Short Interest in Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. (NYSE:AJG) Drops By 16.7%

Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. (NYSE:AJG) saw 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. Based on an average trading volume of 1,810,000 shares, the short-interest ratio is currently 1.8 days. Approximately 1.3% of the shares of the company are sold short.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of research firms have recently weighed in on AJG. TD Cowen raised shares of Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating and upped their price target for the stock from $295.00 to $377.00 in a research note on Friday, January 10th. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods upped their target price on shares of Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. from $308.00 to $314.00 and gave the stock a “market perform” rating in a research report on Friday, March 21st. Truist Financial lifted their price target on shares of Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. from $275.00 to $290.00 and gave the company a “hold” rating in a research report on Friday, January 31st. Piper Sandler raised Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. from a “neutral” rating to an “overweight” rating and raised their price objective for the company from $285.00 to $315.00 in a research note on Wednesday, January 8th. Finally, Redburn Atlantic assumed coverage on Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. in a research report on Tuesday, March 25th. They set a “neutral” rating and a $352.00 target price on the stock. Two research analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, seven have assigned a hold rating and six have assigned a buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat, the company presently has an average rating of “Hold” and an average target price of $313.20.

Insider Transactions at Arthur J. Gallagher & Co.

In other news, VP Christopher E. Mead sold 2,900 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, February 3rd. The stock was sold at an average price of $302.61, for a total transaction of $877,569.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the vice president now directly owns 14,674 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $4,440,499.14. This represents a 16.50 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is accessible through this hyperlink. Also, VP Scott R. Hudson sold 7,510 shares of Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, March 21st. The shares were sold at an average price of $333.59, for a total value of $2,505,260.90. Following the completion of the sale, the vice president now owns 90,020 shares in the company, valued at approximately $30,029,771.80. This trade represents a 7.70 % 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 worth $7,478,224. Company insiders own 1.60% of the company’s stock.

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

Institutional investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the business. Allred Capital Management LLC increased its stake in shares of Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. by 1.0% during the 4th quarter. Allred Capital Management LLC now owns 3,380 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $960,000 after acquiring an additional 34 shares during the last quarter. Catalina Capital Group LLC grew its holdings in Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. by 1.0% in the fourth quarter. Catalina Capital Group LLC now owns 3,380 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $959,000 after purchasing an additional 35 shares during the period. Greenleaf Trust increased its position in Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. by 1.1% during the fourth quarter. Greenleaf Trust now owns 3,310 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $940,000 after purchasing an additional 36 shares during the last quarter. HBK Sorce Advisory LLC raised its stake in Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. by 3.2% during the fourth quarter. HBK Sorce Advisory LLC now owns 1,173 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $333,000 after purchasing an additional 36 shares during the period. Finally, Brendel Financial Advisors LLC boosted its holdings in shares of Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. by 0.5% in the 4th quarter. Brendel Financial Advisors LLC now owns 7,237 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $2,054,000 after purchasing an additional 38 shares during the last quarter. 85.53% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. Trading Up 0.2 %

NYSE:AJG traded up $0.56 on Wednesday, reaching $344.42. The stock had a trading volume of 1,271,522 shares, compared to its average volume of 1,220,676. Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. has a 12-month low of $230.08 and a 12-month high of $355.16. The company has a market cap of $88.08 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 52.83 and a beta of 0.75. The firm’s fifty day moving average is $323.67 and its two-hundred day moving average is $301.67. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.63, a current ratio of 1.51 and a quick ratio of 1.51.

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

Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. Increases Dividend

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, March 21st. Stockholders of record on Friday, March 7th were given 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 an increase from Arthur J. Gallagher & Co.’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.60. Arthur J. Gallagher & Co.’s payout ratio is currently 39.88%.

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.