Marks Group Wealth Management Inc Increases Stock Position in Brown & Brown, Inc. $BRO

Marks Group Wealth Management Inc raised its holdings in Brown & Brown, Inc. (NYSE:BRO) by 0.9% during the 2nd quarter, Holdings Channel reports. The firm owned 87,901 shares of the financial services provider’s stock after purchasing an additional 790 shares during the quarter. Brown & Brown comprises 0.9% of Marks Group Wealth Management Inc’s investment portfolio, making the stock its 24th biggest holding. Marks Group Wealth Management Inc’s holdings in Brown & Brown were worth $9,746,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC).

Other institutional investors and hedge funds also recently modified their holdings of the company. Bares Capital Management Inc. purchased a new stake in shares of Brown & Brown in the first quarter valued at about $26,000. ST Germain D J Co. Inc. lifted its holdings in shares of Brown & Brown by 298.5% in the second quarter. ST Germain D J Co. Inc. now owns 267 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $30,000 after purchasing an additional 200 shares in the last quarter. Optimum Investment Advisors purchased a new stake in shares of Brown & Brown in the first quarter valued at about $31,000. SouthState Corp lifted its holdings in shares of Brown & Brown by 188.6% in the first quarter. SouthState Corp now owns 254 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $32,000 after purchasing an additional 166 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Bruce G. Allen Investments LLC lifted its holdings in shares of Brown & Brown by 1,129.6% in the second quarter. Bruce G. Allen Investments LLC now owns 332 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $37,000 after purchasing an additional 305 shares in the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 71.01% of the company’s stock.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several equities analysts recently issued reports on the stock. Argus reissued a “hold” rating on shares of Brown & Brown in a research note on Thursday, July 31st. Wells Fargo & Company downgraded shares of Brown & Brown from an “overweight” rating to an “equal weight” rating and reduced their price objective for the company from $104.00 to $101.00 in a research note on Wednesday, August 13th. Wall Street Zen raised shares of Brown & Brown from a “sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Saturday, September 20th. Citigroup started coverage on shares of Brown & Brown in a research note on Wednesday, August 13th. They set a “buy” rating and a $112.00 price objective on the stock. Finally, Keefe, Bruyette & Woods reduced their price objective on shares of Brown & Brown from $104.00 to $87.00 and set an “underperform” rating on the stock in a research note on Thursday, July 31st. Eight equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, seven have issued a Hold rating and one has issued a Sell rating to the company. According to MarketBeat.com, the company presently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and an average target price of $112.08.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other Brown & Brown news, Director Bronislaw Edmund Masojada bought 1,000 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, August 6th. The shares were acquired at an average price of $91.44 per share, with a total value of $91,440.00. Following the purchase, the director owned 5,000 shares in the company, valued at approximately $457,200. The trade was a 25.00% increase in their position. The purchase was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this link. Also, Director Paul J. Krump bought 2,678 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated Friday, August 8th. The stock was acquired at an average cost of $93.31 per share, for a total transaction of $249,884.18. Following the purchase, the director owned 5,353 shares in the company, valued at approximately $499,488.43. This trade represents a 100.11% increase in their position. The disclosure for this purchase can be found here. Company insiders own 17.02% of the company’s stock.

Brown & Brown Stock Performance

NYSE:BRO opened at $95.03 on Monday. The company has a quick ratio of 6.72, a current ratio of 6.72 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.64. The company has a market cap of $31.35 billion, a P/E ratio of 27.39, a P/E/G ratio of 2.15 and a beta of 0.79. Brown & Brown, Inc. has a fifty-two week low of $89.99 and a fifty-two week high of $125.68. The firm’s 50 day moving average is $94.21 and its two-hundred day moving average is $105.66.

Brown & Brown (NYSE:BRO) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Monday, July 28th. The financial services provider reported $1.03 earnings per share for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.99 by $0.04. Brown & Brown had a net margin of 19.89% and a return on equity of 15.10%. The company had revenue of $1.29 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $1.28 billion. During the same quarter last year, the firm posted $0.93 earnings per share. Brown & Brown’s revenue was up 9.1% on a year-over-year basis. Analysts expect that Brown & Brown, Inc. will post 4.18 EPS for the current year.

Brown & Brown Announces Dividend

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Wednesday, August 20th. Stockholders of record on Wednesday, August 13th were paid a $0.15 dividend. This represents a $0.60 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 0.6%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Wednesday, August 13th. Brown & Brown’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 17.29%.

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.