Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. Hits 52-Week High

Zacks Equity Research

On Jan 16, 2014, shares of Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. (NYSE:AJG) touched a new 52-week high of $48.79. The shares of the insurance broker have been gaining momentum with an impressive tally of 11 acquisitions in the fourth quarter of 2013. Shares have gained almost 11% since the onset of fourth quarter.

Share Drivers

Arthur J. Gallagher made eleven acquisitions during the fourth quarter of 2013 which compares favorably with the third quarter tally during which the company undertook eight acquisitions with annualized revenue of $135.5 million.

Some of its latest acquisitions include Missouri-based employee benefit brokerage and consulting services provider, Jenkins and Associates, Island-based Cleaveland Insurance Group, New Jersey-based McIntyre Risk Management, and many more.

The company’s strong financial position supports its series of acquisitions.

Arthur J. Gallagher regularly undertakes acquisitions to augment its product and service offerings as well as leverage its international footprint. These initiatives should aid the company’s earnings performance going forward. Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. is set to release its fourth quarter 2013 earnings results on Jan 28, 2014. The Zacks Consensus Estimate for 2013 and 2014 is currently pegged at $2.14 and $2.52, respectively.

However, valuation for Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. looks a little stretched. The shares are trading at 16.2% premium to the peer group average on price-to-book basis and at 15.6% premium on price-to-earnings basis, while the return on equity is at 13.7% premium to the peer group average.

Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. presently carries a Zacks Rank #3 (Hold). Some better-ranked stocks worth considering in the financial sector include CNO Financial Group, Inc. (NYSE:CNO), Kemper Corporation (NYSE:KMPR) and Prudential plc (NYSE:PUK). All these stocks sport a Zacks Rank #1 (Strong Buy).

Read the Full Research Report on PUK
Read the Full Research Report on CNO
Read the Full Research Report on AJG
Read the Full Research Report on KMPR


Zacks Investment Research

  • Up next
  • Up next
  • Up next
  • Up next

Latest Stories

  • Q1 2024 DMC Global Inc Earnings Call

    Q1 2024 DMC Global Inc Earnings Call

  • Alaska Air says Boeing issued $61 million in credit memos to address grounding hit

    Alaska Air Group has received $61 million in supplier credit memos from Boeing as additional compensation for the hit from a temporary grounding of 737 MAX 9 jets, the carrier said on Friday. An Alaska Airlines-operated MAX 9 jet experienced a mid-air cabin panel blowout in January, which led to the U.S. Federal Aviation Administration grounding 171 of the aircraft for about three weeks. The credit memos can be used to make future purchases at Boeing, Alaska said in its quarterly report on Friday.

  • Tesla vs Tesla: US carmaker sues Indian namesake for copying trademark

    Elon Musk's carmaker Tesla has sued an Indian battery maker for infringing its trademark by using the brand name "Tesla Power" to promote its products, seeking damages and a permanent injunction against the company from a New Delhi judge. Tesla in a hearing at the Delhi High Court this week said the Indian company had continued advertising its products with the "Tesla Power" brand despite a cease-and-desist notice sent in April 2022, according to details of the proceedings posted on the court website on Friday. During the hearing, the Indian company, Tesla Power India Pvt Ltd, argued its main business is to make "lead acid batteries" and it has no intention of making electric vehicles.

  • Q1 2024 Joint Corp Earnings Call

    Q1 2024 Joint Corp Earnings Call

  • Woman hit by double-decker bus outside London Victoria Station

    A woman has been hit by a double-decker bus outside Victoria station at a junction that has seen multiple fatalities in recent years.

  • Kenya orders flood evacuations as it warns dams could spill

    Residents near 178 bodies of water have been told to leave as flooding is set to worsen.

  • Trump trial live updates: Custodial witness set to return to stand

    Former President Donald Trump is on trial in New York City, where he is facing felony charges related to a 2016 hush money payment to adult film actress Stormy Daniels. Trump last April pleaded not guilty to a 34-count indictment charging him with falsifying business records in connection with a hush money payment his then-attorney Michael Cohen made to Daniels in order to boost his electoral prospects in the 2016 presidential election. A custodial witness who testified yesterday about the contents of former Trump attorney Michael Cohen's phone is scheduled to return to the witness stand this morning on Day 11 of the trial.

  • Dow Jones Futures Rise As Apple Jumps On Record Buyback, But Jobs Report Looms

    The stock market rallied into Friday's key jobs report. Apple popped late on earnings and massive stock buyback.

  • GLOBAL MARKETS-Investors hold fire ahead of US payrolls

    Investors hunkered down on Friday ahead of key U.S. non-farm payroll numbers that could shift bets on when the Federal Reserve will start cutting rates. U.S. stock index futures gained after news of Apple's record $110 billion share buyback, but the jobs figures due at 1230 GMT are set to shape investor sentiment across assets. The yen recovering from 34-year lows was the focus in Asia, capping a tumultuous week that saw suspected intervention from Japanese authorities, leaving the dollar on the back foot.

  • Q1 2024 Willdan Group Inc Earnings Call

    Q1 2024 Willdan Group Inc Earnings Call

  • Former Wisconsin election official fined for ordering military ballots under fake names

    The charges against Kimberly Zapata came at a sensitive time for election workers after Donald Trump sought to sow doubt in election processes.

  • Q1 2024 Udemy Inc Earnings Call

    Q1 2024 Udemy Inc Earnings Call

  • Plattsburgh's Common Council approves Local Waterfront Revitalization Program, rejects Harbor Management Law

    Plattsburgh's Common Council approves Local Waterfront Revitalization Program, rejects Harbor Management Law

  • Local elections results – live: Starmer demands general election as Tories suffer ‘catastrophic’ vote collapse

    Sir Keir Starmer said Labour’s win in Blackpool South was ‘truly historic’ and the ‘most important result’ nationally

  • Here’s How Net Lease Office Properties (NLOP) Holdings Performed in Q1

    Alluvial Capital Management, an investment advisory firm, released its first-quarter 2024 investor letter. A copy of the same can be downloaded here. Alluvial Fund rose 6.3% in Q1, outperforming comparable indexes which were up between 4.3% and 5.2%. The overall increase was comprehensive, as multiple assets in the portfolio made significant contributions. In addition, you […]

  • Clarkson’s Farm 3, Amazon Prime Video, review: Jeremy left streaky-eyed by the plight of the pig

    A decade ago, Jeremy Clarkson was asked when he last cried. “My name is Jeremy. That makes me a man, and that means I don’t snivel,” he replied. Well, that was before his farming days. In the third series of Clarkson’s Farm (Amazon Prime Video), he is undone by some adorable piglets.

  • Top 20 States Where the US Military Spends the Most Money

    In this article, we look at the 20 states where the US military spends the most money. You can skip our detailed analysis on the breakdown of the Department of Defense (DoD)’s spending by state and head over directly to the Top 5 States Where the US Military Spends the Most Money. Figures released by […]

  • Skeletons missing hands and feet found in Hitler's Wolf's Lair

    Five human skeletons - all missing their hands and feet - have been discovered at Nazi leader Adolf Hitler’s eastern front military headquarters in present-day Poland, buried inside the villa of Luftwaffe commander Hermann Goering. The bodies of three adults, a baby and an older child were discovered by a group called the Latebra Foundation, amateur archaeologists who have been excavating at the site with official permission for several years, group members and officials said. "You'd never expect such things in such a place as it was ... the most guarded place in the Third Reich and after the war, the Russians took over this place," Latebra member Dominik Markiewicz told Reuters.

  • Mad Men stars reprise classic roles in Netflix's new movie Unfrosted

    Mad Men stars Jon Hamm and John Slattery have reprised their roles of Don Draper and Roger Sterling for a surprise cameo in Netflix's Unfrosted.

  • Can Premier League win over fans for a Stateside adventure?

    Comment: Money talks, and louder than ever, but English fans are shouting to be heard amid talks of games heading to across the pond