Nuveen Asset Management LLC Trims Stake in Brown & Brown, Inc. (NYSE:BRO)

Nuveen Asset Management LLC decreased its holdings in shares of Brown & Brown, Inc. (NYSE:BRO - Free Report) by 2.5% during the fourth quarter, according to its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The institutional investor owned 505,886 shares of the financial services provider's stock after selling 13,099 shares during the period. Nuveen Asset Management LLC owned about 0.18% of Brown & Brown worth $51,610,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC).

Other institutional investors have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Norges Bank acquired a new position in Brown & Brown during the fourth quarter worth $313,412,000. First Trust Advisors LP increased its stake in shares of Brown & Brown by 626.6% during the fourth quarter. First Trust Advisors LP now owns 2,350,039 shares of the financial services provider's stock worth $239,751,000 after purchasing an additional 2,026,589 shares in the last quarter. Madison Investment Advisors LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Brown & Brown during the fourth quarter worth about $198,031,000. Vanguard Group Inc. raised its position in shares of Brown & Brown by 4.7% during the 4th quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 29,940,139 shares of the financial services provider's stock worth $3,054,493,000 after purchasing an additional 1,335,964 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Proficio Capital Partners LLC lifted its stake in Brown & Brown by 11,337.8% in the 4th quarter. Proficio Capital Partners LLC now owns 1,108,894 shares of the financial services provider's stock valued at $1,109,000 after buying an additional 1,099,199 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 71.01% of the company's stock.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several equities research analysts recently issued reports on BRO shares. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods lowered their price objective on Brown & Brown from $102.00 to $100.00 and set an "underperform" rating on the stock in a report on Monday, May 5th. Morgan Stanley restated an "equal weight" rating and issued a $128.00 target price on shares of Brown & Brown in a research report on Tuesday, March 25th. Jefferies Financial Group boosted their price target on Brown & Brown from $105.00 to $109.00 and gave the stock a "hold" rating in a research report on Friday, April 11th. UBS Group increased their price objective on Brown & Brown from $110.00 to $120.00 and gave the company a "neutral" rating in a research note on Wednesday, April 9th. Finally, Bank of America raised their price objective on Brown & Brown from $116.00 to $117.00 and gave the company a "neutral" rating in a report on Tuesday, January 28th. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, seven have given a hold rating and seven have given a buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the company currently has an average rating of "Hold" and a consensus price target of $116.85.

Brown & Brown Trading Down 0.6%

NYSE:BRO traded down $0.62 during trading hours on Thursday, hitting $110.37. The company had a trading volume of 1,288,949 shares, compared to its average volume of 1,481,313. Brown & Brown, Inc. has a 1 year low of $85.97 and a 1 year high of $125.68. The company has a market cap of $31.63 billion, a P/E ratio of 31.90, a P/E/G ratio of 2.93 and a beta of 0.87. The company has a 50-day moving average of $115.91 and a 200 day moving average of $111.15. The company has a current ratio of 1.79, a quick ratio of 1.79 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.56.

Brown & Brown (NYSE:BRO - Get Free Report) last announced its quarterly earnings data 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 net margin of 20.68% and a return on equity of 17.81%. The firm had revenue of $1.40 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $1.41 billion. During the same period in the prior year, the company posted $1.14 EPS. The company's revenue for the quarter was up 11.6% compared to the same quarter last year. Sell-side analysts expect that Brown & Brown, Inc. will post 4.18 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 21st. Stockholders of record on Monday, May 12th were paid a $0.15 dividend. The ex-dividend date was Monday, May 12th. This represents a $0.60 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 0.54%. Brown & Brown's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 16.71%.

Brown & Brown 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.