Private Advisor Group LLC Trims Stock Position in Brown & Brown, Inc. (NYSE:BRO)

Private Advisor Group LLC decreased its stake in Brown & Brown, Inc. (NYSE:BRO) by 2.5% during the fourth quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The fund owned 7,278 shares of the financial services provider’s stock after selling 189 shares during the quarter. Private Advisor Group LLC’s holdings in Brown & Brown were worth $743,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

A number of other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also made changes to their positions in BRO. Brooklyn Investment Group purchased a new position in Brown & Brown during the third quarter worth approximately $26,000. Ashton Thomas Securities LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Brown & Brown in the third quarter valued at about $29,000. Y.D. More Investments Ltd raised its position in shares of Brown & Brown by 122.7% during the 4th quarter. Y.D. More Investments Ltd now owns 294 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $30,000 after buying an additional 162 shares during the period. R Squared Ltd purchased a new position in shares of Brown & Brown during the 4th quarter worth $31,000. Finally, Versant Capital Management Inc increased its position in shares of Brown & Brown by 130.7% during the fourth quarter. Versant Capital Management Inc now owns 413 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $42,000 after acquiring an additional 234 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 71.01% of the company’s stock.

Brown & Brown Stock Up 1.8 %

Shares of NYSE:BRO opened at $118.59 on Friday. Brown & Brown, Inc. has a twelve month low of $80.33 and a twelve month high of $118.80. The company has a market capitalization of $33.91 billion, a PE ratio of 34.27, a P/E/G ratio of 2.93 and a beta of 0.86. 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 firm has a 50 day simple moving average of $106.55 and a 200-day simple moving average of $105.99.

Brown & Brown (NYSE:BRO) last posted its earnings results on Monday, January 27th. The financial services provider reported $0.86 EPS for the quarter, topping 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, equities analysts predict that Brown & Brown, Inc. will post 4.18 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Brown & Brown Announces Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Wednesday, February 12th. Stockholders of record on Wednesday, February 5th were issued a $0.15 dividend. This represents a $0.60 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 0.51%. The ex-dividend date was Wednesday, February 5th. Brown & Brown’s payout ratio is currently 17.34%.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

BRO has been the subject of a number of research analyst reports. StockNews.com cut Brown & Brown from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Saturday, November 2nd. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods cut their price target on Brown & Brown from $99.00 to $97.00 and set an “underperform” rating on the stock in a report on Friday, January 10th. Royal Bank of Canada increased their price target on Brown & Brown from $118.00 to $120.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a research report on Wednesday, January 29th. Morgan Stanley started coverage on Brown & Brown in a research report on Thursday, December 5th. They set an “overweight” rating and a $134.00 price objective for the company. Finally, Bank of America raised their target price on shares of Brown & Brown from $116.00 to $117.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a report on Tuesday, January 28th. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, five have assigned a hold rating and seven have issued a buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat, the stock has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $113.17.

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.