FourThought Financial Partners LLC Invests $223,000 in Brown & Brown, Inc. (NYSE:BRO)

FourThought Financial Partners LLC bought a new position in shares of Brown & Brown, Inc. (NYSE:BRO - Free Report) in the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the SEC. The fund bought 2,182 shares of the financial services provider's stock, valued at approximately $223,000.

A number of other institutional investors and hedge funds have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in BRO. Brooklyn Investment Group acquired a new stake in Brown & Brown during the third quarter worth about $26,000. Ashton Thomas Securities LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Brown & Brown during the 3rd quarter worth approximately $29,000. Y.D. More Investments Ltd increased its stake in Brown & Brown by 122.7% in the fourth quarter. Y.D. More Investments Ltd now owns 294 shares of the financial services provider's stock valued at $30,000 after acquiring an additional 162 shares during the last quarter. R Squared Ltd acquired a new position in Brown & Brown during the fourth quarter valued at approximately $31,000. Finally, Versant Capital Management Inc lifted its stake in Brown & Brown by 130.7% during the fourth quarter. Versant Capital Management Inc now owns 413 shares of the financial services provider's stock worth $42,000 after purchasing an additional 234 shares during the last quarter. 71.01% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of research firms have recently commented on BRO. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods lowered their price target on Brown & Brown from $99.00 to $97.00 and set an "underperform" rating for the company in a report on Friday, January 10th. Morgan Stanley began coverage on Brown & Brown in a research note on Thursday, December 5th. They set an "overweight" rating and a $134.00 target price for the company. StockNews.com downgraded shares of Brown & Brown from a "buy" rating to a "hold" rating in a research note on Saturday, November 2nd. Bank of America lifted their price target on shares of Brown & Brown from $116.00 to $117.00 and gave the company a "neutral" rating in a report on Tuesday, January 28th. Finally, Barclays raised their target price on shares of Brown & Brown from $108.00 to $119.00 and gave the company an "equal weight" rating in a research report on Thursday, November 21st. One research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, five have assigned a hold rating and seven have assigned a buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat, the company currently has a consensus rating of "Hold" and a consensus price target of $113.17.

Brown & Brown Trading Up 1.8 %

Shares of NYSE BRO traded up $2.09 during trading on Friday, reaching $118.59. The company had a trading volume of 2,260,902 shares, compared to its average volume of 1,587,246. The stock has a market cap of $33.91 billion, a P/E ratio of 34.27, a PEG ratio of 2.93 and a beta of 0.86. The company's fifty day moving average price is $106.55 and its 200-day moving average price is $106.04. The company has a quick ratio of 1.79, a current ratio of 1.79 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.56. Brown & Brown, Inc. has a 12 month low of $80.33 and a 12 month high of $118.80.

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

Brown & Brown Announces Dividend

The company 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. This represents a $0.60 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 0.51%. The ex-dividend date was Wednesday, February 5th. Brown & Brown's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 17.34%.

Brown & Brown 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.