Brown & Brown (NYSE:BRO) Price Target Raised to $127.00 at Wells Fargo & Company

Brown & Brown (NYSE:BRO - Free Report) had its price objective lifted by Wells Fargo & Company from $125.00 to $127.00 in a report published on Thursday morning,Benzinga reports. Wells Fargo & Company currently has an overweight rating on the financial services provider's stock.

Several other equities analysts also recently weighed in on BRO. Morgan Stanley reissued an "equal weight" rating and set a $128.00 price target on shares of Brown & Brown in a research report on Tuesday, March 25th. Jefferies Financial Group lifted their price objective on Brown & Brown from $105.00 to $109.00 and gave the stock a "hold" rating in a research report on Friday, April 11th. Barclays upped their target price on shares of Brown & Brown from $119.00 to $121.00 and gave the company an "equal weight" rating in a report on Friday, April 11th. Edward Jones assumed coverage on shares of Brown & Brown in a research report on Wednesday, April 16th. They issued a "buy" rating for the company. Finally, The Goldman Sachs Group downgraded Brown & Brown from a "buy" rating to a "neutral" rating and cut their price target for the company from $126.00 to $119.00 in a report on Tuesday, May 13th. One research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, seven have given a hold rating and seven have issued a buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the stock presently has an average rating of "Hold" and a consensus price target of $118.69.

Brown & Brown Price Performance

NYSE BRO traded up $2.40 during trading hours on Thursday, reaching $106.88. The company's stock had a trading volume of 8,472,112 shares, compared to its average volume of 1,612,338. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.56, a quick ratio of 1.79 and a current ratio of 1.79. The company's 50-day moving average is $112.49 and its two-hundred day moving average is $111.12. Brown & Brown has a fifty-two week low of $88.31 and a fifty-two week high of $125.68. The stock has a market cap of $30.63 billion, a PE ratio of 30.89, a PEG ratio of 2.93 and a beta of 0.84.

Brown & Brown (NYSE:BRO - Get Free Report) last released its quarterly earnings results on Monday, April 28th. The financial services provider reported $1.29 EPS for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $1.30 by ($0.01). Brown & Brown had a net margin of 20.68% and a return on equity of 17.81%. The business had revenue of $1.40 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $1.41 billion. During the same quarter in the prior year, the company earned $1.14 earnings per share. The firm's revenue for the quarter was up 11.6% compared to the same quarter last year. Analysts forecast that Brown & Brown will post 4.18 EPS for the current year.

Brown & Brown Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Wednesday, May 21st. Shareholders of record on Monday, May 12th were given a dividend of $0.15 per share. The ex-dividend date was Monday, May 12th. This represents a $0.60 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 0.56%. Brown & Brown's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 16.71%.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Brown & Brown

Several large investors have recently made changes to their positions in the business. Capital Investment Advisors LLC purchased a new stake in Brown & Brown during the 1st quarter worth $1,929,000. Arrowstreet Capital Limited Partnership lifted its stake in shares of Brown & Brown by 395.6% during the fourth quarter. Arrowstreet Capital Limited Partnership now owns 34,197 shares of the financial services provider's stock worth $3,489,000 after purchasing an additional 27,297 shares in the last quarter. National Bank of Canada FI boosted its position in shares of Brown & Brown by 56.8% in the fourth quarter. National Bank of Canada FI now owns 189,798 shares of the financial services provider's stock worth $19,365,000 after buying an additional 68,745 shares during the period. FORA Capital LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Brown & Brown in the fourth quarter worth about $580,000. Finally, Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. grew its stake in shares of Brown & Brown by 3.1% in the fourth quarter. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. now owns 1,356,535 shares of the financial services provider's stock valued at $138,394,000 after buying an additional 40,881 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds 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.