Brown & Brown, Inc. (NYSE:BRO) Receives $102.69 Consensus Target Price from Brokerages

Shares of Brown & Brown, Inc. (NYSE:BRO) have received an average recommendation of “Hold” from the seventeen brokerages that are covering the firm, MarketBeat.com reports. One research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, eleven have issued a hold rating and five have given a buy rating to the company. The average twelve-month price objective among brokerages that have covered the stock in the last year is $102.6923.

Several brokerages recently commented on BRO. Citigroup cut Brown & Brown from a “buy” rating to a “neutral” rating in a research report on Monday, November 3rd. Wall Street Zen raised Brown & Brown from a “sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Saturday, September 20th. Morgan Stanley reduced their price target on shares of Brown & Brown from $95.00 to $85.00 and set an “equal weight” rating on the stock in a research note on Monday, November 17th. Wolfe Research initiated coverage on Brown & Brown in a report on Thursday, November 20th. They issued a “peer perform” rating on the stock. Finally, UBS Group reduced their target price on shares of Brown & Brown from $120.00 to $106.00 and set a “neutral” rating on the stock in a report on Wednesday, October 8th.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Brown & Brown

Institutional investors and hedge funds have recently modified their holdings of the company. NorthRock Partners LLC boosted its holdings in Brown & Brown by 4.2% in the first quarter. NorthRock Partners LLC now owns 2,530 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $315,000 after purchasing an additional 103 shares in the last quarter. Parallel Advisors LLC boosted its holdings in shares of Brown & Brown by 4.3% in the second quarter. Parallel Advisors LLC now owns 2,508 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $278,000 after acquiring an additional 103 shares in the last quarter. Covestor Ltd boosted its holdings in Brown & Brown by 12.6% in the 1st quarter. Covestor Ltd now owns 937 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $117,000 after purchasing an additional 105 shares in the last quarter. Tower Wealth Partners Inc. grew its holdings in Brown & Brown by 4.6% during the second quarter. Tower Wealth Partners Inc. now owns 2,464 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $273,000 after acquiring an additional 108 shares during the period. Finally, Western Wealth Management LLC grew its stake in shares of Brown & Brown by 6.0% during the 2nd quarter. Western Wealth Management LLC now owns 1,902 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $211,000 after purchasing an additional 108 shares during the period. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 71.01% of the company’s stock.

Brown & Brown Stock Down 1.7%

Shares of BRO opened at $79.84 on Friday. The firm has a market cap of $27.26 billion, a P/E ratio of 23.90, a PEG ratio of 1.90 and a beta of 0.82. The stock’s 50 day moving average is $85.76 and its two-hundred day moving average is $96.25. The company has a current ratio of 2.10, a quick ratio of 2.10 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.62. Brown & Brown has a 12 month low of $76.17 and a 12 month high of $125.68.

Brown & Brown (NYSE:BRO) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Monday, October 27th. The financial services provider reported $1.05 earnings per share for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.90 by $0.15. The company had revenue of $1.55 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $1.54 billion. Brown & Brown had a net margin of 18.23% and a return on equity of 13.64%. The firm’s revenue for the quarter was up 35.4% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period in the prior year, the business posted $0.91 earnings per share. Analysts predict that Brown & Brown will post 4.18 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Brown & Brown Increases Dividend

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Wednesday, November 12th. Stockholders of record on Wednesday, November 5th were paid a $0.165 dividend. This represents a $0.66 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 0.8%. The ex-dividend date was Wednesday, November 5th. This is a boost from Brown & Brown’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.15. Brown & Brown’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 19.76%.

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.