EdgePoint Investment Group Inc. Acquires New Stake in Brown & Brown, Inc. $BRO

Key Points

• EdgePoint Investment Group acquired 113,500 shares of Brown & Brown in the first quarter, valued at approximately $7.4 million. Institutional investors and hedge funds collectively own 71.01% of the company.
• Brown & Brown’s latest quarterly results slightly missed expectations, with EPS of $1.07 versus the $1.08 consensus and revenue of $1.65 billion versus $1.71 billion expected. However, revenue increased 30.4% year over year.
• The company declared a quarterly dividend of $0.165 per share, equal to a $0.66 annualized payout and a 0.9% yield. Analysts maintain a consensus “Hold” rating with an average price target of $78.62, compared with a recent share price of $69.63.

EdgePoint Investment Group Inc. purchased a new stake in Brown & Brown, Inc. (NYSE:BRO - Free Report) in the 1st quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The institutional investor purchased 113,500 shares of the financial services provider's stock, valued at approximately $7,401,000. Brown & Brown accounts for about 0.1% of EdgePoint Investment Group Inc.'s holdings, making the stock its 29th largest position.

A number of other hedge funds and other institutional investors also recently made changes to their positions in the stock. Darwin Wealth Management LLC bought a new position in Brown & Brown during the 2nd quarter worth approximately $30,000. Basepoint Wealth LLC bought a new stake in shares of Brown & Brown in the 4th quarter valued at $27,000. Union Bancaire Privee UBP SA bought a new stake in shares of Brown & Brown in the 1st quarter valued at $25,000. DV Equities LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Brown & Brown during the fourth quarter worth $33,000. Finally, Maseco LLP acquired a new stake in shares of Brown & Brown during the fourth quarter worth $60,000. 71.01% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Brown & Brown Trading Up 2.9%

BRO opened at $69.63 on Tuesday. The company has a fifty day moving average price of $62.50 and a two-hundred day moving average price of $66.58. Brown & Brown, Inc. has a 1-year low of $53.81 and a 1-year high of $104.10. The company has a market cap of $23.60 billion, a P/E ratio of 22.39, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 3.12 and a beta of 0.60. 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 (NYSE:BRO - Get Free Report) last issued its earnings results on Monday, July 27th. The financial services provider reported $1.07 EPS for the quarter, missing analysts' consensus estimates of $1.08 by ($0.01). Brown & Brown had a net margin of 17.94% and a return on equity of 12.94%. The firm had revenue of $1.65 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $1.71 billion. During the same period in the previous year, the firm earned $1.03 earnings per share. The business's quarterly revenue was up 30.4% on a year-over-year basis. Analysts predict that Brown & Brown, Inc. will post 4.5 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Brown & Brown Announces Dividend

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, August 19th. Investors of record on Wednesday, August 12th will be given a $0.165 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Wednesday, August 12th. This represents a $0.66 annualized dividend and a yield of 0.9%. Brown & Brown's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 21.22%.

Insider Transactions at Brown & Brown

In related news, Director H Palmer Proctor, Jr. bought 2,000 shares of the company's stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, May 5th. The shares were bought at an average price of $57.10 per share, for a total transaction of $114,200.00. Following the completion of the acquisition, the director directly owned 47,621 shares of the company's stock, valued at $2,719,159.10. This trade represents a 4.38% increase in their ownership of the stock. The acquisition was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through this link. Company insiders own 13.13% of the company's stock.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several equities analysts recently issued reports on the stock. Citigroup restated an "outperform" rating on shares of Brown & Brown in a report on Friday, July 10th. Mizuho increased their price target on Brown & Brown from $74.00 to $81.00 and gave the stock an "outperform" rating in a report on Thursday, July 9th. Royal Bank Of Canada lowered their price objective on Brown & Brown from $76.00 to $72.00 and set a "sector perform" rating for the company in a research report on Wednesday, April 29th. UBS Group reissued a "neutral" rating and issued a $73.00 price objective (up from $65.00) on shares of Brown & Brown in a research note on Wednesday, July 8th. Finally, Weiss Ratings cut Brown & Brown from a "hold (c-)" rating to a "sell (d+)" rating in a research note on Tuesday, June 23rd. Five investment analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, twelve have given a Hold rating and two have assigned a Sell rating to the company's stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the company presently has an average rating of "Hold" and a consensus price target of $78.62.

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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