Vest Financial LLC Grows Stake in Brown & Brown, Inc. (NYSE:BRO)

Vest Financial LLC grew its holdings in shares of Brown & Brown, Inc. (NYSE:BRO) by 8.7% during the 4th quarter, Holdings Channel.com reports. The institutional investor owned 540,914 shares of the financial services provider’s stock after acquiring an additional 43,077 shares during the quarter. Vest Financial LLC’s holdings in Brown & Brown were worth $55,184,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Other hedge funds and other institutional investors also recently made changes to their positions in the company. Cetera Investment Advisers increased its position in Brown & Brown by 60.6% during the 2nd quarter. Cetera Investment Advisers now owns 27,338 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $2,444,000 after purchasing an additional 10,313 shares during the period. Czech National Bank boosted its stake in shares of Brown & Brown by 6.9% during the 3rd quarter. Czech National Bank now owns 48,231 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $4,997,000 after purchasing an additional 3,115 shares in the last quarter. Atomi Financial Group Inc. purchased a new position in shares of Brown & Brown during the third quarter valued at about $621,000. Wedmont Private Capital bought a new position in Brown & Brown in the third quarter worth about $237,000. Finally, TAP Consulting LLC lifted its holdings in Brown & Brown by 2.2% in the third quarter. TAP Consulting LLC now owns 24,301 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $2,518,000 after buying an additional 525 shares during the period. Institutional investors own 71.01% of the company’s stock.

Brown & Brown Stock Up 0.8 %

Shares of Brown & Brown stock opened at $108.64 on Friday. The company has a 50-day simple moving average of $104.74 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $104.54. The stock has a market capitalization of $31.07 billion, a PE ratio of 31.40, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.84 and a beta of 0.86. Brown & Brown, Inc. has a 52-week low of $78.70 and a 52-week high of $114.15. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.56, a quick ratio of 1.73 and a current ratio of 1.79.

Brown & Brown (NYSE:BRO) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Monday, January 27th. The financial services provider reported $0.86 earnings per share for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.76 by $0.10. Brown & Brown had a net margin of 20.68% and a return on equity of 17.81%. On average, analysts anticipate that Brown & Brown, Inc. will post 4.15 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Brown & Brown Announces Dividend

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, February 12th. Investors of record on Wednesday, February 5th will be given a dividend of $0.15 per share. The ex-dividend date is Wednesday, February 5th. This represents a $0.60 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 0.55%. Brown & Brown’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 17.34%.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of research analysts have weighed in on the company. Morgan Stanley initiated coverage on Brown & Brown in a report on Thursday, December 5th. They set an “overweight” rating and a $134.00 target price on the stock. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods reduced their price target on Brown & Brown from $99.00 to $97.00 and set an “underperform” rating on the stock in a research note on Friday, January 10th. StockNews.com lowered Brown & Brown from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report on Saturday, November 2nd. Bank of America upped their target price on shares of Brown & Brown from $116.00 to $117.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a research report on Tuesday, January 28th. Finally, Wells Fargo & Company lifted their price target on shares of Brown & Brown from $115.00 to $125.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research report on Wednesday, January 29th. One research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, five have issued a hold rating and seven have given a buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the stock has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $113.17.

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.