Brown & Brown Achieves Record Revenue and Strategic Growth in 2025
Brown & Brown, a brokerage firm established in 1939, has reached unprecedented revenue heights with a 22.5% increase, bringing its 2025 brokerage revenue to $5.76 billion. The company has recently completed a substantial acquisition of Accession Risk Management Group for $9.83 billion. This acquisition includes the retailer Risk Strategies and wholesaler One80 Intermediaries, contributing about $1.7 billion in annual revenue. This move has expanded Brown & Brown's scope, integrating expertise in agriculture, healthcare, private equity, reinsurance, and captives.
J. Powell Brown, President and CEO, noted the potential for growth across various sectors, including middle market, large accounts, and employee benefits. The firm anticipates further potential in retail and casualty-driven programs as well as professional liability and transactional wholesale businesses.
After this acquisition, Brown & Brown advanced to the fifth position in Business Insurance’s ranking of the largest brokers globally. The firm also announced strategic hires, including Eileen Akerson as chief legal officer and Dori Henderson as chief information technology officer. These appointments emphasize its commitment to advancing data and AI capabilities, especially in collaboration with carrier partners.
The firm faced competitive challenges when 275 employees moved to Howden, leading to an estimated $23 million annual revenue loss. This matter is currently in litigation. In the first quarter, Brown & Brown reported a 35.4% revenue increase, primarily influenced by the Accession acquisition, although organic revenue growth remained unchanged.
Industry analysts, such as Elyse Greenspan from Wells Fargo, comment that brokers face stock pressures due to declining property rates and AI concerns. UBS Group's Brian Meredith highlights Brown & Brown's stable position in the small-to-middle market, which tends to be less impacted in a soft market.
Brown identified factors affecting organic growth, including property rate reductions, the integration of Accession, and employee transitions to Howden. To counter lower share prices, the firm repurchased $100 million in stock in the fourth quarter and $250 million in the first quarter of the year, while evaluating potential acquisitions to bolster operations.
Despite the challenges posed by a softening market, CFO R. Andrew Watts expressed optimism for improving organic growth, driven by reduced focus on catastrophe property and the beneficial impact of the One80 acquisition. Brown & Brown is committed to expanding new business and maintaining its client base, with confidence in their strategic positioning as articulated by Mr. Brown in navigating the current property market.