Brown & Brown, Inc. (NYSE:BRO) Receives Average Rating of “Moderate Buy” from Analysts

Shares of Brown & Brown, Inc. (NYSE:BRO) have been assigned an average recommendation of “Moderate Buy” from the twelve research firms that are presently covering the stock, MarketBeat Ratings reports. One research analyst has rated the stock with a sell recommendation, four have issued a hold recommendation and seven have issued a buy recommendation on the company. The average 12 month target price among analysts that have updated their coverage on the stock in the last year is $113.17.

Several brokerages have weighed in on BRO. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods decreased their price objective on shares of Brown & Brown from $99.00 to $97.00 and set an “underperform” rating on the stock in a research note on Friday, January 10th. Bank of America increased their price target on Brown & Brown from $116.00 to $117.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a research report on Tuesday, January 28th. Morgan Stanley initiated coverage on Brown & Brown in a report on Thursday, December 5th. They set an “overweight” rating and a $134.00 price target for the company. StockNews.com lowered Brown & Brown from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Saturday, November 2nd. Finally, Wells Fargo & Company raised their target price on Brown & Brown from $115.00 to $125.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research note on Wednesday, January 29th.

Brown & Brown Trading Up 1.5 %

Shares of BRO opened at $116.46 on Friday. The company has a current ratio of 1.79, a quick ratio of 1.79 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.56. The stock has a market cap of $33.30 billion, a PE ratio of 33.66, a PEG ratio of 2.93 and a beta of 0.86. Brown & Brown has a 1 year low of $80.33 and a 1 year high of $117.15. The stock has a 50 day simple moving average of $105.95 and a 200-day simple moving average of $105.79.

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

Brown & Brown Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Wednesday, February 12th. Shareholders of record on Wednesday, February 5th were issued a $0.15 dividend. The ex-dividend date was Wednesday, February 5th. This represents a $0.60 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 0.52%. Brown & Brown’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 17.34%.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Brown & Brown

Several institutional investors have recently modified their holdings of the business. Brooklyn Investment Group acquired a new stake in Brown & Brown during the 3rd quarter worth approximately $26,000. Kohmann Bosshard Financial Services LLC bought a new stake in shares of Brown & Brown during the fourth quarter worth $28,000. Johnson Financial Group Inc. raised its holdings in shares of Brown & Brown by 534.1% during the fourth quarter. Johnson Financial Group Inc. now owns 279 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $29,000 after acquiring an additional 235 shares during the period. Ashton Thomas Securities LLC bought a new stake in Brown & Brown in the 3rd quarter valued at $29,000. Finally, Y.D. More Investments Ltd boosted its stake in Brown & Brown by 122.7% in the 4th quarter. Y.D. More Investments Ltd now owns 294 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $30,000 after purchasing an additional 162 shares during the period. Institutional investors own 71.01% of the company’s stock.

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.