Baldwin Insurance Group (NASDAQ:BWIN) Shares Gap Up on Strong Earnings

Baldwin Insurance Group, Inc. (NASDAQ:BWIN)’s stock price gapped up prior to trading on Friday following a better than expected earnings announcement. The stock had previously closed at $18.49, but opened at $20.17. Baldwin Insurance Group shares last traded at $22.4370, with a volume of 1,031,187 shares trading hands.

The company reported $0.31 earnings per share for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.29 by $0.02. The firm had revenue of $347.28 million during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $351.75 million. Baldwin Insurance Group had a negative net margin of 2.25% and a positive return on equity of 12.62%. The business’s revenue was up 5.3% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period in the prior year, the firm earned $0.27 EPS.

Key Stories Impacting Baldwin Insurance Group

Here are the key news stories impacting Baldwin Insurance Group this week:

• Positive Sentiment: Board authorizes up to $250 million share repurchase program — a meaningful capital-return action that can support the stock and reduce share count. Business Wire: $250M Repurchase Program
• Positive Sentiment: Raymond James upgraded BWIN to a “strong-buy” and raised its price target to $30 (from $20), signaling analyst conviction and implying ~29% upside from the current price. Benzinga: Raymond James Upgrade
• Positive Sentiment: Q4 earnings beat: BWIN reported $0.31 EPS vs. consensus $0.29, and EPS improved vs. prior year; these results (and a slide deck/call) helped underpin today’s positive sentiment. MarketBeat: Q4 Results & Conference Call
• Positive Sentiment: Strategic partnership with Fairway Independent Mortgage Corporation could expand distribution channels for Baldwin’s products and support future revenue growth. TMCNet: Fairway Partnership
• Positive Sentiment: TD Cowen initiated coverage (new analyst attention can increase liquidity and interest). AmericanBankingNews: TD Cowen Coverage Initiation
• Neutral Sentiment: Investor materials and presentation (Q4 slide deck and call) published — useful for modeling but not an immediate catalyst. Seeking Alpha: Q4 Presentation
• Neutral Sentiment: Analyst note / valuation pieces reviewing the Fairway partnership and BWIN valuation provide context but do not themselves move fundamentals. Yahoo Finance: Valuation After Partnership
• Negative Sentiment: Wells Fargo cut its price target to $21 and moved to an “equal weight” rating, implying downside from the current level and adding downward pressure on sentiment. TickerReport/Benzinga: Wells Fargo PT Cut
• Negative Sentiment: Revenue slightly missed estimates for the quarter ($347.3M vs. $351.8M est.), and the company still reported a negative net margin — items investors will watch for margin recovery and top-line momentum. Zacks: Q4 Metrics & Revenue vs Estimates

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several equities analysts recently issued reports on BWIN shares. UBS Group lowered their price target on Baldwin Insurance Group from $52.00 to $47.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a research note on Monday, November 10th. Wells Fargo & Company decreased their price objective on Baldwin Insurance Group from $27.00 to $21.00 and set an “equal weight” rating on the stock in a report on Friday. Jefferies Financial Group restated a “hold” rating and set a $28.00 price objective on shares of Baldwin Insurance Group in a research report on Monday, December 15th. Weiss Ratings reaffirmed a “sell (e+)” rating on shares of Baldwin Insurance Group in a research report on Monday, December 29th. Finally, JPMorgan Chase & Co. decreased their price target on shares of Baldwin Insurance Group from $33.00 to $28.00 and set a “neutral” rating on the stock in a research note on Wednesday, January 7th. One analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, two have assigned a Buy rating, four have assigned a Hold rating and two have issued a Sell rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat, the stock presently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and an average price target of $31.17.

Insider Activity

In related news, insider James Morgan Roche sold 100,000 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, December 12th. The stock was sold at an average price of $24.20, for a total transaction of $2,420,000.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the insider owned 122,113 shares in the company, valued at $2,955,134.60. This trade represents a 45.02% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through the SEC website. Over the last ninety days, insiders sold 255,000 shares of company stock valued at $6,119,000. Corporate insiders own 18.51% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Several hedge funds have recently bought and sold shares of the stock. William Blair Investment Management LLC lifted its holdings in shares of Baldwin Insurance Group by 47.8% during the fourth quarter. William Blair Investment Management LLC now owns 7,543,813 shares of the company’s stock valued at $181,278,000 after acquiring an additional 2,439,118 shares during the period. Fiera Capital Corp acquired a new stake in shares of Baldwin Insurance Group during the 2nd quarter worth about $33,346,000. Champlain Investment Partners LLC lifted its holdings in Baldwin Insurance Group by 20.3% during the 3rd quarter. Champlain Investment Partners LLC now owns 3,915,879 shares of the company’s stock valued at $110,467,000 after purchasing an additional 659,433 shares during the last quarter. Bank of New York Mellon Corp lifted its holdings in Baldwin Insurance Group by 25.3% during the 4th quarter. Bank of New York Mellon Corp now owns 2,873,887 shares of the company’s stock valued at $69,060,000 after purchasing an additional 579,936 shares during the last quarter. Finally, MetLife Investment Management LLC boosted its position in Baldwin Insurance Group by 1,376.4% in the fourth quarter. MetLife Investment Management LLC now owns 619,292 shares of the company’s stock valued at $14,882,000 after buying an additional 577,345 shares in the last quarter. 77.49% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Baldwin Insurance Group Price Performance

The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.45, a current ratio of 1.15 and a quick ratio of 1.15. The stock has a market capitalization of $2.76 billion, a P/E ratio of -47.41, a PEG ratio of 0.68 and a beta of 1.33. The company’s 50 day simple moving average is $22.26 and its two-hundred day simple moving average is $25.90.

Baldwin Insurance Group Company Profile

Baldwin Insurance Group, Inc (NASDAQ: BWIN) is a specialty insurance and surety firm that underwrites contract bonds, commercial insurance policies and related risk-management services. Its core offerings include contract and commercial surety, which provide performance and payment guarantees to obligees in construction, service and public-sector projects. In addition, the company delivers complementary commercial lines coverages designed to mitigate liability, property and workers’ compensation exposures.

Through a network of regional agency offices primarily across the Midwestern United States, Baldwin Insurance Group serves contractors, developers, small and mid-sized businesses as well as municipal and public-sector clients.