Czech National Bank Boosts Stock Position in Brown & Brown, Inc. (NYSE:BRO)

Czech National Bank lifted its stake in shares of Brown & Brown, Inc. (NYSE:BRO - Free Report) by 5.9% in the first quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The fund owned 54,509 shares of the financial services provider's stock after acquiring an additional 3,047 shares during the quarter. Czech National Bank's holdings in Brown & Brown were worth $6,781,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC).

A number of other hedge funds and other institutional investors also recently made changes to their positions in BRO. Journey Strategic Wealth LLC raised its holdings in Brown & Brown by 2.3% during the 4th quarter. Journey Strategic Wealth LLC now owns 4,486 shares of the financial services provider's stock worth $458,000 after purchasing an additional 99 shares during the last quarter. Bleakley Financial Group LLC increased its position in shares of Brown & Brown by 3.4% during the fourth quarter. Bleakley Financial Group LLC now owns 3,162 shares of the financial services provider's stock worth $323,000 after buying an additional 103 shares during the period. Lido Advisors LLC raised its stake in Brown & Brown by 2.6% during the fourth quarter. Lido Advisors LLC now owns 4,690 shares of the financial services provider's stock worth $479,000 after buying an additional 120 shares during the last quarter. Oregon Public Employees Retirement Fund raised its stake in Brown & Brown by 0.6% during the fourth quarter. Oregon Public Employees Retirement Fund now owns 20,379 shares of the financial services provider's stock worth $2,079,000 after buying an additional 130 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Greenleaf Trust lifted its holdings in Brown & Brown by 0.9% in the fourth quarter. Greenleaf Trust now owns 15,475 shares of the financial services provider's stock valued at $1,579,000 after buying an additional 139 shares during the period. 71.01% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of brokerages have weighed in on BRO. UBS Group increased their price target on Brown & Brown from $110.00 to $120.00 and gave the stock a "neutral" rating in a report on Wednesday, April 9th. Edward Jones started coverage on Brown & Brown in a research note on Wednesday, April 16th. They set a "buy" rating for the company. The Goldman Sachs Group downgraded Brown & Brown from a "buy" rating to a "neutral" rating and lowered their target price for the stock from $126.00 to $119.00 in a report on Tuesday, May 13th. Barclays boosted their price target on Brown & Brown from $119.00 to $121.00 and gave the company an "equal weight" rating in a research note on Friday, April 11th. Finally, Keefe, Bruyette & Woods reduced their price objective on shares of Brown & Brown from $102.00 to $100.00 and set an "underperform" rating for the company in a research report on Monday, May 5th. One research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, seven have issued a hold rating and six have given a buy rating to the company's stock. According to MarketBeat, Brown & Brown has a consensus rating of "Hold" and a consensus price target of $118.25.

Brown & Brown Stock Down 1.1%

Shares of BRO traded down $1.26 during trading hours on Thursday, reaching $109.93. 1,302,810 shares of the stock traded hands, compared to its average volume of 1,482,084. The company has a market cap of $31.51 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 31.77, a PEG ratio of 2.93 and a beta of 0.87. The company has a current ratio of 1.79, a quick ratio of 1.79 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.56. The stock has a fifty day simple moving average of $114.09 and a 200 day simple moving average of $111.25. Brown & Brown, Inc. has a 52 week low of $88.31 and a 52 week high of $125.68.

Brown & Brown (NYSE:BRO - Get Free Report) last issued its earnings results on Monday, April 28th. The financial services provider reported $1.29 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $1.30 by ($0.01). The firm had revenue of $1.40 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $1.41 billion. Brown & Brown had a net margin of 20.68% and a return on equity of 17.81%. The business's quarterly revenue was up 11.6% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter in the previous year, the firm earned $1.14 earnings per share. On average, equities analysts forecast that Brown & Brown, Inc. will post 4.18 EPS for the current year.

Brown & Brown Dividend Announcement

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Wednesday, May 21st. Shareholders 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 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 0.55%. Brown & Brown's dividend payout ratio is presently 16.71%.

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.