Brown & Brown, Inc. $BRO Shares Sold by Goldman Sachs Group Inc.

Key Points

• Goldman Sachs Group Inc. reduced its stake in Brown & Brown, Inc. by 11.7%, selling 266,040 shares to hold approximately 2,006,096 shares worth $249.6 million.
• Several institutional investors have made changes to their holdings, with 71.01% of the stock now owned by hedge funds and other institutions.
• The company recently declared a quarterly dividend of $0.15 per share, contributing to an annualized dividend yield of 0.6%.

Goldman Sachs Group Inc. cut its stake in Brown & Brown, Inc. (NYSE:BRO - Free Report) by 11.7% in the first quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 2,006,096 shares of the financial services provider's stock after selling 266,040 shares during the period. Goldman Sachs Group Inc. owned approximately 0.70% of Brown & Brown worth $249,558,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

A number of other hedge funds also recently added to or reduced their stakes in BRO. Bares Capital Management Inc. purchased a new position in Brown & Brown in the first quarter valued at about $26,000. Sunbelt Securities Inc. increased its stake in shares of Brown & Brown by 581.8% during the 4th quarter. Sunbelt Securities Inc. now owns 300 shares of the financial services provider's stock worth $31,000 after purchasing an additional 256 shares in the last quarter. Optimum Investment Advisors purchased a new position in shares of Brown & Brown during the 1st quarter worth approximately $31,000. SouthState Corp increased its stake in shares of Brown & Brown by 188.6% during the 1st quarter. SouthState Corp now owns 254 shares of the financial services provider's stock worth $32,000 after purchasing an additional 166 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Zions Bancorporation National Association UT purchased a new position in shares of Brown & Brown during the 1st quarter worth approximately $45,000. 71.01% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of brokerages have recently weighed in on BRO. Truist Financial set a $120.00 price objective on shares of Brown & Brown in a research note on Wednesday, July 30th. Argus restated a "hold" rating on shares of Brown & Brown in a research report on Thursday, July 31st. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods decreased their target price on shares of Brown & Brown from $104.00 to $87.00 and set an "underperform" rating on the stock in a research report on Thursday, July 31st. Bank of America upgraded shares of Brown & Brown from a "neutral" rating to a "buy" rating and raised their target price for the stock from $126.00 to $130.00 in a research report on Wednesday, July 30th. Finally, Wall Street Zen lowered shares of Brown & Brown from a "hold" rating to a "sell" rating in a research report on Saturday, August 16th. Seven investment analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, seven have issued a Hold rating and one has given a Sell rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the company has a consensus rating of "Hold" and an average target price of $112.64.

Insider Activity

In related news, Director Bronislaw Edmund Masojada bought 1,000 shares of the company's stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, August 6th. The stock was bought at an average price of $91.44 per share, with a total value of $91,440.00. Following the transaction, the director owned 5,000 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $457,200. This trade represents a 25.00% increase in their ownership of the stock. The acquisition was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through this link. Also, Director Paul J. Krump bought 2,678 shares of the company's stock in a transaction dated Friday, August 8th. The stock was bought at an average cost of $93.31 per share, with a total value of $249,884.18. Following the transaction, the director directly owned 5,353 shares in the company, valued at approximately $499,488.43. The trade was a 100.11% increase in their position. The disclosure for this purchase can be found here. 17.02% of the stock is currently owned by insiders.

Brown & Brown Stock Down 1.2%

Brown & Brown stock traded down $1.14 during midday trading on Monday, hitting $92.40. 350,600 shares of the stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 2,534,697. Brown & Brown, Inc. has a 1 year low of $90.38 and a 1 year high of $125.68. The firm has a market cap of $30.48 billion, a P/E ratio of 26.64, a P/E/G ratio of 2.13 and a beta of 0.81. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.64, a current ratio of 6.72 and a quick ratio of 6.72. The company has a 50 day moving average price of $98.00 and a two-hundred day moving average price of $108.41.

Brown & Brown (NYSE:BRO - Get Free Report) last released its quarterly earnings results on Monday, July 28th. The financial services provider reported $1.03 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $0.99 by $0.04. Brown & Brown had a net margin of 19.89% and a return on equity of 15.10%. The firm had revenue of $1.29 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $1.28 billion. During the same quarter in the previous year, the firm posted $0.93 EPS. The firm's quarterly revenue was up 9.1% on a year-over-year basis. On average, sell-side analysts predict that Brown & Brown, Inc. will post 4.18 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Brown & Brown Dividend Announcement

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Wednesday, August 20th. Stockholders of record on Wednesday, August 13th were given a $0.15 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Wednesday, August 13th. This represents a $0.60 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 0.6%. Brown & Brown's payout ratio is presently 17.29%.

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.