207 shares of Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. stock in a transaction dated Monday, March 18th. The shares were sold at an average price of $255.20, for a total transaction of $308,026.40. Following the sale, the vice president now owns 2,023 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $516,269.60. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Over the last three months, insiders have sold 29,016 shares of company stock valued at $7,176,180. Corporate insiders own 1.60% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Several hedge funds have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the stock. McGlone Suttner Wealth Management Inc. boosted its holdings in shares of Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. by 4.0% in the 4th quarter. McGlone Suttner Wealth Management Inc. now owns 2,286 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $514,000 after buying an additional 88 shares during the period. Fidelis Capital Partners LLC boosted its position in Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. by 3.7% during the 3rd quarter. Fidelis Capital Partners LLC now owns 1,325 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $302,000 after purchasing an additional 47 shares during the period. Mackenzie Financial Corp lifted its stake in Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. by 16.1% in the fourth quarter. Mackenzie Financial Corp now owns 112,087 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $25,206,000 after buying an additional 15,528 shares during the last quarter. Louisiana State Employees Retirement System bought a new position in Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. in the 4th quarter worth about $2,946,000. Finally, Legato Capital Management LLC raised its holdings in shares of Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. by 43.7% during the fourth quarter. Legato Capital Management LLC now owns 13,495 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $3,035,000 after buying an additional 4,102 shares during the last quarter. 85.53% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of brokerages have issued reports on AJG. Jefferies Financial Group downgraded Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating and decreased their price target for the stock from $279.00 to $233.00 in a report on Tuesday, January 9th. Truist Financial reiterated a “hold” rating and set a $255.00 price target (down from $280.00) on shares of Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. in a research note on Wednesday, April 10th. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods reduced their price objective on Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. from $246.00 to $240.00 and set an “underperform” rating for the company in a research note on Wednesday, April 10th. Piper Sandler decreased their price target on shares of Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. from $253.00 to $252.00 and set a “neutral” rating for the company in a research note on Monday. Finally, Royal Bank of Canada upped their target price on shares of Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. from $270.00 to $282.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a report on Friday, March 22nd. One research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, six have given a hold rating and five have issued a buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the stock currently has an average rating of “Hold” and an average price target of $255.31.

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.