Argus Reiterates Hold Rating for Brown & Brown (NYSE:BRO)

Key Points

• Brown & Brown has been downgraded from a "buy" to a "hold" rating by Argus, with a current consensus rating of "Hold" and a target price of $114.25.
• Recent earnings announcements showed a slight increase in revenue, with a reported $1.03 earnings per share, surpassing analysts' expectations of $0.99.
• Institutional investors hold 71.01% of Brown & Brown's stock, indicating strong institutional interest and support for the company's shares.

Argus reissued their hold rating on shares of Brown & Brown (NYSE:BRO - Free Report) in a report released on Thursday, Marketbeat reports.

BRO has been the topic of a number of other reports. Edward Jones started coverage on Brown & Brown in a research note on Wednesday, April 16th. They issued a "buy" rating on the stock. Bank of America raised shares of Brown & Brown from a "neutral" rating to a "buy" rating and lifted their target price for the stock from $126.00 to $130.00 in a research note on Wednesday. Wells Fargo & Company dropped their price target on shares of Brown & Brown from $127.00 to $104.00 and set an "overweight" rating for the company in a research report on Wednesday. Jefferies Financial Group upped their price objective on shares of Brown & Brown from $105.00 to $109.00 and gave the company a "hold" rating in a research note on Friday, April 11th. Finally, UBS Group raised their target price on Brown & Brown from $110.00 to $120.00 and gave the stock a "neutral" rating in a research note on Wednesday, April 9th. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, seven have assigned a hold rating and six have assigned a buy rating to the company's stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, Brown & Brown presently has an average rating of "Hold" and an average price target of $114.25.

Brown & Brown Price Performance

BRO traded up $0.85 during midday trading on Thursday, hitting $92.22. The stock had a trading volume of 3,540,428 shares, compared to its average volume of 3,460,361. The company has a market cap of $30.42 billion, a P/E ratio of 26.58, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.08 and a beta of 0.79. Brown & Brown has a 1 year low of $90.55 and a 1 year high of $125.68. The business has a fifty day moving average of $106.64 and a 200 day moving average of $111.24. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.64, a quick ratio of 2.52 and a current ratio of 6.72.

Brown & Brown (NYSE:BRO - Get Free Report) last released its earnings results on Monday, July 28th. The financial services provider reported $1.03 EPS for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $0.99 by $0.04. Brown & Brown had a net margin of 19.89% and a return on equity of 15.10%. The company had revenue of $1.29 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $1.28 billion. During the same quarter last year, the firm earned $0.93 EPS. The firm's quarterly revenue was up 9.1% compared to the same quarter last year. As a group, equities analysts forecast that Brown & Brown will post 4.18 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Brown & Brown Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, August 20th. Shareholders of record on Wednesday, August 13th will be issued a $0.15 dividend. This represents a $0.60 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 0.7%. The ex-dividend date is Wednesday, August 13th. Brown & Brown's dividend payout ratio is 17.29%.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Brown & Brown

Institutional investors and hedge funds have recently made changes to their positions in the business. Parnassus Investments LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Brown & Brown in the 1st quarter worth approximately $899,139,000. First Trust Advisors LP grew its stake in shares of Brown & Brown by 626.6% in the fourth quarter. First Trust Advisors LP now owns 2,350,039 shares of the financial services provider's stock worth $239,751,000 after acquiring an additional 2,026,589 shares during the last quarter. GAMMA Investing LLC increased its holdings in shares of Brown & Brown by 13,974.9% during the first quarter. GAMMA Investing LLC now owns 1,112,758 shares of the financial services provider's stock valued at $138,427,000 after acquiring an additional 1,104,852 shares in the last quarter. Handelsbanken Fonder AB raised its position in shares of Brown & Brown by 172.5% in the 1st quarter. Handelsbanken Fonder AB now owns 1,314,434 shares of the financial services provider's stock worth $163,516,000 after purchasing an additional 832,100 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Balyasny Asset Management L.P. boosted its stake in Brown & Brown by 9,262.2% in the 4th quarter. Balyasny Asset Management L.P. now owns 687,095 shares of the financial services provider's stock worth $70,097,000 after purchasing an additional 679,756 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors own 71.01% of the company's stock.

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.