Keefe, Bruyette & Woods Cuts Brown & Brown (NYSE:BRO) Price Target to $97.00

Brown & Brown (NYSE:BRO) had its price target trimmed by Keefe, Bruyette & Woods from $99.00 to $97.00 in a research report sent to investors on Friday morning,Benzinga reports. The firm currently has an underperform rating on the financial services provider’s stock.

Several other equities analysts have also weighed in on BRO. Wells Fargo & Company increased their target price on Brown & Brown from $112.00 to $114.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research note on Thursday, October 10th. Barclays increased their price target on shares of Brown & Brown from $108.00 to $119.00 and gave the company an “equal weight” rating in a research report on Thursday, November 21st. Morgan Stanley initiated coverage on shares of Brown & Brown in a report on Thursday, December 5th. They set an “overweight” rating and a $134.00 price objective for the company. Bank of America increased their target price on shares of Brown & Brown from $108.00 to $117.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a report on Thursday, October 10th. Finally, Argus started coverage on shares of Brown & Brown in a report on Tuesday, September 24th. They issued a “buy” rating and a $120.00 price target for the company. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, five have issued a hold rating and seven have assigned a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the stock currently has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $112.08.

Brown & Brown Stock Down 0.4 %

Shares of NYSE:BRO opened at $102.08 on Friday. The company has a 50 day moving average of $106.82 and a 200-day moving average of $102.76. Brown & Brown has a one year low of $72.19 and a one year high of $114.15. The stock has a market cap of $29.19 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 27.81, a P/E/G ratio of 2.40 and a beta of 0.85. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.52, a current ratio of 1.73 and a quick ratio of 1.73.

Brown & Brown (NYSE:BRO) last released its earnings results on Monday, October 28th. The financial services provider reported $0.91 EPS for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.88 by $0.03. The firm had revenue of $1.19 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $1.16 billion. Brown & Brown had a net margin of 22.65% and a return on equity of 17.12%. The business’s quarterly revenue was up 11.0% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter in the previous year, the business earned $0.71 EPS. On average, sell-side analysts forecast that Brown & Brown will post 3.74 earnings per share for the current year.

Brown & Brown Increases Dividend

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Wednesday, November 13th. Shareholders of record on Wednesday, November 6th were paid a $0.15 dividend. This is an increase from Brown & Brown’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.13. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Wednesday, November 6th. This represents a $0.60 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 0.59%. Brown & Brown’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 16.35%.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Institutional investors and hedge funds have recently modified their holdings of the company. Brooklyn Investment Group bought a new stake in Brown & Brown in the 3rd quarter valued at approximately $26,000. ST Germain D J Co. Inc. lifted its position in shares of Brown & Brown by 298.5% in the third quarter. ST Germain D J Co. Inc. now owns 267 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $28,000 after purchasing an additional 200 shares in the last quarter. Ashton Thomas Securities LLC acquired a new position in Brown & Brown during the third quarter worth $29,000. Versant Capital Management Inc grew its position in Brown & Brown by 130.7% in the fourth quarter. Versant Capital Management Inc now owns 413 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $42,000 after purchasing an additional 234 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Wilmington Savings Fund Society FSB bought a new position in Brown & Brown in the third quarter valued at $58,000. 71.01% of the stock is 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.