Southeast Asset Advisors LLC Sells 13,828 Shares of Brown & Brown, Inc. (NYSE:BRO)

Southeast Asset Advisors LLC cut its holdings in shares of Brown & Brown, Inc. (NYSE:BRO) by 24.9% during the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The firm owned 41,768 shares of the financial services provider’s stock after selling 13,828 shares during the quarter. Southeast Asset Advisors LLC’s holdings in Brown & Brown were worth $4,261,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

A number of other hedge funds have also recently made changes to their positions in the business. Kohmann Bosshard Financial Services LLC purchased a new position in Brown & Brown in the 4th quarter worth approximately $28,000. Y.D. More Investments Ltd raised its position in shares of Brown & Brown by 122.7% during the fourth quarter. Y.D. More Investments Ltd now owns 294 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $30,000 after buying an additional 162 shares during the last quarter. R Squared Ltd purchased a new position in shares of Brown & Brown in the fourth quarter worth $31,000. SBI Securities Co. Ltd. bought a new position in shares of Brown & Brown during the fourth quarter worth $37,000. Finally, Versant Capital Management Inc grew its stake in Brown & Brown by 130.7% during the fourth quarter. Versant Capital Management Inc now owns 413 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $42,000 after acquiring an additional 234 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors own 71.01% of the company’s stock.

Brown & Brown Stock Performance

Brown & Brown stock opened at $115.01 on Monday. 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 has a market capitalization of $32.89 billion, a P/E ratio of 33.24, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.93 and a beta of 0.75. Brown & Brown, Inc. has a 1-year low of $80.33 and a 1-year high of $125.68. The company’s 50-day moving average is $115.03 and its 200 day moving average is $109.05.

Brown & Brown (NYSE:BRO) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Monday, January 27th. The financial services provider reported $0.86 EPS 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%. Research analysts forecast that Brown & Brown, Inc. will post 4.18 EPS for the current year.

Brown & Brown Dividend Announcement

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Wednesday, February 12th. Shareholders of record on Wednesday, February 5th were paid a $0.15 dividend. The ex-dividend date was Wednesday, February 5th. This represents a $0.60 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 0.52%. Brown & Brown’s dividend payout ratio is currently 17.34%.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of research analysts have recently weighed in on BRO shares. Bank of America raised their price objective on Brown & Brown from $116.00 to $117.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a research report on Tuesday, January 28th. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods reduced their price objective on Brown & Brown from $99.00 to $97.00 and set an “underperform” rating on the stock in a research note on Friday, January 10th. Royal Bank of Canada increased their target price on Brown & Brown from $118.00 to $120.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a research report on Wednesday, January 29th. Morgan Stanley restated an “equal weight” rating and issued a $128.00 price target on shares of Brown & Brown in a research report on Tuesday, March 25th. Finally, Wells Fargo & Company increased their price objective on shares of Brown & Brown from $115.00 to $125.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research report on Wednesday, January 29th. One research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, six have assigned a hold rating and six have issued a buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the company has a consensus rating of “Hold” and an average target price of $112.67.

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.