Brown & Brown (NYSE:BRO) Posts Earnings Results, Beats Estimates By $0.02 EPS

Brown & Brown (NYSE:BRO – Get Rating) issued its quarterly earnings results on Monday. The financial services provider reported $0.78 earnings per share for the quarter, beating the Zacks’ consensus estimate of $0.76 by $0.02, MarketWatch Earnings reports. Brown & Brown had a net margin of 19.24% and a return on equity of 15.43%. During the same period last year, the firm posted $0.70 EPS.

Shares of NYSE BRO traded down $1.24 during midday trading on Friday, hitting $64.53. 8,083 shares of the company’s stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 1,820,815. Brown & Brown has a twelve month low of $50.78 and a twelve month high of $74.00. The stock’s 50 day moving average price is $68.69 and its 200-day moving average price is $66.81. The firm has a market cap of $18.27 billion, a P/E ratio of 31.77 and a beta of 0.74. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.47, a current ratio of 1.04 and a quick ratio of 1.04.

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, May 18th. Investors of record on Monday, May 9th will be paid a $0.102 dividend. This represents a $0.41 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 0.63%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, May 6th. Brown & Brown’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 19.81%.

A number of equities analysts have recently weighed in on the stock. UBS Group initiated coverage on shares of Brown & Brown in a research report on Monday, April 18th. They issued a “neutral” rating and a $76.00 price objective for the company. Wells Fargo & Company upped their target price on Brown & Brown from $64.00 to $66.00 and gave the stock an “equal weight” rating in a research report on Tuesday, January 4th. StockNews.com started coverage on shares of Brown & Brown in a research report on Thursday, March 31st. They issued a “hold” rating on the stock. Royal Bank of Canada lifted their price target on shares of Brown & Brown from $64.00 to $67.00 and gave the stock a “sector perform” rating in a research note on Wednesday, January 26th. Finally, Morgan Stanley boosted their target price on Brown & Brown from $65.00 to $70.00 and gave the stock an “equal weight” rating in a research report on Thursday, April 14th. Seven research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and three have assigned a buy rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, Brown & Brown has an average rating of “Hold” and an average target price of $71.11.

Hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently bought and sold shares of the company. MML Investors Services LLC increased its position in Brown & Brown by 12.0% in the 4th quarter. MML Investors Services LLC now owns 4,936 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $347,000 after acquiring an additional 528 shares during the period. Glenmede Trust Co. NA grew its holdings in Brown & Brown by 7.3% during the 4th quarter. Glenmede Trust Co. NA now owns 26,546 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $1,865,000 after buying an additional 1,799 shares in the last quarter. Kingsview Wealth Management LLC purchased a new stake in Brown & Brown in the fourth quarter worth $210,000. Metropolitan Life Insurance Co NY boosted its holdings in Brown & Brown by 16.5% in the fourth quarter. Metropolitan Life Insurance Co NY now owns 27,085 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $1,904,000 after acquiring an additional 3,846 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Amalgamated Bank increased its position in shares of Brown & Brown by 4.8% in the fourth quarter. Amalgamated Bank now owns 86,334 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $6,068,000 after buying an additional 3,942 shares in the last quarter. 74.02% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

Brown & Brown Company Profile (Get Rating)

Brown & Brown, Inc markets and sells insurance products and services in the United States, Bermuda, Canada, Ireland, the United Kingdom, and the Cayman Islands. It operates through four segments: Retail, National Programs, Wholesale Brokerage, and Services. The Retail segment offers property and casualty, employee benefits insurance products, personal insurance products, specialties insurance products, loss control survey and analysis, consultancy, and claims processing services.

Read More