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2016 Q1

 

First Quarter 2016

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Simple Average Drops as Supply of Agencies for Sale Increases

More agencies are hitting the market with individuals looking to retire from agency ownership or simply to exit the business. During the great run of premium growth over the past three years, many agency owners who might have been at retirement age held on to their businesses because growth was very attainable. Market conditions are different now, hence a larger supply of agencies for sale.

 

Allstate Agency Price to 12MM Earned Premium Ratio (National Average)
$0 to $100,000
$100,001 to $200,000
$200,001 to $300,000
$300,001 and up
Simple Average
Low
High
2000
N/A
N/A
N/A
N/A
0.202
0.117
0.262
2001
N/A
N/A
N/A
N/A
0.209
0.133
0.311
2002
N/A
N/A
N/A
N/A
0.197
0.119
0.255
2003
N/A
N/A
N/A
N/A
0.199
0.147
0.254
2004
N/A
N/A
N/A
N/A
0.236
0.157
0.393
2005
N/A
N/A
N/A
N/A
0.259
0.175
0.398
2006
N/A
N/A
N/A
N/A
0.298
0.188
0.402
2007
2.37
2.65
2.92
3.01
2.96
1.21
4.56
2007
N/A
N/A
N/A
N/A
0.292
0.121
0.456
2008
2.32
2.41
2.74
3.13
2.71
1.45
4.06
2008
N/A
N/A
N/A
N/A
0.271
0.145
0.406
2009
2.14
2.35
2.50
2.78
2.46
0.82
3.97
2009
N/A
N/A
N/A
N/A
0.247
0.082
0.397
2010
N/A
N/A
N/A
N/A
0.24
0.106
0.353
2010 1st QTR
1.94
2.29
2.52
2.91
2.39
1.06
3.53
2010 2nd QTR
2
2.27
2.47
2.8
2.37
1.17
3.16
2010 3rd QTR
2.22
2.26
2.5
2.74
2.43
1.42
3.31
2010 4th QTR
1.94
2.33
2.49
2.76
2.41
1.95
3.28
2011 4th QTR
N/A
N/A
N/A
N/A
0.231
0.12
0.366
2011 1st QTR
1.78
2.36
2.49
2.73
2.47
1.2
3.57
2011 2nd QTR
1.99
2.37
2.41
2.53
2.33
1.2
3.66
2011 3rd QTR
1.89
2.16
2.45
2.7
2.25
1.5
3.66
2011 4th QTR
2.05
2.23
2.45
2.52
2.34
1.62
3.37
2012 4th QTR
N/A
N/A
N/A
N/A
0.229
0.127
0.336
2012 1st QTR
1.87
2.2
2.41
2.54
2.3
1.47
3.07
2012 2nd QTR
1.84
2.27
2.4
2.56
2.3
1.46
3.29
2012 3rd QTR
1.96
2.22
2.33
2.59
2.28
1.27
3.24
2012 4th QTR
2.14
2.21
2.43
2.55
2.39
1.53
3.36
2013 4th QTR
N/A
N/A
N/A
N/A
0.247
0.107
0.349
2013 1st QTR
2.1
2.15
2.38
2.51
2.3
1.28
2.95
2013 2nd QTR
N/A
1.99
2.3
2.57
2.34
1.88
3.07
2013 3rd QTR
2.19
2.18
2.39
2.68
2.5
1.59
3.07
2013 4th QTR
N/A
2.2
2.48
2.74
2.5
1.07
3.49
2014 4th QTR
N/A
N/A
N/A
N/A
0.264
0.107
0.352
2014 1st QTR
1.74
2.32
2.35
2.7
2.38
1.07
3.16
2014 2nd QTR
N/A
2.43
2.47
2.76
2.62
1.73
3.52
2014 3rd QTR
N/A
2.52
2.54
2.77
2.66
1.97
3.45
2014 4th QTR
N/A
2.43
2.54
2.79
2.69
1.94
3.52
2015 4th QTR
N/A
N/A
N/A
N/A
0.251
0.126
0.431
2015 1st QTR
N/A
1.99
2.45
2.66
2.5
1.69
3.35
2015 2nd QTR
1.48
2.4
2.5
2.85
2.54
1.34
4.31
2015 3rd QTR
1.26
2.04
2.71
3.05
2.55
1.26
3.66
2015 4th QTR
1.86
2.22
2.39
2.91
2.43
1.68
3.31
2016 1st QTR
1.53
2.09
2.47
2.61
2.35
0.81
3.01
Use the arrows to see agency values over time.

 

Start-up agencies with no TPP now hitting the market for sale

The group hit hardest are those agencies with Earned Premium of $1,000,000 or less. Values for this size group were 1.86 times in the last Quarter of 2015, and realized a drop to 1.53 times in the First Quarter of 2016. One single factor drove this decline, and it was the noticeable presence of agencies for sale with no TPP value. In January of 2013, Allstate Insurance unveiled a vesting period for start-up agencies. Agencies with no TPP are now hitting the market, as some of these post-2013 start-ups have not realized scalable growth. The market of buyers has certainly seen the purchase of an agency with no TPP, as a significant buying opportunity, as the average value for Agencies sold with no TPP in the First Quarter of 2016 was less than 1 times.

As the number of agency owners with no vested TPP value looking to sell their agency increases, it will be interesting to see how the market of approved buyers negotiates these purchases. Prior to 2013 (when Allstate adopted a vesting period for start-up agencies TPP value), many new agency owners who unsuccessfully pursued the start-up avenue were lucky to receive a TPP value as their book had little to no value due to cash flow tightness. Now it is up to the market of buyers to determine how they will pursue price negotiations for an agency that to the seller has no “buyer of last resort” value, which is what Allstate represents when a fully-vested TPP value is present.

Largest sized agencies also see a dip in Value ($3Million+ in Premium)

During the First Quarter of 2016, agencies with over $3Million in Earned Premium decreased in value to 2.61 times from a previous value of 2.91 times in the Fourth Quarter of 2015. The only newsworthy point regarding this drop is that a handful of underperforming larger sized agencies sold at multiples just over 2.0 times which brought down this size group’s average.

Percentage of Agency Sales by Size Group
$0 to $100,000
$100,001 to $200,000
$200,001 to $300,000
$300,001 and up
2007 1st QTR
N/A
N/A
N/A
N/A
2007 2nd QTR
N/A
N/A
N/A
N/A
2007 3rd QTR
N/A
N/A
N/A
N/A
2007 4th QTR
N/A
N/A
N/A
N/A
2008 1st QTR
N/A
N/A
N/A
N/A
2008 2nd QTR
N/A
N/A
N/A
N/A
2008 3rd QTR
N/A
N/A
N/A
N/A
2008 4th QTR
N/A
N/A
N/A
N/A
2009 1st QTR
N/A
N/A
N/A
N/A
2009 2nd QTR
N/A
N/A
N/A
N/A
2009 3rd QTR
N/A
N/A
N/A
N/A
2009 4th QTR
N/A
N/A
N/A
N/A
2010 1st QTR
N/A
N/A
N/A
N/A
2010 2nd QTR
N/A
N/A
N/A
N/A
2010 3rd QTR
N/A
N/A
N/A
N/A
2010 4th QTR
N/A
N/A
N/A
N/A
2011 1st QTR
N/A
N/A
N/A
N/A
2011 2nd QTR
N/A
N/A
N/A
N/A
2011 3rd QTR
N/A
N/A
N/A
N/A
2011 4th QTR
N/A
N/A
N/A
N/A
2012 1st QTR
N/A
N/A
N/A
N/A
2012 2nd QTR
N/A
N/A
N/A
N/A
2012 3rd QTR
N/A
N/A
N/A
N/A
2012 4th QTR
N/A
N/A
N/A
N/A
2013 1st QTR
17%
28%
27%
28%
2013 2nd QTR
N/A
21%
38%
41%
2013 3rd QTR
7%
15%
26%
52%
2013 4th QTR
N/A
25%
42%
33%
2014 1st QTR
6%
15%
58%
21%
2014 2nd QTR
N/A
17%
29%
54%
2014 3rd QTR
N/A
5%
43%
52%
2014 4th QTR
N/A
3%
36%
61%
2015 1st QTR
N/A
12%
41%
47%
2015 2nd QTR
4%
22%
44%
30%
2015 3rd QTR
5%
32%
27%
36%
2015 4th QTR
14%
31%
24%
31%
2016 1st QTR
9%
31%
24%
31%
Use the arrows to see agency values over time.

The First Quarter of 2016 saw a large number of agencies with $2Million to $3Million in Premium sell (50%), with the largest sized group (agencies with $3Million + in Premium) representing a recent low at just 23% of total agency sales.

Allstate Agency Value Ratios
Agency Price to New/Renewal Commissions
Agency Price to Total Revenues
2007 1st QTR
2.95
2.37
2007 2nd QTR
2.74
2.39
2007 3rd QTR
2.75
2.35
2007 4th QTR
2.49
2.18
2008 1st QTR
2.95
2.38
2008 2nd QTR
2.74
2.39
2008 3rd QTR
2.75
2.35
2008 4th QTR
2.49
2.18
2009 1st QTR
2.65
2.28
2009 2nd QTR
2.5
2.22
2009 3rd QTR
2.42
2.17
2009 4th QTR
2.37
2.17
2010 1st QTR
2.39
2.08
2010 2nd QTR
2.37
2.09
2010 3rd QTR
2.43
2.13
2010 4th QTR
2.41
2.09
2011 1st QTR
2.47
2.18
2011 2nd QTR
2.33
2.05
2011 3rd QTR
2.25
2
2011 4th QTR
2.3
2.06
2012 1st QTR
2.3
2.02
2012 2nd QTR
2.32
2.05
2012 3rd QTR
2.28
2.05
2012 4th QTR
2.39
2.11
2013 1st QTR
2.3
2.06
2013 2nd QTR
2.33
2.11
2013 3rd QTR
2.5
2.21
2013 4th QTR
2.5
2.19
2014 1st QTR
2.38
2.17
2014 2nd QTR
2.62
2.28
2014 3rd QTR
2.66
2.31
2014 4th QTR
2.69
2.32
2015 1st QTR
2.5
2.19
2015 2nd QTR
2.54
2.21
2015 3rd QTR
2.55
2.24
2015 4th QTR
2.43
2.14
2016 1st QTR
2.35
2.06
Use the arrows to see agency values over time.

For those Agency Owners residing in a state where a good portion of the homeowners insurance is written through a third party brokerage company (primarily coastal counties), looking at the multiple of revenues may be your best measuring stick for agency value as it takes into consideration both Allstate and brokered (i.e. non-Allstate) revenues. Certainly, the brokerage book is a reliable source of renewal income and has a level of value that is not presented in the traditional multiple applicable to Allstate commissions.