Heron Bay Capital Management Reduces Stake in Brown & Brown, Inc. (NYSE:BRO)

Heron Bay Capital Management cut its stake in Brown & Brown, Inc. (NYSE:BRO) by 0.3% in the fourth quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The fund owned 98,584 shares of the financial services provider’s stock after selling 275 shares during the quarter. Brown & Brown comprises approximately 2.1% of Heron Bay Capital Management’s investment portfolio, making the stock its 20th biggest position. Heron Bay Capital Management’s holdings in Brown & Brown were worth $10,058,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Several other institutional investors have also modified their holdings of BRO. Quest Partners LLC purchased a new position in Brown & Brown during the third quarter worth about $688,000. B. Metzler seel. Sohn & Co. Holding AG acquired a new stake in shares of Brown & Brown during the 3rd quarter worth approximately $646,000. PNC Financial Services Group Inc. raised its position in shares of Brown & Brown by 9.8% during the 3rd quarter. PNC Financial Services Group Inc. now owns 46,666 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $4,835,000 after buying an additional 4,146 shares during the period. Commerce Bank lifted its holdings in Brown & Brown by 4.6% in the third quarter. Commerce Bank now owns 9,887 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $1,024,000 after acquiring an additional 438 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Connor Clark & Lunn Investment Management Ltd. purchased a new position in Brown & Brown in the third quarter worth approximately $3,552,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 71.01% of the company’s stock.

Brown & Brown Stock Performance

NYSE:BRO opened at $118.38 on Friday. Brown & Brown, Inc. has a 52 week low of $80.33 and a 52 week high of $121.25. The company has a fifty day simple moving average of $111.55 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $107.69. The company has a quick ratio of 1.79, a current ratio of 1.79 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.56. The company has a market cap of $33.85 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 34.21, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.93 and a beta of 0.86.

Brown & Brown (NYSE:BRO) last released its earnings results on Monday, January 27th. The financial services provider reported $0.86 EPS for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $0.76 by $0.10. Brown & Brown had a return on equity of 17.81% and a net margin of 20.68%. As a group, equities analysts anticipate that Brown & Brown, Inc. will post 4.18 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Brown & Brown Announces Dividend

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Wednesday, February 12th. Investors of record on Wednesday, February 5th were issued a $0.15 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Wednesday, February 5th. This represents a $0.60 annualized dividend and a yield of 0.51%. Brown & Brown’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 17.34%.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of equities research analysts have commented on BRO shares. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods reduced their target price on Brown & Brown from $99.00 to $97.00 and set an “underperform” rating on the stock in a research report on Friday, January 10th. Wells Fargo & Company boosted their price objective on shares of Brown & Brown from $115.00 to $125.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a report on Wednesday, January 29th. Royal Bank of Canada increased their target price on shares of Brown & Brown from $118.00 to $120.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a research note on Wednesday, January 29th. Morgan Stanley began coverage on shares of Brown & Brown in a research note on Thursday, December 5th. They issued an “overweight” rating and a $134.00 price target on the stock. Finally, Bank of America upped their price objective on shares of Brown & Brown from $116.00 to $117.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a report on Tuesday, January 28th. One analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, five have given a hold rating and seven have assigned a buy rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the stock presently has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus target price of $113.17.

Brown & Brown Company 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.