Cerity Partners LLC Decreases Position in Brown & Brown, Inc. (NYSE:BRO)

Cerity Partners LLC cut its stake in shares of Brown & Brown, Inc. (NYSE:BRO) by 11.3% during the 4th quarter, according to its most recent filing with the SEC. The institutional investor owned 48,139 shares of the financial services provider’s stock after selling 6,113 shares during the period. Cerity Partners LLC’s holdings in Brown & Brown were worth $4,955,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

A number of other institutional investors and hedge funds have also recently bought and sold shares of the stock. Wellington Management Group LLP lifted its position in shares of Brown & Brown by 5.1% during the third quarter. Wellington Management Group LLP now owns 147,097 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $15,239,000 after purchasing an additional 7,172 shares in the last quarter. MML Investors Services LLC boosted its position in Brown & Brown by 0.8% in the 3rd quarter. MML Investors Services LLC now owns 28,710 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $2,974,000 after buying an additional 237 shares during the last quarter. Barclays PLC boosted its position in Brown & Brown by 17.8% in the 3rd quarter. Barclays PLC now owns 2,466,582 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $255,537,000 after buying an additional 371,980 shares during the last quarter. Toronto Dominion Bank grew its stake in shares of Brown & Brown by 1.4% during the third quarter. Toronto Dominion Bank now owns 117,794 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $12,203,000 after acquiring an additional 1,681 shares in the last quarter. Finally, SkyView Investment Advisors LLC increased its position in shares of Brown & Brown by 2.0% during the third quarter. SkyView Investment Advisors LLC now owns 8,045 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $833,000 after acquiring an additional 161 shares during the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 71.01% of the company’s stock.

Brown & Brown Price Performance

Shares of NYSE BRO opened at $118.88 on Friday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.56, a current ratio of 1.79 and a quick ratio of 1.79. The firm has a market capitalization of $33.99 billion, a PE ratio of 34.36, a P/E/G ratio of 2.93 and a beta of 0.75. Brown & Brown, Inc. has a 1-year low of $80.33 and a 1-year high of $125.68. The business’s fifty day moving average price is $116.39 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $109.58.

Brown & Brown (NYSE:BRO) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Monday, January 27th. The financial services provider reported $0.86 earnings per share for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $0.76 by $0.10. Brown & Brown had a net margin of 20.68% and a return on equity of 17.81%. On average, research analysts expect that Brown & Brown, Inc. will post 4.18 EPS for the current year.

Brown & Brown Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Wednesday, February 12th. Stockholders of record on Wednesday, February 5th were given a dividend of $0.15 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Wednesday, February 5th. This represents a $0.60 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 0.50%. Brown & Brown’s dividend payout ratio is presently 17.34%.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of equities research analysts have weighed in on BRO shares. Wells Fargo & Company raised their price objective on Brown & Brown from $115.00 to $125.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research note on Wednesday, January 29th. Barclays raised their price target on shares of Brown & Brown from $119.00 to $121.00 and gave the stock an “equal weight” rating in a research report on Friday. Jefferies Financial Group increased their target price on Brown & Brown from $105.00 to $109.00 and gave the stock a “hold” rating in a report on Friday. Morgan Stanley reiterated an “equal weight” rating and issued a $128.00 price target on shares of Brown & Brown in a report on Tuesday, March 25th. Finally, Keefe, Bruyette & Woods upped their price target on Brown & Brown from $97.00 to $102.00 and gave the company an “underperform” rating in a research report on Wednesday. One research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, six have given a hold rating and six have assigned a buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the company currently has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $115.83.

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.