Brown & Brown (NYSE:BRO) Sets New 1-Year High – What’s Next?

Brown & Brown, Inc. (NYSE:BRO) reached a new 52-week high during mid-day trading on Monday . The stock traded as high as $121.30 and last traded at $121.02, with a volume of 1325066 shares trading hands. The stock had previously closed at $118.52.

Analyst Ratings Changes

BRO has been the topic of several research reports. Wells Fargo & Company raised their price objective on Brown & Brown from $115.00 to $125.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a report on Wednesday, January 29th. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods reduced their price objective on Brown & Brown from $99.00 to $97.00 and set an “underperform” rating for the company in a research note on Friday, January 10th. Morgan Stanley initiated coverage on shares of Brown & Brown in a research report on Thursday, December 5th. They set an “overweight” rating and a $134.00 target price on the stock. Royal Bank of Canada upped their price target on shares of Brown & Brown from $118.00 to $120.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a research report on Wednesday, January 29th. Finally, Bank of America lifted their price objective on shares of Brown & Brown from $116.00 to $117.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a research note on Tuesday, January 28th. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, five have given a hold rating and seven have issued a buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the company presently has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus target price of $113.17.

Brown & Brown Stock Performance

The company has a quick ratio of 1.79, a current ratio of 1.79 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.56. The stock has a market capitalization of $34.60 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 34.98, a PEG ratio of 2.93 and a beta of 0.86. The firm has a fifty day moving average of $111.55 and a 200-day moving average of $107.70.

Brown & Brown (NYSE:BRO) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Monday, January 27th. The financial services provider reported $0.86 EPS for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.76 by $0.10. Brown & Brown had a net margin of 20.68% and a return on equity of 17.81%. As a group, sell-side analysts anticipate that Brown & Brown, Inc. will post 4.18 EPS for the current year.

Brown & Brown Announces Dividend

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Wednesday, February 12th. Investors of record on Wednesday, February 5th were paid a $0.15 dividend. This represents a $0.60 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 0.50%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Wednesday, February 5th. Brown & Brown’s payout ratio is currently 17.34%.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Institutional investors have recently bought and sold shares of the business. Norges Bank acquired a new stake in Brown & Brown in the 4th quarter worth about $313,412,000. First Trust Advisors LP boosted its position in shares of Brown & Brown by 626.6% in the fourth quarter. First Trust Advisors LP now owns 2,350,039 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $239,751,000 after acquiring an additional 2,026,589 shares during the last quarter. Madison Investment Advisors LLC purchased a new stake in Brown & Brown in the fourth quarter valued at approximately $198,031,000. Vanguard Group Inc. increased its position in Brown & Brown by 4.7% during the fourth quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 29,940,139 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $3,054,493,000 after purchasing an additional 1,335,964 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Proficio Capital Partners LLC raised its stake in Brown & Brown by 11,337.8% during the fourth quarter. Proficio Capital Partners LLC now owns 1,108,894 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $1,109,000 after purchasing an additional 1,099,199 shares during the period. 71.01% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

About Brown & Brown

Brown & Brown, Inc is an insurance agency, wholesale brokerage, insurance program and service organization. It engages in the provision of insurance brokerage services and casualty insurance underwriting services. It operates through the following segments: Retail, National Programs, Wholesale Brokerage, and Services.