Meiji Yasuda Asset Management Co Ltd. Buys New Position in Brown & Brown, Inc. $BRO

Key Points

• Meiji Yasuda Asset Management initiated a position in Brown & Brown, purchasing 51,289 shares valued at approximately $3.29 million. Institutional investors collectively own 71.01% of the company.
• Brown & Brown’s shares recently traded at $74.64, up 2.4%, while its latest quarterly results slightly missed expectations: earnings per share came in at $1.07 versus $1.08 expected, and revenue was $1.65 billion versus $1.71 billion forecast.
• The company paid a quarterly dividend of $0.165, equivalent to $0.66 annually and a 0.9% yield. Analysts maintain a consensus “Hold” rating with an average price target of $76.80.

Meiji Yasuda Asset Management Co Ltd. bought a new position in shares of Brown & Brown, Inc. (NYSE:BRO - Free Report) in the 2nd quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The firm bought 51,289 shares of the financial services provider's stock, valued at approximately $3,290,000.

Other hedge funds have also added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Union Bancaire Privee UBP SA bought a new position in shares of Brown & Brown during the 1st quarter worth approximately $25,000. Basepoint Wealth LLC bought a new stake in shares of Brown & Brown in the 4th quarter valued at $27,000. Darwin Wealth Management LLC bought a new stake in shares of Brown & Brown in the 2nd quarter valued at $30,000. DV Equities LLC acquired a new position in shares of Brown & Brown during the 4th quarter valued at $33,000. Finally, Allied Private Wealth LLC acquired a new position in shares of Brown & Brown during the 2nd quarter valued at $35,000. 71.01% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Brown & Brown Trading Up 2.4%

Shares of Brown & Brown stock opened at $74.64 on Tuesday. The company has a market capitalization of $24.97 billion, a P/E ratio of 23.55, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 3.63 and a beta of 0.59. The stock has a fifty day simple moving average of $67.97 and a 200 day simple moving average of $65.77. Brown & Brown, Inc. has a 12-month low of $53.81 and a 12-month high of $97.73. The company has a current ratio of 2.11, a quick ratio of 2.11 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.58.

Brown & Brown (NYSE:BRO - Get Free Report) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Monday, July 27th. The financial services provider reported $1.07 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing analysts' consensus estimates of $1.08 by ($0.01). The firm had revenue of $1.65 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $1.71 billion. Brown & Brown had a return on equity of 13.17% and a net margin of 17.75%.Brown & Brown's revenue was up 30.4% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period in the prior year, the firm earned $1.03 earnings per share. On average, sell-side analysts anticipate that Brown & Brown, Inc. will post 4.5 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Brown & Brown Dividend Announcement

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Wednesday, August 19th. Shareholders of record on Wednesday, August 12th were paid a $0.165 dividend. The ex-dividend date was Wednesday, August 12th. This represents a $0.66 annualized dividend and a yield of 0.9%. Brown & Brown's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 20.82%.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of equities research analysts have commented on the stock. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods raised their price target on shares of Brown & Brown from $72.00 to $74.00 and gave the stock a "market perform" rating in a report on Wednesday, July 8th. BMO Capital Markets upped their price objective on shares of Brown & Brown from $73.00 to $74.00 and gave the company a "market perform" rating in a report on Wednesday, July 29th. The Goldman Sachs Group raised their target price on Brown & Brown from $62.00 to $70.00 and gave the company a "neutral" rating in a research note on Wednesday, July 1st. Wells Fargo & Company decreased their target price on Brown & Brown from $69.00 to $68.00 and set an "equal weight" rating for the company in a research report on Thursday, July 9th. Finally, Jefferies Financial Group reiterated a "hold" rating on shares of Brown & Brown in a report on Wednesday, July 29th. Four analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, fourteen have given a Hold rating and one has given a Sell rating to the company's stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the stock has a consensus rating of "Hold" and an average price target of $76.80.

About Brown & Brown

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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