Norges Bank Invests $313.41 Million in Brown & Brown, Inc. (NYSE:BRO)

Norges Bank bought a new stake in Brown & Brown, Inc. (NYSE:BRO) during the 4th quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The firm bought 3,072,061 shares of the financial services provider’s stock, valued at approximately $313,412,000. Norges Bank owned 1.07% of Brown & Brown at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Several other hedge funds have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the business. Journey Strategic Wealth LLC increased its holdings in shares of Brown & Brown by 2.3% during the fourth quarter. Journey Strategic Wealth LLC now owns 4,486 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $458,000 after purchasing an additional 99 shares during the period. CWA Asset Management Group LLC increased its stake in Brown & Brown by 3.7% during the 4th quarter. CWA Asset Management Group LLC now owns 2,916 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $297,000 after buying an additional 103 shares during the period. Bleakley Financial Group LLC increased its stake in Brown & Brown by 3.4% during the 4th quarter. Bleakley Financial Group LLC now owns 3,162 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $323,000 after buying an additional 103 shares during the period. Harbor Capital Advisors Inc. raised its position in shares of Brown & Brown by 2.5% during the 4th quarter. Harbor Capital Advisors Inc. now owns 4,664 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $476,000 after buying an additional 113 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Ascent Group LLC lifted its stake in shares of Brown & Brown by 4.5% in the 3rd quarter. Ascent Group LLC now owns 2,722 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $282,000 after acquiring an additional 117 shares during the period. Institutional investors own 71.01% of the company’s stock.

Brown & Brown Price Performance

Shares of NYSE:BRO opened at $122.97 on Friday. The company’s fifty day moving average is $113.33 and its two-hundred day moving average is $108.31. The company has a market cap of $35.16 billion, a P/E ratio of 35.54, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.93 and a beta of 0.86. Brown & Brown, Inc. has a 12-month low of $80.33 and a 12-month high of $123.24. 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 (NYSE:BRO) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Monday, January 27th. The financial services provider reported $0.86 earnings per share 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%. Equities analysts expect that Brown & Brown, Inc. will post 4.18 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Brown & Brown Dividend Announcement

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Wednesday, February 12th. Investors of record on Wednesday, February 5th were issued a dividend of $0.15 per share. This represents a $0.60 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 0.49%. The ex-dividend date was Wednesday, February 5th. Brown & Brown’s dividend payout ratio is currently 17.34%.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several equities research analysts recently commented on the company. Morgan Stanley reissued an “equal weight” rating and set a $128.00 target price on shares of Brown & Brown in a report on Tuesday, March 25th. Wells Fargo & Company boosted their price objective on Brown & Brown from $115.00 to $125.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research note on Wednesday, January 29th. Royal Bank of Canada upped their price objective on Brown & Brown from $118.00 to $120.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a report on Wednesday, January 29th. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods lowered their target price on Brown & Brown from $99.00 to $97.00 and set an “underperform” rating on the stock in a report on Friday, January 10th. Finally, Bank of America upped 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. One research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, six have assigned a hold rating and six have assigned a buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the stock has a consensus rating of “Hold” and a consensus target price of $112.67.

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.