Wells Fargo & Company Forecasts Strong Price Appreciation for Ryan Specialty (NYSE:RYAN) Stock

Ryan Specialty (NYSE:RYAN) had its price target boosted by Wells Fargo & Company from $64.00 to $69.00 in a research report released on Friday,Benzinga reports. Wells Fargo & Company currently has an equal weight rating on the stock.

A number of other analysts have also recently weighed in on the company. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods decreased their price objective on Ryan Specialty from $77.00 to $76.00 and set an “outperform” rating for the company in a research report on Friday. Barclays raised their price target on Ryan Specialty from $76.00 to $88.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a report on Thursday, November 21st. Finally, Morgan Stanley initiated coverage on Ryan Specialty in a report on Thursday, December 5th. They issued an “overweight” rating and a $90.00 price target for the company. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, six have issued a hold rating and six have issued a buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat.com, the company presently has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus target price of $74.55.

Ryan Specialty Stock Down 4.4 %

Ryan Specialty stock opened at $65.55 on Friday. Ryan Specialty has a twelve month low of $45.72 and a twelve month high of $75.97. The stock has a 50 day moving average of $65.57 and a two-hundred day moving average of $67.26. The company has a current ratio of 1.01, a quick ratio of 1.01 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 2.40. The stock has a market capitalization of $17.16 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 85.13, a PEG ratio of 1.21 and a beta of 0.72.

Ryan Specialty (NYSE:RYAN) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, February 20th. The company reported $0.45 earnings per share for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.47 by ($0.02). Ryan Specialty had a return on equity of 47.90% and a net margin of 10.31%. The company had revenue of $663.53 million for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $658.80 million. As a group, research analysts expect that Ryan Specialty will post 1.82 earnings per share for the current year.

Ryan Specialty Increases Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, March 18th. Investors of record on Tuesday, March 4th will be paid a $0.12 dividend. This is an increase from Ryan Specialty’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.11. This represents a $0.48 annualized dividend and a yield of 0.73%. The ex-dividend date is Tuesday, March 4th. Ryan Specialty’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 63.77%.

Insider Activity at Ryan Specialty

In related news, Director Nicholas Dominic Cortezi sold 35,000 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, December 16th. The stock was sold at an average price of $66.71, for a total value of $2,334,850.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the director now directly owns 60,200 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $4,015,942. This trade represents a 36.76 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available at this hyperlink. Insiders sold 316,451 shares of company stock valued at $20,907,793 in the last ninety days. Corporate insiders own 11.10% of the company’s stock.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Ryan Specialty

Hedge funds have recently bought and sold shares of the company. Hollencrest Capital Management purchased a new position in Ryan Specialty in the 3rd quarter valued at approximately $25,000. Rakuten Securities Inc. purchased a new position in Ryan Specialty during the fourth quarter worth $27,000. Assetmark Inc. purchased a new position in Ryan Specialty during the third quarter worth $34,000. Kapitalo Investimentos Ltda purchased a new position in Ryan Specialty during the fourth quarter worth $36,000. Finally, Principal Securities Inc. increased its position in Ryan Specialty by 164.7% during 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. 84.82% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

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.