Brown & Brown, Inc. $BRO Shares Purchased by Maryland State Retirement & Pension System

Maryland State Retirement & Pension System lifted its position in Brown & Brown, Inc. (NYSE:BRO) by 6,992.7% in the third quarter, according to its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 1,148,243 shares of the financial services provider’s stock after purchasing an additional 1,132,054 shares during the quarter. Brown & Brown accounts for about 1.1% of Maryland State Retirement & Pension System’s holdings, making the stock its 14th largest holding. Maryland State Retirement & Pension System’s holdings in Brown & Brown were worth $69,928,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Several other institutional investors have also recently modified their holdings of the company. BlackRock Inc. purchased a new position in shares of Brown & Brown during the 2nd quarter valued at about $1,418,571,000. Deutsche Bank AG bought a new stake in Brown & Brown in the 2nd quarter worth approximately $266,941,000. Bank of America Corp DE lifted its position in Brown & Brown by 45.2% in the 1st quarter. Bank of America Corp DE now owns 3,623,179 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $236,268,000 after buying an additional 1,128,417 shares during the last quarter. Royal Bank of Canada boosted its stake in Brown & Brown by 5.1% in the first quarter. Royal Bank of Canada now owns 3,569,784 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $232,786,000 after buying an additional 173,320 shares in the last quarter. Finally, ProShare Advisors LLC boosted its stake in Brown & Brown by 7.5% in the third quarter. ProShare Advisors LLC now owns 2,587,071 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $157,553,000 after buying an additional 180,593 shares in the last quarter. 71.01% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Brown & Brown Trading Down 0.7%

Shares of BRO stock opened at $71.35 on Thursday. The stock has a market capitalization of $23.67 billion, a PE ratio of 22.58, a P/E/G ratio of 2.36 and a beta of 0.52. Brown & Brown, Inc. has a 1-year low of $53.81 and a 1-year high of $82.57. The business has a 50-day moving average of $66.93 and a 200 day moving average of $66.56. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.58, a current ratio of 1.96 and a quick ratio of 1.96.

Brown & Brown (NYSE:BRO) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Monday, October 26th. The financial services provider reported $1.07 EPS for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.08 by ($0.01). Brown & Brown had a return on equity of 13.29% and a net margin of 17.63%. The company had revenue of $1.70 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $1.76 billion. During the same period last year, the firm earned $1.05 earnings per share. Brown & Brown’s revenue for the quarter was up 7.4% on a year-over-year basis. As a group, sell-side analysts anticipate that Brown & Brown, Inc. will post 4.44 earnings per share for the current year.

Brown & Brown Increases Dividend

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Wednesday, November 11th. Stockholders of record on Wednesday, November 4th were paid a dividend of $0.18 per share. This represents a $0.72 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 1.0%. This is a boost from Brown & Brown’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.1650. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Wednesday, November 4th. Brown & Brown’s payout ratio is currently 22.78%.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of brokerages have commented on BRO. UBS Group reduced their price target on shares of Brown & Brown from $73.00 to $72.00 and set a “neutral” rating on the stock in a research report on Monday, November 2nd. Royal Bank Of Canada restated a “sector perform” rating on shares of Brown & Brown in a report on Wednesday, July 29th. Jefferies Financial Group reaffirmed a “hold” rating on shares of Brown & Brown in a research note on Wednesday, July 29th. Citizens Jmp reduced their target price on shares of Brown & Brown from $78.00 to $75.00 and set a “market outperform” rating on the stock in a report on Monday, October 12th. Finally, Truist Financial decreased their target price on shares of Brown & Brown from $90.00 to $85.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a research report on Wednesday, October 28th. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, six have issued a Buy rating, thirteen have given a Hold rating and one has assigned a Sell rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, Brown & Brown currently has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $75.47.

Brown & Brown Company Profile

Brown & Brown, Inc. is an insurance brokerage and risk management company that helps businesses, public entities and individuals assess and manage risk. Its services include arranging property and casualty insurance, employee benefits and personal insurance, as well as providing risk management and related services. The company serves clients through retail insurance operations, national insurance programs, wholesale brokerage and insurance-related services. It operates primarily in the United States and also serves clients in international markets.