Brown & Brown (NYSE:BRO) Hits New 52-Week Low After Analyst Downgrade

Shares of Brown & Brown, Inc. (NYSE:BRO) hit a new 52-week low on Tuesday after Barclays lowered their price target on the stock from $83.00 to $82.00. Barclays currently has an equal weight rating on the stock. Brown & Brown traded as low as $73.52 and last traded at $73.7460, with a volume of 1195407 shares. The stock had previously closed at $79.62.

BRO has been the topic of several other reports. Morgan Stanley lowered their target price on shares of Brown & Brown from $95.00 to $85.00 and set an “equal weight” rating on the stock in a research report on Monday, November 17th. Truist Financial cut their price target on Brown & Brown from $114.00 to $105.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a research note on Thursday, January 15th. BMO Capital Markets restated a “market perform” rating on shares of Brown & Brown in a report on Tuesday, December 30th. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods increased their price target on shares of Brown & Brown from $79.00 to $80.00 and gave the company an “underperform” rating in a research report on Tuesday, January 6th. Finally, Weiss Ratings reaffirmed a “hold (c)” rating on shares of Brown & Brown in a research note on Monday, December 29th. Four investment analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, fourteen have given a Hold rating and one has assigned a Sell rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat, the stock has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus target price of $98.13.

Brown & Brown News Summary

Here are the key news stories impacting Brown & Brown this week:

• Positive Sentiment: Adjusted earnings and operating performance: Brown & Brown reported Diluted Net Income Per Share — Adjusted of $0.93 (up YoY) and higher EBITDAC / adjusted margins, which beat some expectations and supports the company’s operating story. Zacks: Q4 Earnings Beat
• Positive Sentiment: Strong top‑line (acquisition‑driven) growth: Total revenues rose ~35.7% YoY to about $1.6B, driven largely by acquisitions (Accession/RSC) which materially increased scale and fee income. Press Release
• Neutral Sentiment: Earnings call/transcript available — management reiterated growth from acquisitions but signaled margin pressure and integration items; read the call highlights and transcript for management tone and any forward comments. TipRanks: Call Highlights
• Neutral Sentiment: Investor commentary/valuation views: Some value‑oriented writeups see a deeper discount after the pullback, noting long‑term strengths in the brokerage model. Seeking Alpha
• Neutral Sentiment: Company news: the firm announced the passing of its Chief Legal Officer — a human resources / governance item investors will note but is not a primary driver of the price move. Press Release
• Negative Sentiment: Revenue shortfall vs. Street: Reported revenue (~$1.61B) came in below several consensus estimates (~$1.65–1.67B), prompting the immediate market reaction and headlines that shares fell on a revenue miss. MarketWatch
• Negative Sentiment: Weak organic growth and GAAP EPS compression: Organic revenue declined ~2.8% in Q4 and GAAP diluted EPS fell to $0.59 (year‑over‑year decline), which raises concern about core‑business momentum absent acquisitions. Quiver / Press Summary
• Negative Sentiment: Higher leverage and integration costs: The Accession acquisition added goodwill, intangibles and long‑term debt; investors are weighing integration costs, acquisition earn‑outs and higher interest expense. Reuters
• Negative Sentiment: Analyst reactions: Banks trimmed targets/ratings (Barclays lowered to $82 / equal‑weight; Bank of America cut target to $90 / neutral), which adds near‑term selling pressure. Benzinga: Analyst Moves

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Brown & Brown

Large investors have recently made changes to their positions in the business. Darwin Wealth Management LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Brown & Brown during the second quarter worth approximately $30,000. Cornerstone Planning Group LLC boosted its stake in shares of Brown & Brown by 423.1% during the 3rd quarter. Cornerstone Planning Group LLC now owns 272 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $26,000 after buying an additional 220 shares during the period. Motco purchased a new position in shares of Brown & Brown during the 2nd quarter valued at $32,000. TD Private Client Wealth LLC increased its stake in shares of Brown & Brown by 39.3% in the second quarter. TD Private Client Wealth LLC now owns 436 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $48,000 after acquiring an additional 123 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Migdal Insurance & Financial Holdings Ltd. acquired a new position in shares of Brown & Brown in the second quarter worth $49,000. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 71.01% of the company’s stock.

Brown & Brown Trading Down 6.9%

The firm has a market capitalization of $25.30 billion, a PE ratio of 23.15, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.86 and a beta of 0.81. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.62, a current ratio of 2.10 and a quick ratio of 2.10. The company has a fifty day moving average of $79.74 and a 200-day moving average of $87.88.

Brown & Brown (NYSE:BRO) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Monday, January 26th. The financial services provider reported $0.93 earnings per share for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.91 by $0.02. The company had revenue of $1.61 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $1.65 billion. Brown & Brown had a return on equity of 13.65% and a net margin of 17.84%.The business’s quarterly revenue was up 35.7% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period last year, the business earned $0.86 EPS. On average, sell-side analysts anticipate that Brown & Brown, Inc. will post 4.18 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Brown & Brown Announces Dividend

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, February 11th. Investors of record on Wednesday, February 4th will be given a dividend of $0.165 per share. This represents a $0.66 annualized dividend and a yield of 0.9%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Wednesday, February 4th. Brown & Brown’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 19.76%.

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.