Mizuho Issues Pessimistic Forecast for Brown & Brown (NYSE:BRO) Stock Price

Brown & Brown (NYSE:BRO) had its target price reduced by analysts at Mizuho from $86.00 to $83.00 in a report released on Wednesday, Benzinga reports. The brokerage presently has an “outperform” rating on the financial services provider’s stock. Mizuho’s price objective would indicate a potential upside of 24.36% from the company’s previous close.

A number of other equities analysts have also commented on BRO. Barclays increased their price target on Brown & Brown from $72.00 to $76.00 and gave the company an “equal weight” rating in a research note on Tuesday, July 7th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. upped their price objective on Brown & Brown from $78.00 to $80.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a report on Monday, August 3rd. Wells Fargo & Company lowered their target price on Brown & Brown from $69.00 to $68.00 and set an “equal weight” rating for the company in a research report on Thursday, July 9th. The Goldman Sachs Group boosted their price target on shares of Brown & Brown from $62.00 to $70.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a research report on Wednesday, July 1st. Finally, Keefe, Bruyette & Woods upped their price target on shares of Brown & Brown from $72.00 to $74.00 and gave the company a “market perform” rating in a research note on Wednesday, July 8th. Four equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, fourteen have given a Hold rating and one has issued a Sell rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the stock has a consensus rating of “Hold” and a consensus target price of $76.60.

Brown & Brown Price Performance

Shares of NYSE:BRO traded down $0.49 during midday trading on Wednesday, reaching $66.74. 236,931 shares of the company were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 2,991,510. The stock has a market cap of $22.33 billion, a PE ratio of 21.10, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.10 and a beta of 0.58. The business’s fifty day moving average is $70.16 and its two-hundred day moving average is $65.83. Brown & Brown has a one year low of $53.81 and a one year high of $96.55. The company has a current ratio of 2.11, a quick ratio of 2.11 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.58.

Brown & Brown (NYSE:BRO) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Monday, July 27th. The financial services provider reported $1.07 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.08 by ($0.01). Brown & Brown had a net margin of 17.75% and a return on equity of 13.17%. The company had revenue of $1.65 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $1.71 billion. During the same quarter in the prior year, the firm posted $1.03 earnings per share. The business’s revenue was up 30.4% on a year-over-year basis. As a group, analysts predict that Brown & Brown will post 4.5 earnings per share for the current year.

Institutional Trading of Brown & Brown

Several large investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Capital World Investors raised its stake in shares of Brown & Brown by 2.3% in the fourth quarter. Capital World Investors now owns 17,886,395 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $1,425,546,000 after purchasing an additional 407,006 shares during the last quarter. BlackRock Inc. purchased a new stake in Brown & Brown in the second quarter valued at approximately $1,418,571,000. Principal Financial Group Inc. increased its holdings in Brown & Brown by 1.6% in the 1st quarter. Principal Financial Group Inc. now owns 15,608,720 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $1,017,847,000 after buying an additional 246,172 shares during the period. Geode Capital Management LLC increased its holdings in Brown & Brown by 1.5% in the 4th quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC now owns 7,952,957 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $631,495,000 after buying an additional 118,225 shares during the period. Finally, Norges Bank purchased a new position in Brown & Brown during the 4th quarter worth approximately $516,837,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 71.01% of the company’s stock.

Brown & Brown Company Profile

Brown & Brown, Inc is an independent insurance brokerage and risk management company headquartered in Daytona Beach, Florida. The company helps businesses, public entities and individuals identify, manage and transfer risk by providing insurance products and related advisory services.

Its offerings include property and casualty insurance, employee benefits, personal insurance, surety products, risk management services and specialty insurance programs. Brown & Brown also operates wholesale brokerage and managing general agency businesses, which provide specialized coverage and market access to retail insurance agents and brokers.

Founded in 1939 by J.