Ryan Specialty (NYSE:RYAN) Stock Price Expected to Rise, Wells Fargo & Company Analyst Says

Key Points

• Wells Fargo raised Ryan Specialty’s price target to $43 from $39 while maintaining an “equal weight” rating, implying about 3.4% downside from the prior close. Analysts overall rate the stock “Hold,” with an average target price of $52.61.
• Ryan Specialty exceeded quarterly expectations, reporting $0.74 in EPS versus the $0.60 consensus and revenue of $916.65 million versus $873.93 million; revenue increased 7.2% year over year.
• The company authorized a $300 million share-repurchase program, while insiders bought more than 130,000 shares worth approximately $4.3 million during the last quarter.

Ryan Specialty (NYSE:RYAN - Get Free Report) had its target price boosted by investment analysts at Wells Fargo & Company from $39.00 to $43.00 in a research note issued to investors on Monday,Benzinga reports. The firm currently has an "equal weight" rating on the stock. Wells Fargo & Company's price objective points to a potential downside of 3.40% from the company's previous close.

Other equities analysts have also issued reports about the company. Royal Bank Of Canada increased their price objective on Ryan Specialty from $45.00 to $55.00 and gave the stock an "outperform" rating in a report on Friday. Weiss Ratings reaffirmed a "sell (d+)" rating on shares of Ryan Specialty in a research note on Friday. Morgan Stanley boosted their price target on Ryan Specialty from $39.00 to $42.00 and gave the stock an "overweight" rating in a research report on Monday, July 6th. The Goldman Sachs Group increased their price target on Ryan Specialty from $40.00 to $45.00 and gave the stock a "neutral" rating in a research note on Friday. Finally, Cantor Fitzgerald increased their price target on Ryan Specialty from $34.00 to $41.00 and gave the stock a "neutral" rating in a research note on Monday. Eight research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, nine have given a Hold rating and two have given a Sell rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat.com, Ryan Specialty presently has an average rating of "Hold" and an average target price of $52.61.

Ryan Specialty Trading Up 0.8%

Ryan Specialty stock opened at $44.52 on Monday. Ryan Specialty has a 52-week low of $29.28 and a 52-week high of $61.05. The company has a quick ratio of 1.02, a current ratio of 1.00 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 3.51. The firm has a market capitalization of $11.74 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 62.15, a PEG ratio of 0.95 and a beta of 0.61. The firm has a 50-day moving average price of $37.74 and a two-hundred day moving average price of $38.34.

Ryan Specialty (NYSE:RYAN - Get Free Report) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, July 30th. The company reported $0.74 EPS for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $0.60 by $0.14. The company had revenue of $916.65 million for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $873.93 million. Ryan Specialty had a net margin of 7.55% and a return on equity of 43.97%. Ryan Specialty's revenue was up 7.2% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter last year, the business earned $0.66 earnings per share. Sell-side analysts expect that Ryan Specialty will post 2.08 earnings per share for the current year.

Ryan Specialty declared that its board has initiated a stock repurchase plan on Tuesday, May 26th that authorizes the company to repurchase $300.00 million in shares. This repurchase authorization authorizes the company to repurchase up to 3.5% of its stock through open market purchases. Stock repurchase plans are usually a sign that the company's board of directors believes its stock is undervalued.

Insider Activity at Ryan Specialty

In other news, Director John W. Rogers, Jr. bought 7,500 shares of the business's stock in a transaction on Wednesday, June 10th. The stock was purchased at an average cost of $35.16 per share, for a total transaction of $263,700.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the director directly owned 117,933 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $4,146,524.28. This trade represents a 6.79% increase in their position. The acquisition was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this hyperlink. Also, Chairman Patrick G. Ryan purchased 120,000 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction on Friday, June 5th. The shares were purchased at an average cost of $32.50 per share, with a total value of $3,900,000.00. Following the completion of the purchase, the chairman owned 13,817,859 shares in the company, valued at $449,080,417.50. This represents a 0.88% increase in their position. The disclosure for this purchase is available in the SEC filing. Insiders have purchased 130,715 shares of company stock worth $4,263,590 over the last quarter. 52.03% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

Institutional Trading of Ryan Specialty

Hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently modified their holdings of the company. Stephens Investment Management Group LLC raised its position in Ryan Specialty by 41.6% in the fourth quarter. Stephens Investment Management Group LLC now owns 1,929,094 shares of the company's stock worth $99,599,000 after acquiring an additional 566,610 shares in the last quarter. Qsemble Capital Management LP bought a new position in shares of Ryan Specialty during the 4th quarter valued at about $2,823,000. Mawer Investment Management Ltd. boosted its position in shares of Ryan Specialty by 11.9% during the 4th quarter. Mawer Investment Management Ltd. now owns 525,172 shares of the company's stock valued at $27,115,000 after purchasing an additional 55,716 shares in the last quarter. Vulcan Value Partners LLC boosted its position in shares of Ryan Specialty by 631.7% during the 4th quarter. Vulcan Value Partners LLC now owns 4,621,079 shares of the company's stock valued at $238,536,000 after purchasing an additional 3,989,502 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Equitable Trust Co. acquired a new position in shares of Ryan Specialty in the 4th quarter worth approximately $4,108,000. Institutional investors own 84.82% of the company's stock.

About Ryan Specialty

Ryan Specialty Group, Inc NYSE: RYAN is a global specialty insurance and reinsurance platform that partners with a network of insurers and reinsurers to deliver tailored risk solutions. The company focuses on complex and large-scale risks across multiple industry sectors, leveraging its underwriting expertise to structure coverage programs that meet clients' unique needs.

Ryan Specialty's core offerings span a diverse range of specialty lines, including casualty, property, professional liability, marine and energy, program administration, and sports and entertainment.

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