Virtu Financial LLC Sells 8,541 Shares of Brown & Brown, Inc. (NYSE:BRO)

Virtu Financial LLC cut its stake in Brown & Brown, Inc. (NYSE:BRO - Free Report) by 79.9% in the 3rd quarter, according to its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 2,143 shares of the financial services provider's stock after selling 8,541 shares during the quarter. Virtu Financial LLC's holdings in Brown & Brown were worth $222,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Several other institutional investors and hedge funds have also recently modified their holdings of the stock. Wealth Enhancement Advisory Services LLC boosted its holdings in shares of Brown & Brown by 22.5% during the 2nd quarter. Wealth Enhancement Advisory Services LLC now owns 12,473 shares of the financial services provider's stock valued at $1,115,000 after buying an additional 2,288 shares in the last quarter. Blue Trust Inc. boosted its stake in Brown & Brown by 142.3% during the second quarter. Blue Trust Inc. now owns 550 shares of the financial services provider's stock worth $48,000 after acquiring an additional 323 shares in the last quarter. First Horizon Advisors Inc. grew its holdings in Brown & Brown by 16.1% in the second quarter. First Horizon Advisors Inc. now owns 1,472 shares of the financial services provider's stock worth $132,000 after purchasing an additional 204 shares during the period. Fifth Third Bancorp grew its holdings in Brown & Brown by 3.6% in the second quarter. Fifth Third Bancorp now owns 5,758 shares of the financial services provider's stock worth $515,000 after purchasing an additional 202 shares during the period. Finally, &PARTNERS bought a new position in shares of Brown & Brown during the second quarter valued at approximately $1,567,000. 71.01% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of brokerages have recently commented on BRO. Argus initiated coverage on Brown & Brown in a research report on Tuesday, September 24th. They issued a "buy" rating and a $120.00 price target on the stock. Jefferies Financial Group boosted their target price on Brown & Brown from $98.00 to $104.00 and gave the stock a "hold" rating in a report on Wednesday, October 9th. StockNews.com downgraded Brown & Brown from a "buy" rating to a "hold" rating in a report on Saturday, November 2nd. Bank of America lifted their price target on Brown & Brown from $108.00 to $117.00 and gave the stock a "neutral" rating in a research report on Thursday, October 10th. Finally, Wells Fargo & Company increased their price objective on shares of Brown & Brown from $112.00 to $114.00 and gave the company an "overweight" rating in a research report on Thursday, October 10th. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, five have given a hold rating and eight have issued a buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat, Brown & Brown currently has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average target price of $109.46.

Brown & Brown Stock Performance

BRO traded up $1.37 during midday trading on Thursday, hitting $102.30. 1,650,671 shares of the company traded hands, compared to its average volume of 1,312,313. The company's 50-day moving average is $107.83 and its 200 day moving average is $101.41. The company has a quick ratio of 1.73, a current ratio of 1.73 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.52. The firm has a market capitalization of $29.25 billion, a PE ratio of 27.87, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.40 and a beta of 0.84. Brown & Brown, Inc. has a 52 week low of $69.19 and a 52 week high of $114.15.

Brown & Brown (NYSE:BRO - Get Free Report) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Monday, October 28th. The financial services provider reported $0.91 earnings per share for the quarter, beating analysts' consensus estimates of $0.88 by $0.03. Brown & Brown had a net margin of 22.65% and a return on equity of 17.12%. The company had revenue of $1.19 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $1.16 billion. During the same quarter in the prior year, the firm earned $0.71 earnings per share. The firm's revenue for the quarter was up 11.0% compared to the same quarter last year. On average, research analysts expect that Brown & Brown, Inc. will post 3.74 EPS for the current year.

Brown & Brown Increases Dividend

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Wednesday, November 13th. Stockholders of record on Wednesday, November 6th were paid a $0.15 dividend. This is an increase from Brown & Brown's previous quarterly dividend of $0.13. This represents a $0.60 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 0.59%. The ex-dividend date was Wednesday, November 6th. Brown & Brown's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 16.35%.

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.