Aberdeen Group plc Boosts Holdings in Brown & Brown, Inc. $BRO

Aberdeen Group plc raised its position in shares of Brown & Brown, Inc. (NYSE:BRO) by 3.4% during the 2nd quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The institutional investor owned 169,556 shares of the financial services provider’s stock after purchasing an additional 5,586 shares during the quarter. Aberdeen Group plc owned 0.06% of Brown & Brown worth $18,799,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Other large investors have also added to or reduced their stakes in the company. GW&K Investment Management LLC lifted its holdings in Brown & Brown by 104.4% during the first quarter. GW&K Investment Management LLC now owns 419 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $52,000 after purchasing an additional 214 shares in the last quarter. Fifth Third Bancorp lifted its holdings in Brown & Brown by 7.1% during the first quarter. Fifth Third Bancorp now owns 6,807 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $847,000 after purchasing an additional 450 shares in the last quarter. Tandem Investment Advisors Inc. lifted its holdings in Brown & Brown by 2.5% during the first quarter. Tandem Investment Advisors Inc. now owns 764,709 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $95,130,000 after purchasing an additional 18,677 shares in the last quarter. Jefferies Financial Group Inc. purchased a new position in Brown & Brown during the first quarter valued at approximately $3,043,000. Finally, Cambridge Investment Research Advisors Inc. lifted its holdings in Brown & Brown by 22.0% during the first quarter. Cambridge Investment Research Advisors Inc. now owns 18,603 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $2,314,000 after purchasing an additional 3,351 shares in the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 71.01% of the company’s stock.

Brown & Brown Trading Up 0.4%

Shares of BRO opened at $94.86 on Wednesday. The company’s fifty day moving average is $94.44 and its 200 day moving average is $104.49. Brown & Brown, Inc. has a fifty-two week low of $89.99 and a fifty-two week high of $125.68. The stock has a market capitalization of $31.29 billion, a PE ratio of 27.34, a P/E/G ratio of 2.14 and a beta of 0.79. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.64, a quick ratio of 6.72 and a current ratio of 6.72.

Brown & Brown (NYSE:BRO) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Monday, July 28th. The financial services provider reported $1.03 earnings per share for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $0.99 by $0.04. Brown & Brown had a net margin of 19.89% and a return on equity of 15.10%. The company had revenue of $1.29 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $1.28 billion. During the same quarter in the previous year, the business posted $0.93 earnings per share. Brown & Brown’s quarterly revenue was up 9.1% on a year-over-year basis. Sell-side analysts expect that Brown & Brown, Inc. will post 4.18 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Brown & Brown Announces Dividend

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Wednesday, August 20th. Investors of record on Wednesday, August 13th were given a $0.15 dividend. This represents a $0.60 annualized dividend and a yield of 0.6%. The ex-dividend date was Wednesday, August 13th. Brown & Brown’s payout ratio is currently 17.29%.

Insider Buying and Selling at Brown & Brown

In other Brown & Brown news, Director Paul J. Krump purchased 2,678 shares of Brown & Brown stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, August 8th. The shares were bought at an average price of $93.31 per share, for a total transaction of $249,884.18. Following the completion of the transaction, the director owned 5,353 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $499,488.43. This trade represents a 100.11% increase in their position. The acquisition was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available through the SEC website. Also, Director Bronislaw Edmund Masojada acquired 1,000 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction on Wednesday, August 6th. The shares were purchased at an average price of $91.44 per share, for a total transaction of $91,440.00. Following the transaction, the director directly owned 5,000 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $457,200. The trade was a 25.00% increase in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this purchase can be found here. Insiders own 15.59% of the company’s stock.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several equities analysts have weighed in on BRO shares. Raymond James Financial reaffirmed an “outperform” rating and set a $120.00 price target (down previously from $125.00) on shares of Brown & Brown in a report on Monday, August 4th. BMO Capital Markets reduced their price objective on shares of Brown & Brown from $122.00 to $106.00 and set an “outperform” rating on the stock in a research report on Wednesday, July 30th. Bank of America upgraded shares of Brown & Brown from a “neutral” rating to a “buy” rating and lifted their price objective for the company from $126.00 to $130.00 in a research report on Wednesday, July 30th. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods reduced their price objective on shares of Brown & Brown from $104.00 to $87.00 and set an “underperform” rating on the stock in a research report on Thursday, July 31st. Finally, Wells Fargo & Company reduced their price objective on shares of Brown & Brown from $101.00 to $98.00 and set an “equal weight” rating on the stock in a research report on Wednesday, October 8th. Seven analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, eight have given a Hold rating and one has given a Sell rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the stock currently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and an average price target of $109.92.

Brown & Brown Company Profile

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.