Brown & Brown, Inc. $BRO Stock Holdings Lifted by Vaughan Nelson Investment Management L.P.

Key Points

• Vaughan Nelson Investment Management boosted its Brown & Brown stake by 78.1% in the first quarter, buying 48,782 more shares and bringing its total to 111,257 shares worth about $7.26 million.
• Brown & Brown reported better-than-expected quarterly results, with EPS of $1.39 versus the $1.36 consensus and revenue of $1.90 billion, while revenue jumped 35.4% year over year.
• Analyst sentiment remains cautious overall: several firms trimmed price targets, and the stock currently has a “Hold” average rating with a consensus target price of $78.44.

Vaughan Nelson Investment Management L.P. grew its position in Brown & Brown, Inc. (NYSE:BRO - Free Report) by 78.1% during the 1st quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The fund owned 111,257 shares of the financial services provider's stock after purchasing an additional 48,782 shares during the period. Vaughan Nelson Investment Management L.P.'s holdings in Brown & Brown were worth $7,255,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

A number of other hedge funds and other institutional investors also recently made changes to their positions in the company. ICONIQ Capital LLC grew its stake in shares of Brown & Brown by 5.4% in the 2nd quarter. ICONIQ Capital LLC now owns 2,110 shares of the financial services provider's stock valued at $234,000 after buying an additional 109 shares in the last quarter. Zacks Investment Management raised its position in Brown & Brown by 0.7% during the third quarter. Zacks Investment Management now owns 17,854 shares of the financial services provider's stock valued at $1,675,000 after acquiring an additional 125 shares in the last quarter. Private Trust Co. NA lifted its stake in Brown & Brown by 13.1% in the fourth quarter. Private Trust Co. NA now owns 1,147 shares of the financial services provider's stock valued at $91,000 after acquiring an additional 133 shares during the last quarter. Moors & Cabot Inc. lifted its stake in Brown & Brown by 2.1% in the third quarter. Moors & Cabot Inc. now owns 6,805 shares of the financial services provider's stock valued at $638,000 after acquiring an additional 142 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Aptus Capital Advisors LLC grew its position in Brown & Brown by 1.7% in the third quarter. Aptus Capital Advisors LLC now owns 9,491 shares of the financial services provider's stock worth $890,000 after acquiring an additional 160 shares in the last quarter. 71.01% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several research analysts have recently commented on BRO shares. The Goldman Sachs Group dropped their price target on shares of Brown & Brown from $82.00 to $73.00 and set a "neutral" rating on the stock in a research note on Wednesday, April 8th. Wells Fargo & Company decreased their price objective on shares of Brown & Brown from $72.00 to $69.00 and set an "equal weight" rating for the company in a report on Wednesday, April 29th. Truist Financial lowered their target price on shares of Brown & Brown from $100.00 to $90.00 and set a "buy" rating on the stock in a research report on Wednesday, April 29th. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods lowered their target price on shares of Brown & Brown from $74.00 to $72.00 and set a "market perform" rating on the stock in a research report on Wednesday, April 29th. Finally, Citigroup started coverage on Brown & Brown in a report on Thursday, May 21st. They set a "market outperform" rating on the stock. Five investment analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and fourteen have assigned a Hold rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the company currently has an average rating of "Hold" and an average target price of $78.44.

Brown & Brown Price Performance

Shares of Brown & Brown stock opened at $58.35 on Tuesday. The firm has a fifty day simple moving average of $60.20 and a 200-day simple moving average of $68.88. The company has a current ratio of 1.64, a quick ratio of 1.64 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.52. Brown & Brown, Inc. has a 1-year low of $53.81 and a 1-year high of $111.10. The stock has a market capitalization of $19.78 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 18.76, a PEG ratio of 2.72 and a beta of 0.63.

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

Brown & Brown Dividend Announcement

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Wednesday, May 20th. Shareholders of record on Monday, May 11th were issued a dividend of $0.165 per share. This represents a $0.66 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 1.1%. The ex-dividend date was Monday, May 11th. Brown & Brown's dividend payout ratio is 21.22%.

Insider Activity

In other Brown & Brown news, Director H Palmer Proctor, Jr. acquired 2,000 shares of the company's stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, May 5th. The shares were acquired at an average cost 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 of the company's stock, valued at approximately $2,719,159.10. This trade represents a 4.38% increase in their position. The purchase was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is accessible through this hyperlink. Corporate insiders own 13.13% of the company's stock.

Brown & Brown Company 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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