Brown & Brown, Inc. (NYSE:BRO – Get Free Report) was the recipient of a large decline in short interest in July. As of July 31st, there was short interest totalling 1,880,000 shares, a decline of 19.3% from the July 15th total of 2,330,000 shares. Based on an average trading volume of 1,110,000 shares, the short-interest ratio is currently 1.7 days. Approximately 0.8% of the shares of the company are sold short.
Brown & Brown Trading Up 0.5 %
Shares of BRO stock opened at $70.78 on Monday. The firm has a 50 day moving average price of $68.12 and a two-hundred day moving average price of $62.60. The company has a quick ratio of 2.78, a current ratio of 2.78 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.74. The company has a market capitalization of $20.07 billion, a PE ratio of 27.43 and a beta of 0.76. Brown & Brown has a 12-month low of $52.82 and a 12-month high of $72.99.
Brown & Brown (NYSE:BRO – Get Free Report) last announced its earnings results on Tuesday, July 25th. The financial services provider reported $0.68 EPS for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $0.60 by $0.08. The company had revenue of $1.05 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $997.51 million. Brown & Brown had a net margin of 18.34% and a return on equity of 15.19%. The business’s revenue for the quarter was up 24.9% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period last year, the firm earned $0.51 earnings per share. As a group, analysts predict that Brown & Brown will post 2.69 earnings per share for the current year.
Brown & Brown Dividend Announcement
The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, August 16th. Stockholders of record on Wednesday, August 9th will be issued a dividend of $0.115 per share. The ex-dividend date is Tuesday, August 8th. This represents a $0.46 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 0.65%. Brown & Brown’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 17.83%.
Insider Buying and Selling at Brown & Brown
In related news, Director Bronislaw Edmund Masojada bought 4,000 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, June 21st. The shares were acquired at an average cost of $65.78 per share, for a total transaction of $263,120.00. Following the acquisition, the director now directly owns 4,000 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $263,120. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is accessible through the SEC website. 17.02% of the stock is owned by company insiders.
Hedge Funds Weigh In On Brown & Brown
A number of hedge funds have recently modified their holdings of the business. Clear Street Markets LLC increased its stake in Brown & Brown by 93.7% in the first quarter. Clear Street Markets LLC now owns 461 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $26,000 after purchasing an additional 223 shares in the last quarter. PSI Advisors LLC purchased a new position in Brown & Brown in the second quarter valued at about $36,000. Global Retirement Partners LLC boosted its stake in Brown & Brown by 1,427.8% in the second quarter. Global Retirement Partners LLC now owns 550 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $38,000 after acquiring an additional 514 shares during the last quarter. U.S. Capital Wealth Advisors LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Brown & Brown during the 4th quarter valued at approximately $42,000. Finally, Nelson Van Denburg & Campbell Wealth Management Group LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Brown & Brown during the 1st quarter valued at approximately $45,000. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 69.90% of the company’s stock.
Wall Street Analyst Weigh In
A number of brokerages have weighed in on BRO. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods cut Brown & Brown from an “outperform” rating to a “market perform” rating and boosted their price target for the stock from $73.00 to $76.00 in a research report on Tuesday, August 1st. Raymond James boosted their target price on Brown & Brown from $70.00 to $76.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a report on Wednesday, July 26th. StockNews.com raised Brown & Brown from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a report on Tuesday, July 25th. Wells Fargo & Company upped their price objective on Brown & Brown from $62.00 to $70.00 in a report on Wednesday, July 26th. Finally, Citigroup upped their price objective on Brown & Brown from $72.00 to $81.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a report on Wednesday, August 9th. Four analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and six have given a buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the stock has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $72.70.
View Our Latest Stock Analysis on Brown & Brown
Brown & Brown Company Profile
Brown & Brown, Inc markets and sells insurance products and services in the United States, Canada, Ireland, the United Kingdom, and internationally. It operates through four segments: Retail, National Programs, Wholesale Brokerage, and Services. The Retail segment provides property and casualty, employee benefits insurance products, personal insurance products, specialties insurance products, risk management strategies, loss control survey and analysis, consultancy, and claims processing services.
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