Short Interest in Brown & Brown, Inc. (NYSE:BRO) Drops By 13.3%

Brown & Brown, Inc. (NYSE:BRO) saw a large decline in short interest in November. As of November 15th, there was short interest totalling 3,910,000 shares, a decline of 13.3% from the October 31st total of 4,510,000 shares. Based on an average trading volume of 1,490,000 shares, the short-interest ratio is currently 2.6 days. Approximately 1.7% of the company’s stock are sold short.

Brown & Brown Stock Performance

Shares of Brown & Brown stock traded down $0.27 during trading hours on Tuesday, hitting $111.36. 381,878 shares of the company were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 1,305,971. The business has a 50-day moving average of $107.39 and a 200-day moving average of $100.07. Brown & Brown has a 1 year low of $69.13 and a 1 year high of $114.15. The company has a current ratio of 1.73, a quick ratio of 1.73 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.52. The stock has a market capitalization of $31.84 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 30.41, a P/E/G ratio of 2.60 and a beta of 0.84.

Brown & Brown (NYSE:BRO) last released its 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 company had revenue of $1.19 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $1.16 billion. During the same quarter last year, the business earned $0.71 EPS. The business’s revenue was up 11.0% on a year-over-year basis. As a group, analysts expect that Brown & Brown will post 3.74 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Brown & Brown Increases Dividend

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Wednesday, November 13th. Shareholders of record on Wednesday, November 6th were given a $0.15 dividend. This is a boost from Brown & Brown’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.13. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Wednesday, November 6th. This represents a $0.60 annualized dividend and a yield of 0.54%. Brown & Brown’s dividend payout ratio is presently 16.35%.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several research firms have commented on BRO. Bank of America boosted their price target on shares of Brown & Brown from $108.00 to $117.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a report on Thursday, October 10th. Barclays upped their target price on shares of Brown & Brown from $108.00 to $119.00 and gave the company an “equal weight” rating in a report on Thursday, November 21st. Wells Fargo & Company upped their target price on shares of Brown & Brown from $112.00 to $114.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a report on Thursday, October 10th. Argus assumed coverage on shares of Brown & Brown in a report on Tuesday, September 24th. They issued a “buy” rating and a $120.00 target price for the company. Finally, Royal Bank of Canada upped their target price on shares of Brown & Brown from $113.00 to $118.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a report on Wednesday, October 30th. One research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, five have given a hold rating and seven have given a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat.com, Brown & Brown has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $107.42.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Brown & Brown

Institutional investors and hedge funds have recently made changes to their positions in the stock. Studio Investment Management LLC grew its position in Brown & Brown by 1.5% during the third quarter. Studio Investment Management LLC now owns 6,513 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $675,000 after buying an additional 96 shares during the period. Oregon Public Employees Retirement Fund grew its position in Brown & Brown by 0.5% during the second quarter. Oregon Public Employees Retirement Fund now owns 20,339 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $1,819,000 after buying an additional 100 shares during the period. Trust Point Inc. grew its position in Brown & Brown by 4.3% during the third quarter. Trust Point Inc. now owns 2,519 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $261,000 after buying an additional 103 shares during the period. Creative Planning grew its position in Brown & Brown by 0.4% during the third quarter. Creative Planning now owns 29,892 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $3,097,000 after buying an additional 112 shares during the period. Finally, Crossmark Global Holdings Inc. grew its position in Brown & Brown by 0.5% during the third quarter. Crossmark Global Holdings Inc. now owns 22,929 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $2,375,000 after buying an additional 113 shares during the period. 71.01% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

About Brown & Brown

Brown & Brown, Inc markets and sells insurance products and services in the United States, Canada, Ireland, the United Kingdom, and internationally. It operates through four segments: Retail, National Programs, Wholesale Brokerage, and Services. The Retail segment provides property and casualty, employee benefits insurance products, personal insurance products, specialties insurance products, risk management strategies, loss control survey and analysis, consultancy, and claims processing services.