The Manufacturers Life Insurance Company Decreases Holdings in Brown & Brown, Inc. $BRO

Key Points

• The Manufacturers Life Insurance Company reduced its stake in Brown & Brown, Inc. by 1.2% in Q1, now holding 2,380,723 shares valued at approximately $296 million.
• Institutional and hedge funds collectively own 71.01% of Brown & Brown's stock, indicating strong institutional interest in the company.
• Brown & Brown reported a quarterly EPS of $1.03, exceeding analyst expectations, alongside an announced quarterly dividend of $0.15 per share.

The Manufacturers Life Insurance Company lessened its holdings in Brown & Brown, Inc. (NYSE:BRO - Free Report) by 1.2% during the 1st quarter, according to its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The firm owned 2,380,723 shares of the financial services provider's stock after selling 29,392 shares during the quarter. The Manufacturers Life Insurance Company owned 0.83% of Brown & Brown worth $296,162,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Several other institutional investors and hedge funds have also recently bought and sold shares of BRO. Phillips Wealth Planners LLC lifted its position in Brown & Brown by 3.4% during the first quarter. Phillips Wealth Planners LLC now owns 2,659 shares of the financial services provider's stock worth $316,000 after purchasing an additional 88 shares during the period. SBI Securities Co. Ltd. grew its position in shares of Brown & Brown by 26.8% during the 1st quarter. SBI Securities Co. Ltd. now owns 454 shares of the financial services provider's stock worth $56,000 after buying an additional 96 shares during the period. Gateway Investment Advisers LLC lifted its holdings in shares of Brown & Brown by 2.3% in the 1st quarter. Gateway Investment Advisers LLC now owns 4,312 shares of the financial services provider's stock worth $536,000 after purchasing an additional 97 shares in the last quarter. Graypoint LLC lifted its holdings in shares of Brown & Brown by 3.3% in the 1st quarter. Graypoint LLC now owns 3,208 shares of the financial services provider's stock worth $399,000 after purchasing an additional 103 shares in the last quarter. Finally, NorthRock Partners LLC lifted its stake in Brown & Brown by 4.2% during the 1st quarter. NorthRock Partners LLC now owns 2,530 shares of the financial services provider's stock valued at $315,000 after acquiring an additional 103 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors own 71.01% of the company's stock.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of equities research analysts recently issued reports on BRO shares. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods lowered their price objective on Brown & Brown from $104.00 to $87.00 and set an "underperform" rating on the stock in a research note on Thursday, July 31st. Wells Fargo & Company downgraded Brown & Brown from an "overweight" rating to an "equal weight" rating and dropped their target price for the stock from $104.00 to $101.00 in a research report on Wednesday, August 13th. Raymond James Financial restated an "outperform" rating and set a $120.00 target price (down previously from $125.00) on shares of Brown & Brown in a report on Monday, August 4th. BMO Capital Markets decreased their target price on Brown & Brown from $122.00 to $106.00 and set an "outperform" rating for the company in a report on Wednesday, July 30th. Finally, Truist Financial set a $120.00 price target on Brown & Brown in a research note on Wednesday, July 30th. Seven equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, seven have given a Hold rating and one has given a Sell rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat, Brown & Brown presently has an average rating of "Hold" and a consensus target price of $112.64.

Insider Buying and Selling at Brown & Brown

In other news, Director Bronislaw Edmund Masojada acquired 1,000 shares of the business's stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, August 6th. The shares were acquired at an average cost of $91.44 per share, with a total value of $91,440.00. Following the completion of the acquisition, the director owned 5,000 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $457,200. This trade represents a 25.00% increase in their ownership of the stock. The acquisition was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is accessible through this link. Also, Director Paul J. Krump purchased 2,678 shares of the stock in a transaction on Friday, August 8th. The shares were acquired at an average price of $93.31 per share, for a total transaction of $249,884.18. Following the transaction, the director directly owned 5,353 shares of the company's stock, valued at $499,488.43. This represents a 100.11% increase in their position. The disclosure for this purchase can be found here. 15.59% of the stock is currently owned by corporate insiders.

Brown & Brown Price Performance

BRO traded down $1.55 on Tuesday, hitting $95.40. 2,455,667 shares of the company's stock traded hands, compared to its average volume of 2,568,305. The company's 50 day simple moving average is $100.65 and its 200-day simple moving average is $109.57. The firm has a market cap of $31.47 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 27.49, a P/E/G ratio of 2.21 and a beta of 0.80. Brown & Brown, Inc. has a one year low of $90.38 and a one year high of $125.68. The company has a current ratio of 6.72, a quick ratio of 6.72 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.64.

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

Brown & Brown Announces Dividend

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Wednesday, August 20th. Shareholders of record on Wednesday, August 13th were issued a $0.15 dividend. This represents a $0.60 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 0.6%. The ex-dividend date was Wednesday, August 13th. Brown & Brown's dividend payout ratio is currently 17.29%.

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.