Ryan Specialty (NYSE:RYAN) Sets New 52-Week High – Still a Buy?

Ryan Specialty Holdings, Inc. (NYSE:RYAN) shares reached a new 52-week high on Thursday . The stock traded as high as $76.75 and last traded at $76.19, with a volume of 69954 shares changing hands. The stock had previously closed at $75.06.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of analysts recently issued reports on the stock. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods decreased their price objective on shares of Ryan Specialty from $77.00 to $76.00 and set an “outperform” rating for the company in a report on Friday, February 21st. UBS Group lifted their price target on shares of Ryan Specialty from $82.00 to $84.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a report on Wednesday, February 26th. Wells Fargo & Company increased their price objective on Ryan Specialty from $64.00 to $69.00 and gave the company an “equal weight” rating in a report on Friday, February 21st. Finally, Royal Bank of Canada lowered their target price on Ryan Specialty from $73.00 to $72.00 and set a “sector perform” rating on the stock in a research note on Friday, February 21st. One research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, six have given a hold rating and six have given a buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the company has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus target price of $75.27.

Ryan Specialty Stock Performance

The business has a 50 day moving average of $69.60 and a 200-day moving average of $68.60. The company has a market capitalization of $18.48 billion, a P/E ratio of 102.25, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.19 and a beta of 0.71. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 2.40, a quick ratio of 1.01 and a current ratio of 1.01.

Ryan Specialty (NYSE:RYAN) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, February 20th. The company reported $0.45 earnings per share for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $0.47 by ($0.02). Ryan Specialty had a net margin of 9.14% and a return on equity of 48.01%. The company had revenue of $663.53 million for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $658.80 million. On average, sell-side analysts predict that Ryan Specialty Holdings, Inc. will post 2.29 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Ryan Specialty Increases Dividend

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Tuesday, March 18th. Shareholders of record on Tuesday, March 4th were issued a $0.12 dividend. This represents a $0.48 annualized dividend and a yield of 0.68%. This is an increase from Ryan Specialty’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.11. The ex-dividend date was Tuesday, March 4th. Ryan Specialty’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 69.57%.

Insider Transactions at Ryan Specialty

In other news, EVP Brendan Martin Mulshine sold 30,000 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated Friday, March 14th. The stock was sold at an average price of $69.30, for a total transaction of $2,079,000.00. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this hyperlink. Also, Director Nicholas Dominic Cortezi sold 10,485 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, January 23rd. The shares were sold at an average price of $65.12, for a total transaction of $682,783.20. Following the completion of the sale, the director now directly owns 11,109 shares in the company, valued at $723,418.08. This represents a 48.56 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Over the last quarter, insiders have sold 241,360 shares of company stock valued at $16,006,428. 11.10% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

A number of institutional investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in RYAN. Rakuten Securities Inc. purchased a new position in shares of Ryan Specialty in the 4th quarter worth about $27,000. Kapitalo Investimentos Ltda bought a new stake in Ryan Specialty in the 4th quarter worth approximately $36,000. Principal Securities Inc. boosted its stake in Ryan Specialty by 164.7% in the fourth quarter. Principal Securities Inc. now owns 667 shares of the company’s stock worth $43,000 after buying an additional 415 shares in the last quarter. Mizuho Bank Ltd. purchased a new position in shares of Ryan Specialty during the fourth quarter worth approximately $49,000. Finally, Headlands Technologies LLC lifted its holdings in shares of Ryan Specialty by 2,644.8% in the 4th quarter. Headlands Technologies LLC now owns 796 shares of the company’s stock worth $51,000 after acquiring an additional 767 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors own 84.82% of the company’s stock.

About Ryan Specialty

Ryan Specialty Holdings, Inc operates as a service provider of specialty products and solutions for insurance brokers, agents, and carriers in the United States, Canada, the United Kingdom, Europe, and Singapore. It offers distribution, underwriting, product development, administration, and risk management services by acting as a wholesale broker and a managing underwriter.