Rakuten Investment Management Inc. Takes Position in Brown & Brown, Inc. $BRO

Key Points

• Rakuten Investment Management acquired 47,512 shares of Brown & Brown worth approximately $3.0 million in the second quarter. Institutional investors collectively own 71.01% of the company.
• Brown & Brown reported quarterly revenue of $1.65 billion, up 30.4% year over year, but its $1.07 EPS slightly missed analysts’ $1.08 estimate. Analysts expect full-year EPS of approximately $4.50.
• The stock opened at $73.32, while analysts maintain a consensus “Hold” rating and an average price target of $76.80. The company also pays a quarterly dividend of $0.165 per share, yielding about 0.9%.

Rakuten Investment Management Inc. acquired a new stake in Brown & Brown, Inc. (NYSE:BRO - Free Report) in the 2nd quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the SEC. The fund acquired 47,512 shares of the financial services provider's stock, valued at approximately $3,039,000.

A number of other large investors have also recently bought and sold shares of BRO. PFA Pension Forsikringsaktieselskab bought a new position in shares of Brown & Brown in the 4th quarter valued at approximately $46,226,000. Rathbones Group PLC boosted its position in Brown & Brown by 17.7% during the first quarter. Rathbones Group PLC now owns 1,154,219 shares of the financial services provider's stock worth $75,267,000 after purchasing an additional 173,265 shares during the period. Barr E S & Co. boosted its position in Brown & Brown by 19.0% during the fourth quarter. Barr E S & Co. now owns 362,669 shares of the financial services provider's stock worth $28,905,000 after purchasing an additional 57,971 shares during the period. Renaissance Technologies LLC grew its holdings in Brown & Brown by 46.5% during the first quarter. Renaissance Technologies LLC now owns 1,573,902 shares of the financial services provider's stock valued at $102,634,000 after purchasing an additional 499,902 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Assenagon Asset Management S.A. grew its holdings in Brown & Brown by 6,588.6% during the second quarter. Assenagon Asset Management S.A. now owns 289,013 shares of the financial services provider's stock valued at $18,540,000 after purchasing an additional 284,692 shares during the last quarter. 71.01% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Brown & Brown Stock Performance

NYSE:BRO opened at $73.32 on Monday. The firm has a market capitalization of $24.53 billion, a PE ratio of 23.13, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 3.65 and a beta of 0.59. The company has a quick ratio of 2.11, a current ratio of 2.11 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.58. Brown & Brown, Inc. has a 12-month low of $53.81 and a 12-month high of $97.49. The firm has a 50-day moving average price of $69.05 and a 200 day moving average price of $65.78.

Brown & Brown (NYSE:BRO - Get Free Report) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Monday, July 27th. The financial services provider reported $1.07 EPS for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $1.08 by ($0.01). The company had revenue of $1.65 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $1.71 billion. Brown & Brown had a net margin of 17.75% and a return on equity of 13.17%. Brown & Brown's quarterly 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 EPS. Research analysts anticipate that Brown & Brown, Inc. will post 4.5 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Brown & Brown Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Wednesday, August 19th. Investors of record on Wednesday, August 12th were issued a dividend of $0.165 per share. This represents a $0.66 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 0.9%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Wednesday, August 12th. Brown & Brown's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 20.82%.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of analysts have recently weighed in on BRO shares. Barclays boosted their price objective on shares of Brown & Brown from $72.00 to $76.00 and gave the stock an "equal weight" rating in a research note on Tuesday, July 7th. Citizens Jmp raised their target price on shares of Brown & Brown from $70.00 to $78.00 and gave the company a "market outperform" rating in a research note on Friday, July 10th. Wells Fargo & Company dropped their target price on shares of Brown & Brown from $69.00 to $68.00 and set an "equal weight" rating on the stock in a report on Thursday, July 9th. Jefferies Financial Group reissued a "hold" rating on shares of Brown & Brown in a research report on Wednesday, July 29th. Finally, Mizuho upped their price target on shares of Brown & Brown from $81.00 to $86.00 and gave the company an "outperform" rating in a report on Wednesday, July 29th. Four equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, fourteen have issued a Hold rating and one has given a Sell rating to the company's stock. According to MarketBeat, the company has a consensus rating of "Hold" and a consensus target price 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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