BOCHK Asset Management Ltd Purchases New Shares in Brown & Brown, Inc. (NYSE:BRO)

BOCHK Asset Management Ltd bought a new stake in Brown & Brown, Inc. (NYSE:BRO - Free Report) during the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The firm bought 3,200 shares of the financial services provider's stock, valued at approximately $326,000.

Other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also recently modified their holdings of the company. Mogy Joel R Investment Counsel Inc. lifted its stake in shares of Brown & Brown by 324.3% in the fourth quarter. Mogy Joel R Investment Counsel Inc. now owns 19,285 shares of the financial services provider's stock worth $1,967,000 after buying an additional 14,740 shares in the last quarter. Sanctuary Advisors LLC raised its stake in Brown & Brown by 4.4% during the third quarter. Sanctuary Advisors LLC now owns 161,569 shares of the financial services provider's stock worth $18,104,000 after purchasing an additional 6,805 shares during the period. Quantbot Technologies LP purchased a new position in Brown & Brown during the third quarter worth about $9,832,000. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. raised its stake in Brown & Brown by 1.4% during the third quarter. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. now owns 1,315,654 shares of the financial services provider's stock worth $136,302,000 after purchasing an additional 17,934 shares during the period. Finally, Peak Financial Advisors LLC purchased a new position in Brown & Brown during the fourth quarter worth about $3,037,000. 71.01% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Brown & Brown Stock Down 0.8 %

NYSE BRO traded down $0.81 on Friday, hitting $104.65. 1,782,557 shares of the stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 1,530,516. The company has a quick ratio of 1.73, a current ratio of 1.79 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.56. Brown & Brown, Inc. has a fifty-two week low of $75.79 and a fifty-two week high of $114.15. The company has a market cap of $29.93 billion, a PE ratio of 30.25, a PEG ratio of 2.68 and a beta of 0.85. The company has a 50-day moving average price of $105.25 and a 200-day moving average price of $104.17.

Brown & Brown (NYSE:BRO - Get Free Report) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Monday, January 27th. The financial services provider reported $0.86 EPS for the quarter, topping 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%. Sell-side analysts anticipate that Brown & Brown, Inc. will post 4.15 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Brown & Brown Dividend Announcement

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, February 12th. Stockholders of record on Wednesday, February 5th will be issued a $0.15 dividend. This represents a $0.60 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 0.57%. The ex-dividend date is Wednesday, February 5th. Brown & Brown's payout ratio is 17.34%.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of research firms have recently issued reports on BRO. StockNews.com downgraded shares of Brown & Brown from a "buy" rating to a "hold" rating in a research note on Saturday, November 2nd. Jefferies Financial Group boosted their price target on shares of Brown & Brown from $98.00 to $104.00 and gave the company a "hold" rating in a research note on Wednesday, October 9th. Bank of America boosted their price target on shares of Brown & Brown from $116.00 to $117.00 and gave the company a "neutral" rating in a research note on Tuesday. Barclays boosted their price target on shares of Brown & Brown from $108.00 to $119.00 and gave the company an "equal weight" rating in a research note on Thursday, November 21st. Finally, Royal Bank of Canada lifted their price objective on shares of Brown & Brown from $118.00 to $120.00 and gave the company an "outperform" rating in a report on Wednesday. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, five have assigned a hold rating and seven have given a buy rating to the company's stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the stock has a consensus rating of "Hold" and a consensus target price of $113.17.

Brown & Brown Company Profile

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.