Price Targets Cut to $83-$105 as Brown & Brown Forecasts $0.90 Q4 EPS
Brown & Brown will report Q4 results after Jan. 26 close with consensus EPS of $0.90 (vs. $0.86 year-ago) and revenue of $1.65 billion (vs. $1.18 billion). Truist cut its price target to $105, Wells Fargo to $84 and Barclays to $83, while JPMorgan initiated neutral coverage at $91.
1. Revenue Surge Driven by Accession Acquisition
Brown & Brown reported fourth-quarter total revenues of $1.6 billion, a 35.7% increase year-over-year, driven primarily by the December 2025 acquisition of Accession (RSC Topco, Inc.). Organic revenue for the quarter declined 2.8%, reflecting a $31 million decrease in core commissions and fees to $1.079 billion, compared with $1.110 billion in the prior-year period. The acquisition contributed $407 million in incremental revenue, while foreign currency translation added $7 million and dispositions subtracted $1 million.
2. Net Income and Earnings Per Share Metrics
Net income attributable to the company rose 25.7% to $264 million in Q4, up from $210 million a year ago. Reported diluted net income per share declined 19.2% to $0.59, reflecting the inclusion of 4.4 million escrowed shares and a favorable mark-to-market adjustment of $62 million. On an adjusted basis, which excludes acquisition and integration costs, amortization and the escrow liability mark-to-market, diluted EPS increased 8.1% to $0.93, compared with $0.86 in the prior quarter.
3. Margin Performance and Adjusted Profitability
Income before income taxes increased 16.7% to $321 million, while the pre-tax margin narrowed to 20.0% from 23.2% in Q4 2024. Adjusted EBITDAC rose 35.6% to $529 million, maintaining an adjusted EBITDAC margin of 32.9%. Full-year adjusted EBITDAC climbed 25.6% to $2.121 billion, with an expanded adjusted margin of 35.9%, up from 35.2%, driven by interest income on financing proceeds held for acquisitions.
4. Full-Year Growth and Capital Initiatives
For the twelve months ended December 31, 2025, Brown & Brown generated total revenues of $5.9 billion, up 22.8%, with organic growth of 2.8%. Net income attributable to the company increased 6.1% to $1.054 billion. Adjusted diluted EPS reached $4.26, a 10.9% gain, while reported diluted EPS declined 8.7% to $3.16. During the year, the company completed significant financing for the Accession acquisition, including a follow-on equity offering and senior notes issuance, and declared four quarterly dividends totaling $0.66 per share.