Verition Fund Management LLC reduced its holdings in Brown & Brown, Inc. (NYSE:BRO – Get Rating) by 13.5% during the third quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the SEC. The fund owned 10,546 shares of the financial services provider’s stock after selling 1,639 shares during the quarter. Verition Fund Management LLC’s holdings in Brown & Brown were worth $638,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.
A number of other large investors have also recently made changes to their positions in the business. Principal Financial Group Inc. lifted its stake in shares of Brown & Brown by 8.2% in the 2nd quarter. Principal Financial Group Inc. now owns 9,579,433 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $558,864,000 after purchasing an additional 725,167 shares during the period. Invesco Ltd. lifted its stake in shares of Brown & Brown by 9.7% in the 1st quarter. Invesco Ltd. now owns 3,207,698 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $231,821,000 after purchasing an additional 284,786 shares during the period. Goldman Sachs Group Inc. lifted its stake in shares of Brown & Brown by 658.3% in the 2nd quarter. Goldman Sachs Group Inc. now owns 2,975,944 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $173,617,000 after purchasing an additional 2,583,481 shares during the period. ProShare Advisors LLC lifted its stake in shares of Brown & Brown by 3.9% in the 3rd quarter. ProShare Advisors LLC now owns 2,595,652 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $156,985,000 after purchasing an additional 98,476 shares during the period. Finally, Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. lifted its stake in shares of Brown & Brown by 2.6% in the 1st quarter. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. now owns 1,683,849 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $121,692,000 after purchasing an additional 42,899 shares during the period. 69.52% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.
Insider Buying and Selling
In other news, Director Lawrence L. Gellerstedt III acquired 3,400 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, February 10th. The stock was bought at an average price of $57.92 per share, with a total value of $196,928.00. Following the completion of the acquisition, the director now directly owns 16,284 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $943,169.28. The purchase was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this hyperlink. 17.02% of the stock is currently owned by corporate insiders.
Brown & Brown Stock Up 1.1 %
Brown & Brown (NYSE:BRO – Get Rating) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, January 24th. The financial services provider reported $0.50 EPS for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $0.46 by $0.04. Brown & Brown had a return on equity of 14.88% and a net margin of 18.80%. The company had revenue of $901.40 million during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $897.98 million. During the same quarter in the previous year, the company posted $0.42 earnings per share. Brown & Brown’s revenue was up 22.1% compared to the same quarter last year. Equities analysts predict that Brown & Brown, Inc. will post 2.47 EPS for the current fiscal year.
Brown & Brown Announces Dividend
The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Wednesday, February 15th. Investors of record on Friday, February 3rd were issued a $0.115 dividend. This represents a $0.46 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 0.81%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Thursday, February 2nd. Brown & Brown’s payout ratio is currently 19.49%.
Wall Street Analyst Weigh In
BRO has been the subject of a number of research analyst reports. Morgan Stanley lowered their target price on Brown & Brown from $69.00 to $65.00 and set an “equal weight” rating for the company in a research note on Tuesday, November 22nd. Wells Fargo & Company lowered their price objective on Brown & Brown from $60.00 to $59.00 and set an “equal weight” rating for the company in a research note on Wednesday, January 25th. BMO Capital Markets started coverage on Brown & Brown in a research note on Thursday, January 19th. They set an “outperform” rating and a $67.00 price objective for the company. StockNews.com cut Brown & Brown from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Wednesday, February 1st. Finally, Citigroup started coverage on Brown & Brown in a research note on Wednesday, December 14th. They set a “neutral” rating and a $62.00 price objective for the company. Seven investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and three have given a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the stock currently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $66.30.
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.
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