Baker Avenue Asset Management LP Invests $1.36 Million in Brown & Brown, Inc. (NYSE:BRO)

Key Points

• Baker Avenue Asset Management LP has made a new investment by purchasing 10,891 shares of Brown & Brown, Inc. for approximately $1.36 million during the first quarter.
• Brown & Brown's recent quarterly earnings report showed earnings per share of $1.03, exceeding analyst expectations, with a revenue of $1.29 billion, up 9.1% year-over-year.
• The company announced a quarterly dividend of $0.15 per share, translating to an annualized dividend of $0.60 and a yield of 0.7%, set to be paid on August 20th.

Baker Avenue Asset Management LP acquired a new stake in Brown & Brown, Inc. (NYSE:BRO - Free Report) during the first quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The firm acquired 10,891 shares of the financial services provider's stock, valued at approximately $1,355,000.

Several other institutional investors and hedge funds have also made changes to their positions in BRO. Capital Investment Advisors LLC purchased a new position in Brown & Brown in the first quarter valued at approximately $1,929,000. GW&K Investment Management LLC grew its stake in shares of Brown & Brown by 104.4% during the 1st quarter. GW&K Investment Management LLC now owns 419 shares of the financial services provider's stock worth $52,000 after purchasing an additional 214 shares during the period. Fifth Third Bancorp grew its holdings in shares of Brown & Brown by 7.1% in the 1st quarter. Fifth Third Bancorp now owns 6,807 shares of the financial services provider's stock worth $847,000 after acquiring an additional 450 shares during the period. Arrowstreet Capital Limited Partnership lifted its holdings in shares of Brown & Brown by 395.6% in the fourth quarter. Arrowstreet Capital Limited Partnership now owns 34,197 shares of the financial services provider's stock valued at $3,489,000 after purchasing an additional 27,297 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Tandem Investment Advisors Inc. raised its holdings in shares of Brown & Brown by 2.5% in the first quarter. Tandem Investment Advisors Inc. now owns 764,709 shares of the financial services provider's stock worth $95,130,000 after acquiring an additional 18,677 shares during the last quarter. 71.01% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Brown & Brown Trading Up 0.5%

Brown & Brown stock traded up $0.49 during trading hours on Monday, hitting $92.73. The stock had a trading volume of 3,981,629 shares, compared to its average volume of 3,637,384. The stock has a market cap of $30.59 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 26.72, a P/E/G ratio of 2.09 and a beta of 0.78. The business's 50 day simple moving average is $106.27 and its 200-day simple moving average is $111.19. The company has a quick ratio of 6.72, a current ratio of 6.72 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.64. Brown & Brown, Inc. has a one year low of $90.55 and a one year high of $125.68.

Brown & Brown (NYSE:BRO - Get Free Report) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Monday, July 28th. The financial services provider reported $1.03 EPS for the quarter, beating analysts' consensus estimates 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 period in the prior year, the firm posted $0.93 EPS. The company's quarterly revenue was up 9.1% on a year-over-year basis. On average, equities analysts predict that Brown & Brown, Inc. will post 4.18 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Brown & Brown Announces Dividend

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, August 20th. Investors of record on Wednesday, August 13th will be given a $0.15 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Wednesday, August 13th. This represents a $0.60 annualized dividend and a yield of 0.6%. Brown & Brown's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 17.29%.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several equities analysts recently commented on BRO shares. Bank of America raised shares of Brown & Brown from a "neutral" rating to a "buy" rating and upped their price target for the stock from $126.00 to $130.00 in a research report on Wednesday, July 30th. The Goldman Sachs Group cut Brown & Brown from a "buy" rating to a "neutral" rating and reduced their price objective for the stock from $126.00 to $119.00 in a research note on Tuesday, May 13th. Wells Fargo & Company lowered their target price on Brown & Brown from $127.00 to $104.00 and set an "overweight" rating on the stock in a research report on Wednesday, July 30th. Raymond James Financial reaffirmed an "outperform" rating and set a $120.00 target price (down from $125.00) on shares of Brown & Brown in a report on Monday. Finally, Jefferies Financial Group upped their target price on Brown & Brown from $105.00 to $109.00 and gave the company a "hold" rating in a report on Friday, April 11th. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, seven have issued a hold rating and seven have assigned a buy rating to the company's stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the company presently has an average rating of "Hold" and a consensus price target of $114.69.

Brown & Brown Company Profile

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.