Brown & Brown, Inc. (NYSE:BRO) Shares Sold by Marks Group Wealth Management Inc

Marks Group Wealth Management Inc lowered its stake in shares of Brown & Brown, Inc. (NYSE:BRO) by 4.1% in the fourth quarter, Holdings Channel reports. The institutional investor owned 91,502 shares of the financial services provider’s stock after selling 3,890 shares during the quarter. Brown & Brown accounts for approximately 0.9% of Marks Group Wealth Management Inc’s portfolio, making the stock its 28th biggest position. Marks Group Wealth Management Inc’s holdings in Brown & Brown were worth $9,335,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission.

A number of other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also made changes to their positions in BRO. Studio Investment Management LLC boosted its stake in Brown & Brown by 1.5% during the 3rd quarter. Studio Investment Management LLC now owns 6,513 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $675,000 after acquiring an additional 96 shares during the last quarter. Journey Strategic Wealth LLC raised its stake in shares of Brown & Brown by 2.3% in the 4th quarter. Journey Strategic Wealth LLC now owns 4,486 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $458,000 after purchasing an additional 99 shares in the last quarter. Trust Point Inc. lifted its position in shares of Brown & Brown by 4.3% during the third quarter. Trust Point Inc. now owns 2,519 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $261,000 after purchasing an additional 103 shares during the last quarter. CWA Asset Management Group LLC grew its stake in Brown & Brown by 3.7% in the fourth quarter. CWA Asset Management Group LLC now owns 2,916 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $297,000 after purchasing an additional 103 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Bleakley Financial Group LLC grew its stake in Brown & Brown by 3.4% in the fourth quarter. Bleakley Financial Group LLC now owns 3,162 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $323,000 after purchasing an additional 103 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors own 71.01% of the company’s stock.

Brown & Brown Stock Down 0.1 %

BRO stock opened at $108.78 on Wednesday. The company has a quick ratio of 1.73, a current ratio of 1.79 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.56. The firm’s 50-day simple moving average is $104.54 and its 200 day simple moving average is $104.89. The stock has a market cap of $31.11 billion, a PE ratio of 31.44, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.84 and a beta of 0.86. Brown & Brown, Inc. has a fifty-two week low of $80.33 and a fifty-two week high of $114.15.

Brown & Brown (NYSE:BRO) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Monday, January 27th. The financial services provider reported $0.86 earnings per share (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, sell-side analysts predict that Brown & Brown, Inc. will post 4.15 EPS for the current year.

Brown & Brown Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, February 12th. Stockholders of record on Wednesday, February 5th will be paid a $0.15 dividend. 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 payout ratio is 17.34%.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several analysts have issued reports on BRO shares. Royal Bank of Canada increased their target price on Brown & Brown from $118.00 to $120.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a report on Wednesday, January 29th. Morgan Stanley started coverage on Brown & Brown in a research report on Thursday, December 5th. They set an “overweight” rating and a $134.00 price target on the stock. Wells Fargo & Company lifted their price objective on shares of Brown & Brown from $115.00 to $125.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a report on Wednesday, January 29th. Barclays increased their target price on shares of Brown & Brown from $108.00 to $119.00 and gave the stock an “equal weight” rating in a report on Thursday, November 21st. Finally, StockNews.com downgraded shares of Brown & Brown from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report on Saturday, November 2nd. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, five have given a hold rating and seven have given a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the stock presently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $113.17.

About Brown & Brown

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.