State of New Jersey Common Pension Fund D Lowers Holdings in Brown & Brown, Inc. $BRO

Key Points

• The State of New Jersey Common Pension Fund D decreased its stake in Brown & Brown, Inc. by 7.5% during the first quarter, selling 6,311 shares and holding a total of 78,059 shares worth approximately $9.71 million.
• Brown & Brown recently reported quarterly earnings of $1.03 EPS, surpassing analysts' expectations, with revenue of $1.29 billion, a 9.1% increase year-over-year.
• The company declared a quarterly dividend of $0.15 per share to be paid on August 20th, which brings the annualized dividend to $0.60, yielding 0.6%.

State of New Jersey Common Pension Fund D lessened its holdings in shares of Brown & Brown, Inc. (NYSE:BRO - Free Report) by 7.5% in the first quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The firm owned 78,059 shares of the financial services provider's stock after selling 6,311 shares during the quarter. State of New Jersey Common Pension Fund D's holdings in Brown & Brown were worth $9,711,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

A number of other institutional investors and hedge funds have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the business. Ethic Inc. boosted its position in Brown & Brown by 15.8% during the first quarter. Ethic Inc. now owns 28,275 shares of the financial services provider's stock worth $3,509,000 after purchasing an additional 3,848 shares during the period. Aberdeen Group plc boosted its position in Brown & Brown by 90.6% during the first quarter. Aberdeen Group plc now owns 163,970 shares of the financial services provider's stock worth $20,268,000 after purchasing an additional 77,954 shares during the period. Horizon Investments LLC boosted its position in Brown & Brown by 5.2% during the first quarter. Horizon Investments LLC now owns 3,406 shares of the financial services provider's stock worth $423,000 after purchasing an additional 167 shares during the period. Kovitz Investment Group Partners LLC lifted its holdings in shares of Brown & Brown by 8.7% in the first quarter. Kovitz Investment Group Partners LLC now owns 2,804 shares of the financial services provider's stock worth $349,000 after buying an additional 224 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Lord Abbett & CO. LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Brown & Brown in the first quarter worth about $11,942,000. Institutional investors own 71.01% of the company's stock.

Brown & Brown Trading Up 0.2%

Shares of Brown & Brown stock traded up $0.2060 on Friday, hitting $96.6060. The stock had a trading volume of 1,593,830 shares, compared to its average volume of 3,848,808. The company has a quick ratio of 6.72, a current ratio of 6.72 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.64. Brown & Brown, Inc. has a one year low of $90.38 and a one year high of $125.68. The stock has a market cap of $31.86 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 27.84, a PEG ratio of 2.19 and a beta of 0.78. The stock's 50-day simple moving average is $102.09 and its two-hundred day simple moving average is $110.08.

Brown & Brown (NYSE:BRO - Get Free Report) last issued its 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 analysts' expectations of $1.28 billion. During the same quarter last year, the business earned $0.93 earnings per share. The business's revenue was up 9.1% on a year-over-year basis. As a group, sell-side analysts predict that Brown & Brown, Inc. will post 4.18 EPS for the current year.

Brown & Brown Dividend Announcement

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

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of equities research analysts have recently issued reports on BRO shares. The Goldman Sachs Group downgraded shares of Brown & Brown from a "buy" rating to a "neutral" rating and lowered their price target for the stock from $126.00 to $119.00 in a report on Tuesday, May 13th. Bank of America raised shares of Brown & Brown from a "neutral" rating to a "buy" rating and increased their price target for the stock from $126.00 to $130.00 in a report on Wednesday, July 30th. Wells Fargo & Company downgraded shares of Brown & Brown from an "overweight" rating to an "equal weight" rating and lowered their price target for the stock from $104.00 to $101.00 in a report on Wednesday, August 13th. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods lowered 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 note on Thursday, July 31st. Finally, Citigroup initiated coverage on shares of Brown & Brown in a research note on Wednesday, August 13th. They issued a "buy" rating and a $112.00 target price on the stock. Seven equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, seven have issued a Hold rating and one has issued a Sell rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the stock has an average rating of "Hold" and a consensus target price of $112.64.

Insider Activity at Brown & Brown

In related news, Director Paul J. Krump purchased 2,678 shares of the business's stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, August 8th. The shares were acquired at an average price of $93.31 per share, for a total transaction of $249,884.18. Following the completion of the acquisition, 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 acquisition was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this link. Also, Director Bronislaw Edmund Masojada purchased 1,000 shares of the business's stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, August 6th. The stock was bought at an average price of $91.44 per share, for a total transaction of $91,440.00. Following the acquisition, the director owned 5,000 shares of the company's stock, valued at $457,200. This represents a 25.00% increase in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this purchase can be found here. 17.02% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

Brown & Brown Profile

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.