BMO Capital Markets Cuts Brown & Brown (NYSE:BRO) Price Target to $81.00

Brown & Brown (NYSE:BRO) had its target price reduced by BMO Capital Markets from $88.00 to $81.00 in a research report sent to investors on Thursday morning,Benzinga reports. They currently have a market perform rating on the financial services provider’s stock.

Several other equities research analysts have also recently weighed in on BRO. Mizuho decreased their price objective on Brown & Brown from $90.00 to $84.00 and set a “neutral” rating for the company in a report on Wednesday. Barclays reduced their target price on shares of Brown & Brown from $83.00 to $82.00 and set an “equal weight” rating on the stock in a research report on Tuesday, January 27th. Bank of America lowered their price target on shares of Brown & Brown from $94.00 to $90.00 and set a “neutral” rating for the company in a research report on Tuesday, January 27th. Citigroup cut shares of Brown & Brown from a “buy” rating to a “neutral” rating in a report on Monday, November 3rd. Finally, Wells Fargo & Company lowered their target price on shares of Brown & Brown from $84.00 to $82.00 and set an “equal weight” rating for the company in a report on Wednesday. Three analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and fifteen have given a Hold rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat, the company presently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and an average target price of $90.64.

Brown & Brown Stock Performance

Shares of BRO opened at $72.09 on Thursday. The company has a 50-day simple moving average of $79.29 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $87.28. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.55, a current ratio of 1.67 and a quick ratio of 2.10. The firm has a market capitalization of $24.61 billion, a PE ratio of 22.53, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.17 and a beta of 0.81. Brown & Brown has a one year low of $71.32 and a one year high of $125.68.

Brown & Brown (NYSE:BRO) last posted its earnings results on Monday, January 26th. The financial services provider reported $0.93 earnings per share for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.91 by $0.02. Brown & Brown had a return on equity of 12.93% and a net margin of 17.84%.The firm had revenue of $1.61 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $1.65 billion. During the same quarter in the prior year, the business earned $0.86 EPS. The business’s revenue for the quarter was up 35.7% on a year-over-year basis. On average, analysts anticipate that Brown & Brown will post 4.18 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Brown & Brown Dividend Announcement

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, February 11th. Investors of record on Wednesday, February 4th will be issued a $0.165 dividend. This represents a $0.66 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 0.9%. The ex-dividend date is Wednesday, February 4th. Brown & Brown’s payout ratio is presently 20.63%.

Institutional Trading of Brown & Brown

Several institutional investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in BRO. AQR Capital Management LLC raised its stake in shares of Brown & Brown by 38.3% in the first quarter. AQR Capital Management LLC now owns 33,444 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $4,132,000 after purchasing an additional 9,264 shares during the last quarter. Focus Partners Wealth boosted its position in shares of Brown & Brown by 5.2% during the first quarter. Focus Partners Wealth now owns 11,149 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $1,387,000 after buying an additional 547 shares during the last quarter. HB Wealth Management LLC increased its holdings in Brown & Brown by 4.1% in the 2nd quarter. HB Wealth Management LLC now owns 14,009 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $1,553,000 after buying an additional 546 shares in the last quarter. Robeco Institutional Asset Management B.V. increased its holdings in Brown & Brown by 91.9% in the 2nd quarter. Robeco Institutional Asset Management B.V. now owns 451,153 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $50,019,000 after buying an additional 216,049 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Mirae Asset Global Investments Co. Ltd. raised its position in Brown & Brown by 2.8% in the 2nd quarter. Mirae Asset Global Investments Co. Ltd. now owns 33,922 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $3,761,000 after buying an additional 929 shares during the last quarter. 71.01% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Trending Headlines about Brown & Brown

Here are the key news stories impacting Brown & Brown this week:

• Positive Sentiment: Keefe, Bruyette & Woods upgraded BRO from “underperform” to “market perform” (price target lowered to $73), a sign some analysts view downside as limited after recent weakness. Article Title
• Positive Sentiment: Argus upgraded the stock to a “hold,” which could provide modest support as some investors interpret upgrades as a floor for further selling. Article Title
• Neutral Sentiment: Q4 results were mixed: EPS $0.93 beat consensus $0.91, while revenue of $1.61B missed estimates (~$1.65B). EPS growth was solid year-over-year, but the revenue miss and management commentary appear to have prompted downward revisions from some analysts.
• Negative Sentiment: Bank of America lowered its long-term earnings outlook and cut its price target to $90 (from $94), citing Q4 results as the catalyst for lower forward assumptions—this reduces analyst confidence in near-term growth. Article Title
• Negative Sentiment: Mizuho lowered its expectations for BRO, further signaling analyst skepticism about upside following Q4. Article Title
• Negative Sentiment: Morgan Stanley cut its price target to $78 (now equal weight), reducing the consensus view of upside and suggesting more limited near-term appreciation. Article Title
• Negative Sentiment: BMO Capital Markets lowered its price target to $81 and placed a “market perform” rating, another downward revision tightening analyst price expectations. Article Title
• Negative Sentiment: Pomerantz LLP announced an investor investigation into Brown & Brown, which raises legal/settlement risk and can pressure the stock while the probe proceeds. Article Title
• Negative Sentiment: Coverage noted BRO reached a new 12-month low after recent analyst downgrades, reflecting the cumulative impact of cuts and the investigation on investor sentiment. Article Title

Brown & Brown Company Profile

Brown & Brown, Inc (NYSE: BRO) is a professional insurance brokerage and risk advisory firm that provides a broad range of property and casualty, employee benefits, personal risk, and specialty insurance products. The company works with commercial, public sector and individual clients to design and place insurance programs, manage claims and loss control, and deliver risk management consulting. Its services also include wholesale brokerage, program administration and other specialty distribution solutions that connect carriers and intermediaries to niche markets.

Brown & Brown operates through a decentralized model of operating units and subsidiaries, enabling local client service with the scale to access national and specialty markets.