Thrivent Financial for Lutherans Sells 96,108 Shares of Brown & Brown, Inc. (NYSE:BRO)

Thrivent Financial for Lutherans cut its holdings in Brown & Brown, Inc. (NYSE:BRO) by 40.8% in the 4th quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The fund owned 139,509 shares of the financial services provider’s stock after selling 96,108 shares during the period. Thrivent Financial for Lutherans’ holdings in Brown & Brown were worth $14,274,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Several other institutional investors have also added to or reduced their stakes in BRO. Madison Investment Advisors LLC bought a new stake in shares of Brown & Brown in the 4th quarter valued at about $198,031,000. Proficio Capital Partners LLC lifted its position in Brown & Brown by 11,337.8% in the fourth quarter. Proficio Capital Partners LLC now owns 1,108,894 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $1,109,000 after purchasing an additional 1,099,199 shares during the last quarter. Raymond James Financial Inc. purchased a new stake in shares of Brown & Brown during the fourth quarter valued at approximately $71,915,000. Zurich Insurance Group Ltd FI grew its holdings in shares of Brown & Brown by 258.0% in the third quarter. Zurich Insurance Group Ltd FI now owns 646,574 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $66,985,000 after purchasing an additional 465,988 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Barclays PLC increased its stake in shares of Brown & Brown by 17.8% in the third quarter. Barclays PLC now owns 2,466,582 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $255,537,000 after buying an additional 371,980 shares during the period. 71.01% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Brown & Brown Stock Down 1.2 %

NYSE:BRO opened at $118.38 on Friday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.56, a current ratio of 1.79 and a quick ratio of 1.79. The firm’s 50-day moving average price is $111.55 and its 200-day moving average price is $107.67. The company has a market capitalization of $33.85 billion, a PE ratio of 34.21, a P/E/G ratio of 2.93 and a beta of 0.86. Brown & Brown, Inc. has a 1-year low of $80.33 and a 1-year high of $121.25.

Brown & Brown (NYSE:BRO) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Monday, January 27th. The financial services provider reported $0.86 earnings per share for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.76 by $0.10. Brown & Brown had a net margin of 20.68% and a return on equity of 17.81%. On average, equities analysts predict that Brown & Brown, Inc. will post 4.18 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Brown & Brown Dividend Announcement

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Wednesday, February 12th. Investors of record on Wednesday, February 5th were given a dividend of $0.15 per share. This represents a $0.60 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 0.51%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Wednesday, February 5th. Brown & Brown’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 17.34%.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several equities research analysts have weighed in on BRO shares. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods dropped their price target on shares of Brown & Brown from $99.00 to $97.00 and set an “underperform” rating for the company in a research report on Friday, January 10th. Bank of America raised their target price on Brown & Brown from $116.00 to $117.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a research note on Tuesday, January 28th. Morgan Stanley initiated coverage on Brown & Brown in a research report on Thursday, December 5th. They set an “overweight” rating and a $134.00 price target for the company. Wells Fargo & Company lifted their price objective on Brown & Brown from $115.00 to $125.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research report on Wednesday, January 29th. Finally, Royal Bank of Canada upped their target price on Brown & Brown from $118.00 to $120.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a report on Wednesday, January 29th. One research 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. According to MarketBeat.com, Brown & Brown has an average rating of “Hold” and an average target price of $113.17.

About Brown & Brown

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.