Bank Julius Baer & Co. Ltd Zurich Purchases Shares of 48,559 Brown & Brown, Inc. (NYSE:BRO)

Bank Julius Baer & Co. Ltd Zurich purchased a new position in shares of Brown & Brown, Inc. (NYSE:BRO - Free Report) in the first quarter, according to its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The institutional investor purchased 48,559 shares of the financial services provider's stock, valued at approximately $6,044,000.

Other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also recently modified their holdings of the company. GW&K Investment Management LLC lifted its position in Brown & Brown by 104.4% in the first quarter. GW&K Investment Management LLC now owns 419 shares of the financial services provider's stock valued at $52,000 after buying an additional 214 shares during the last quarter. Teachers Retirement System of The State of Kentucky raised its stake in shares of Brown & Brown by 3.9% in the 1st quarter. Teachers Retirement System of The State of Kentucky now owns 18,344 shares of the financial services provider's stock valued at $2,282,000 after acquiring an additional 683 shares during the period. J.W. Cole Advisors Inc. raised its stake in shares of Brown & Brown by 226.4% in the 1st quarter. J.W. Cole Advisors Inc. now owns 6,793 shares of the financial services provider's stock valued at $845,000 after acquiring an additional 4,712 shares during the period. IFP Advisors Inc lifted its holdings in shares of Brown & Brown by 12.9% in the 1st quarter. IFP Advisors Inc now owns 24,429 shares of the financial services provider's stock worth $3,044,000 after acquiring an additional 2,789 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Kestra Private Wealth Services LLC boosted its position in shares of Brown & Brown by 6.0% during the 1st quarter. Kestra Private Wealth Services LLC now owns 6,872 shares of the financial services provider's stock worth $855,000 after purchasing an additional 389 shares during the period. 71.01% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Brown & Brown Stock Up 0.6%

Shares of Brown & Brown stock traded up $0.60 on Friday, reaching $103.38. 3,136,298 shares of the company were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 2,403,469. The stock's 50 day moving average price is $108.51 and its 200-day moving average price is $111.46. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.55, a current ratio of 2.52 and a quick ratio of 2.52. Brown & Brown, Inc. has a 1-year low of $97.61 and a 1-year high of $125.68. The company has a market cap of $29.64 billion, a P/E ratio of 28.80, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.26 and a beta of 0.82.

Brown & Brown (NYSE:BRO - Get Free Report) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Monday, April 28th. The financial services provider reported $1.29 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing analysts' consensus estimates of $1.30 by ($0.01). Brown & Brown had a return on equity of 17.77% and a net margin of 20.84%. The firm had revenue of $1.40 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $1.41 billion. During the same quarter in the prior year, the firm earned $1.14 EPS. The firm's revenue was up 11.6% compared to the same quarter last year. As a group, equities analysts forecast that Brown & Brown, Inc. will post 4.18 EPS for the current year.

Brown & Brown Dividend Announcement

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, August 20th. Investors of record on Wednesday, August 13th will be paid a dividend of $0.15 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Wednesday, August 13th. This represents a $0.60 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 0.58%. Brown & Brown's payout ratio is currently 16.71%.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of analysts have issued reports on BRO shares. The Goldman Sachs Group lowered Brown & Brown from a "buy" rating to a "neutral" rating and cut their target price for the company from $126.00 to $119.00 in a research report on Tuesday, May 13th. Jefferies Financial Group lifted their price objective on Brown & Brown from $105.00 to $109.00 and gave the company a "hold" rating in a research note on Friday, April 11th. Wells Fargo & Company reissued an "overweight" rating and set a $127.00 target price (up previously from $125.00) on shares of Brown & Brown in a research note on Thursday, June 12th. BMO Capital Markets reaffirmed an "outperform" rating and issued a $122.00 target price (up from $116.00) on shares of Brown & Brown in a research report on Thursday, June 12th. Finally, Edward Jones began coverage on shares of Brown & Brown in a research note on Wednesday, April 16th. They set a "buy" rating on the stock. One analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, seven have assigned a hold rating and seven have given a buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat.com, Brown & Brown currently has an average rating of "Hold" and a consensus target price of $118.23.

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.