Brown & Brown, Inc. $BRO Stake Lessened by Legal & General Group Plc

Key Points

• Legal & General Group Plc reduced its Brown & Brown stake by 3.4% in the fourth quarter, selling 38,717 shares and ending with 1,112,254 shares valued at about $88.6 million. Institutional investors still hold a large majority of the stock, at 71.01%.
• Brown & Brown reported strong quarterly results, with EPS of $1.39 versus $1.36 expected and revenue of $1.90 billion, topping estimates. Revenue jumped 35.4% from a year earlier, and the company also posted a 12.94% return on equity.
• The stock was trading lower at $56.32, near its 52-week low, while analysts remain cautious overall with a consensus rating of Hold and an average price target of $79.44. A director also bought 2,000 shares in early May, signaling insider confidence.

Legal & General Group Plc lowered its holdings in Brown & Brown, Inc. (NYSE:BRO - Free Report) by 3.4% in the fourth quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 1,112,254 shares of the financial services provider's stock after selling 38,717 shares during the period. Legal & General Group Plc owned approximately 0.33% of Brown & Brown worth $88,647,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Other hedge funds also recently modified their holdings of the company. Cornerstone Planning Group LLC lifted its holdings in shares of Brown & Brown by 423.1% in the third quarter. Cornerstone Planning Group LLC now owns 272 shares of the financial services provider's stock valued at $26,000 after purchasing an additional 220 shares in the last quarter. Darwin Wealth Management LLC acquired a new position in shares of Brown & Brown in the second quarter worth $30,000. Board of the Pension Protection Fund acquired a new position in shares of Brown & Brown in the fourth quarter worth $40,000. Maseco LLP acquired a new position in shares of Brown & Brown in the fourth quarter worth $60,000. Finally, eCIO Inc. acquired a new position in shares of Brown & Brown in the fourth quarter worth $67,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 71.01% of the company's stock.

Brown & Brown Trading Down 0.9%

Shares of NYSE:BRO opened at $56.32 on Friday. The company has a market cap of $19.09 billion, a P/E ratio of 18.11, a P/E/G ratio of 2.62 and a beta of 0.66. The stock's 50-day moving average is $62.56 and its 200-day moving average is $71.37. Brown & Brown, Inc. has a 52-week low of $53.81 and a 52-week high of $113.83. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.52, a quick ratio of 1.64 and a current ratio of 1.64.

Brown & Brown (NYSE:BRO - Get Free Report) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Monday, April 27th. The financial services provider reported $1.39 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $1.36 by $0.03. The company had revenue of $1.90 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $1.89 billion. Brown & Brown had a return on equity of 12.94% and a net margin of 17.94%.The firm's revenue was up 35.4% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period last year, the business posted $1.29 earnings per share. Equities research analysts predict that Brown & Brown, Inc. will post 4.51 earnings per share for the current year.

Brown & Brown Announces Dividend

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Wednesday, May 20th. Investors of record on Monday, May 11th were paid a $0.165 dividend. This represents a $0.66 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 1.2%. The ex-dividend date was Monday, May 11th. Brown & Brown's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 21.22%.

Insider Buying and Selling at Brown & Brown

In related news, Director H Palmer Proctor, Jr. bought 2,000 shares of Brown & Brown stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, May 5th. The stock was acquired at an average price of $57.10 per share, for a total transaction of $114,200.00. Following the completion of the purchase, the director owned 47,621 shares in the company, valued at approximately $2,719,159.10. This represents a 4.38% increase in their ownership of the stock. The acquisition was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is accessible through this hyperlink. Insiders own 13.13% of the company's stock.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of research firms have recently weighed in on BRO. Barclays dropped their price target on shares of Brown & Brown from $80.00 to $72.00 and set an "equal weight" rating on the stock in a research note on Wednesday, April 8th. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods dropped their price target on shares of Brown & Brown from $74.00 to $72.00 and set a "market perform" rating on the stock in a research note on Wednesday, April 29th. Morgan Stanley dropped their price target on shares of Brown & Brown from $65.00 to $60.00 and set an "equal weight" rating on the stock in a research note on Thursday, May 21st. JPMorgan Chase & Co. dropped their price target on shares of Brown & Brown from $91.00 to $85.00 and set a "neutral" rating on the stock in a research note on Thursday, April 9th. Finally, Citizens Jmp began coverage on shares of Brown & Brown in a research note on Thursday, May 21st. They issued a "market outperform" rating and a $70.00 price target on the stock. Five equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and fourteen have given a Hold rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the stock has a consensus rating of "Hold" and a consensus price target of $79.44.

Brown & Brown Profile

Brown & Brown, Inc NYSE: BRO is a professional insurance brokerage and risk advisory firm that provides a broad range of property and casualty, employee benefits, personal risk, and specialty insurance products. The company works with commercial, public sector and individual clients to design and place insurance programs, manage claims and loss control, and deliver risk management consulting. Its services also include wholesale brokerage, program administration and other specialty distribution solutions that connect carriers and intermediaries to niche markets.

Brown & Brown operates through a decentralized model of operating units and subsidiaries, enabling local client service with the scale to access national and specialty markets.

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