24,335 Shares in Brown & Brown, Inc. (NYSE:BRO) Bought by Peninsula Asset Management Inc.

Peninsula Asset Management Inc. bought a new position in Brown & Brown, Inc. (NYSE:BRO) in the first quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the SEC. The institutional investor bought 24,335 shares of the financial services provider’s stock, valued at approximately $3,027,000. Brown & Brown makes up about 1.7% of Peninsula Asset Management Inc.’s investment portfolio, making the stock its 22nd largest holding.

Several other large investors have also recently bought and sold shares of the company. Johnson Financial Group Inc. increased its stake in shares of Brown & Brown by 534.1% in the fourth quarter. Johnson Financial Group Inc. now owns 279 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $29,000 after buying an additional 235 shares during the period. Sunbelt Securities Inc. grew its holdings in Brown & Brown by 581.8% during the 4th quarter. Sunbelt Securities Inc. now owns 300 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $31,000 after acquiring an additional 256 shares during the last quarter. Optimum Investment Advisors acquired a new position in Brown & Brown in the 1st quarter valued at approximately $31,000. Garde Capital Inc. acquired a new position in Brown & Brown in the 1st quarter valued at approximately $46,000. Finally, GW&K Investment Management LLC raised its stake in shares of 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 acquiring an additional 214 shares during the last quarter. 71.01% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Brown & Brown Trading Up 1.3%

NYSE BRO opened at $93.09 on Thursday. The stock has a market capitalization of $30.70 billion, a P/E ratio of 26.83, a P/E/G ratio of 2.01 and a beta of 0.82. The business has a 50 day simple moving average of $107.39 and a 200 day simple moving average of $111.35. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.64, a current ratio of 6.72 and a quick ratio of 2.52. Brown & Brown, Inc. has a one year low of $91.55 and a one year high of $125.68.

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

Brown & Brown Announces Dividend

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, August 20th. Stockholders of record on Wednesday, August 13th will be issued a dividend of $0.15 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Wednesday, August 13th. This represents a $0.60 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 0.64%. Brown & Brown’s dividend payout ratio is currently 17.29%.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several brokerages recently weighed in on BRO. Wells Fargo & Company reduced their price objective on shares of Brown & Brown from $127.00 to $104.00 and set an “overweight” rating on the stock in a research note on Wednesday. Edward Jones began coverage on Brown & Brown in a report on Wednesday, April 16th. They set a “buy” rating on the stock. BMO Capital Markets reduced their price target on Brown & Brown from $122.00 to $106.00 and set an “outperform” rating on the stock in a research report on Wednesday. The Goldman Sachs Group downgraded Brown & Brown from a “buy” rating to a “neutral” rating and lowered their price objective for the stock from $126.00 to $119.00 in a research report on Tuesday, May 13th. Finally, Bank of America raised Brown & Brown from a “neutral” rating to a “buy” rating and lifted their price objective for the stock from $126.00 to $130.00 in a research note on Wednesday. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, six have given a hold rating and seven have issued a buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat.com, the stock presently has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus target price of $115.67.

Brown & Brown 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.