Allstate Corp Acquires Shares of 10,850 Brown & Brown, Inc. $BRO

Allstate Corp bought a new position in Brown & Brown, Inc. (NYSE:BRO) during the third quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The institutional investor bought 10,850 shares of the financial services provider’s stock, valued at approximately $1,018,000.

Other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also recently bought and sold shares of the company. AQR Capital Management LLC boosted its position in Brown & Brown by 38.3% in the 1st quarter. AQR Capital Management LLC now owns 33,444 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $4,132,000 after purchasing an additional 9,264 shares in the last quarter. Focus Partners Wealth lifted its stake in shares of Brown & Brown by 5.2% in the 1st quarter. Focus Partners Wealth now owns 11,149 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $1,387,000 after purchasing an additional 547 shares during the period. Wealth Enhancement Advisory Services LLC lifted its stake in shares of Brown & Brown by 107.3% in the 2nd quarter. Wealth Enhancement Advisory Services LLC now owns 59,350 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $6,451,000 after purchasing an additional 30,714 shares during the period. Fifth Third Bancorp boosted its holdings in Brown & Brown by 16.1% during the second quarter. Fifth Third Bancorp now owns 7,900 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $876,000 after buying an additional 1,093 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Maseco LLP acquired a new stake in Brown & Brown during the second quarter valued at $109,000. 71.01% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Brown & Brown Price Performance

Shares of NYSE BRO opened at $78.12 on Thursday. The firm has a 50-day simple moving average of $79.94 and a 200-day simple moving average of $88.84. The company has a quick ratio of 2.10, a current ratio of 2.10 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.62. The stock has a market capitalization of $26.67 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 23.39, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.84 and a beta of 0.81. Brown & Brown, Inc. has a 52 week low of $76.17 and a 52 week high of $125.68.

Brown & Brown (NYSE:BRO) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Monday, October 27th. The financial services provider reported $1.05 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $0.90 by $0.15. The company had revenue of $1.55 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $1.54 billion. Brown & Brown had a net margin of 18.23% and a return on equity of 13.64%. Brown & Brown’s revenue was up 35.4% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter in the prior year, the company earned $0.91 EPS. On average, equities analysts predict that Brown & Brown, Inc. will post 4.18 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Brown & Brown Announces Dividend

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, February 11th. Stockholders of record on Wednesday, February 4th will be given a $0.165 dividend. The ex-dividend date is Wednesday, February 4th. This represents a $0.66 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 0.8%. Brown & Brown’s dividend payout ratio is 19.76%.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

BRO has been the subject of a number of analyst reports. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods upped their price objective on shares of Brown & Brown from $79.00 to $80.00 and gave the stock an “underperform” rating in a research report on Tuesday, January 6th. Mizuho set a $89.00 price target on Brown & Brown and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a research note on Monday, December 15th. UBS Group reduced their price target on Brown & Brown from $120.00 to $106.00 and set a “neutral” rating for the company in a report on Wednesday, October 8th. Wolfe Research started coverage on Brown & Brown in a research report on Thursday, November 20th. They set a “peer perform” rating on the stock. Finally, JPMorgan Chase & Co. began coverage on Brown & Brown in a research report on Thursday, December 18th. They issued a “neutral” rating and a $91.00 price objective for the company. Four equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, fourteen have assigned a Hold rating and one has given a Sell rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the company presently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and an average price target of $98.67.

About Brown & Brown

Brown & Brown, Inc (NYSE: BRO) is a professional insurance brokerage and risk advisory firm that provides a broad range of property and casualty, employee benefits, personal risk, and specialty insurance products. The company works with commercial, public sector and individual clients to design and place insurance programs, manage claims and loss control, and deliver risk management consulting. Its services also include wholesale brokerage, program administration and other specialty distribution solutions that connect carriers and intermediaries to niche markets.

Brown & Brown operates through a decentralized model of operating units and subsidiaries, enabling local client service with the scale to access national and specialty markets.