Mitsubishi UFJ Asset Management Co. Ltd. Grows Stake in Brown & Brown, Inc. $BRO

Mitsubishi UFJ Asset Management Co. Ltd. raised its stake in Brown & Brown, Inc. (NYSE:BRO - Free Report) by 4.6% during the 4th quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The firm owned 671,735 shares of the financial services provider's stock after purchasing an additional 29,502 shares during the quarter. Mitsubishi UFJ Asset Management Co. Ltd. owned about 0.20% of Brown & Brown worth $52,140,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Several other hedge funds also recently added to or reduced their stakes in BRO. AQR Capital Management LLC raised its position in Brown & Brown by 38.3% in the first quarter. AQR Capital Management LLC now owns 33,444 shares of the financial services provider's stock valued at $4,132,000 after purchasing an additional 9,264 shares during the period. Focus Partners Wealth increased its position in shares of Brown & Brown by 5.2% during the first quarter. Focus Partners Wealth now owns 11,149 shares of the financial services provider's stock worth $1,387,000 after acquiring an additional 547 shares during the last quarter. Arrowstreet Capital Limited Partnership increased its position in shares of Brown & Brown by 1,824.7% during the second quarter. Arrowstreet Capital Limited Partnership now owns 53,103 shares of the financial services provider's stock worth $5,888,000 after acquiring an additional 50,344 shares during the last quarter. EverSource Wealth Advisors LLC increased its position in shares of Brown & Brown by 27.1% during the second quarter. EverSource Wealth Advisors LLC now owns 1,045 shares of the financial services provider's stock worth $116,000 after acquiring an additional 223 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Cary Street Partners Financial LLC increased its position in shares of Brown & Brown by 60.9% during the second quarter. Cary Street Partners Financial LLC now owns 933 shares of the financial services provider's stock worth $103,000 after acquiring an additional 353 shares during the last quarter. 71.01% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Brown & Brown Stock Down 2.8%

NYSE:BRO opened at $56.40 on Friday. The company has a market capitalization of $19.12 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 18.14, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.68 and a beta of 0.66. Brown & Brown, Inc. has a one year low of $56.10 and a one year high of $113.83. The stock has a 50-day simple moving average of $66.87 and a 200 day simple moving average of $74.22. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.52, a quick ratio of 1.64 and a current ratio of 1.64.

Brown & Brown (NYSE:BRO - Get Free Report) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Monday, April 27th. The financial services provider reported $1.39 EPS for the quarter, topping analysts' consensus estimates of $1.36 by $0.03. The business had revenue of $1.90 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $1.89 billion. Brown & Brown had a return on equity of 12.94% and a net margin of 17.94%.The company's revenue for the quarter was up 35.4% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period last year, the firm earned $1.29 earnings per share. Sell-side analysts predict that Brown & Brown, Inc. will post 4.51 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Brown & Brown Announces Dividend

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, May 20th. Investors of record on Monday, May 11th will be paid a $0.165 dividend. This represents a $0.66 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 1.2%. The ex-dividend date is Monday, May 11th. Brown & Brown's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 21.22%.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other news, Director H Palmer Proctor, Jr. purchased 2,000 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, May 5th. The stock was acquired at an average cost of $57.10 per share, for a total transaction of $114,200.00. Following the completion of the purchase, the director owned 47,621 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $2,719,159.10. This trade represents a 4.38% increase in their ownership of the stock. The purchase was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through the SEC website. Company insiders own 13.13% of the company's stock.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of analysts have recently issued reports on BRO shares. Bank of America dropped their target price on Brown & Brown from $90.00 to $88.00 and set a "neutral" rating on the stock in a research report on Tuesday, April 14th. Barclays dropped their target price on Brown & Brown from $80.00 to $72.00 and set an "equal weight" rating on the stock in a research report on Wednesday, April 8th. Mizuho dropped their target price on Brown & Brown from $85.00 to $84.00 and set an "outperform" rating on the stock in a research report on Monday, April 13th. Jefferies Financial Group dropped their target price on Brown & Brown from $89.00 to $84.00 and set a "hold" rating on the stock in a research report on Wednesday, January 28th. Finally, BMO Capital Markets dropped their target price on Brown & Brown from $88.00 to $81.00 and set a "market perform" rating on the stock in a research report on Thursday, January 29th. Four analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and fourteen have given a Hold rating to the company's stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, Brown & Brown presently has a consensus rating of "Hold" and a consensus target price of $80.73.

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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