Peak Financial Advisors LLC Takes Position in Brown & Brown, Inc. (NYSE:BRO)

Peak Financial Advisors LLC purchased a new stake in Brown & Brown, Inc. (NYSE:BRO) during the 4th quarter, HoldingsChannel.com reports. The institutional investor purchased 29,771 shares of the financial services provider’s stock, valued at approximately $3,037,000. Brown & Brown accounts for about 1.6% of Peak Financial Advisors LLC’s portfolio, making the stock its 19th largest holding.

Several other hedge funds also recently added to or reduced their stakes in BRO. Brooklyn Investment Group purchased a new stake in Brown & Brown in the third quarter valued at $26,000. ST Germain D J Co. Inc. raised its position in shares of Brown & Brown by 298.5% in the third quarter. ST Germain D J Co. Inc. now owns 267 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $28,000 after acquiring an additional 200 shares during the period. Ashton Thomas Securities LLC acquired a new position in shares of Brown & Brown in the third quarter worth about $29,000. Versant Capital Management Inc raised its position in shares of Brown & Brown by 130.7% in the fourth quarter. Versant Capital Management Inc now owns 413 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $42,000 after acquiring an additional 234 shares during the period. Finally, Wilmington Savings Fund Society FSB acquired a new position in shares of Brown & Brown in the third quarter worth about $58,000. 71.01% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Brown & Brown Price Performance

Shares of BRO opened at $103.97 on Wednesday. Brown & Brown, Inc. has a twelve month low of $73.23 and a twelve month high of $114.15. The firm’s fifty day simple moving average is $106.69 and its 200-day simple moving average is $103.03. The firm has a market capitalization of $29.73 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 28.33, a PEG ratio of 2.40 and a beta of 0.85. The company has a current ratio of 1.73, a quick ratio of 1.73 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.52.

Brown & Brown (NYSE:BRO) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Monday, October 28th. The financial services provider reported $0.91 EPS for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $0.88 by $0.03. Brown & Brown had a net margin of 22.65% and a return on equity of 17.12%. The firm had revenue of $1.19 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $1.16 billion. During the same period last year, the business earned $0.71 EPS. Brown & Brown’s revenue for the quarter was up 11.0% compared to the same quarter last year. Equities analysts forecast that Brown & Brown, Inc. will post 3.74 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Brown & Brown Increases Dividend

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Wednesday, November 13th. Investors of record on Wednesday, November 6th were paid a dividend of $0.15 per share. This is a positive change from Brown & Brown’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.13. This represents a $0.60 annualized dividend and a yield of 0.58%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Wednesday, November 6th. Brown & Brown’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 16.35%.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several analysts recently issued reports on BRO shares. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods dropped their price objective on shares of Brown & Brown from $99.00 to $97.00 and set an “underperform” rating for the company in a research note on Friday, January 10th. Jefferies Financial Group upped their price objective 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. Royal Bank of Canada upped their price objective on shares of Brown & Brown from $113.00 to $118.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a research note on Wednesday, October 30th. Barclays increased 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, Morgan Stanley initiated coverage on shares of Brown & Brown in a research note on Thursday, December 5th. They issued an “overweight” rating and a $134.00 price target for the company. One equities 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’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, Brown & Brown presently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $112.08.

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.