Howden’s Talent War Results in $23M Revenue Loss for Brown & Brown, According to CEO
The ongoing talent war driven by Howden has had a significant financial impact on Brown & Brown, resulting in a loss of $23 million in revenue. J. Powell Brown, the president and CEO of the brokerage, disclosed this during an analysts’ call on January 27, where he discussed the company’s 2025 fourth quarter and full-year results.
“As of today, approximately 275 of our former teammates have joined this start-up, taking with them customers currently representing known annual revenues of $23 million,” Brown stated. He emphasized that most of these former employees were not producers but were involved in the employee benefits sector.
In December, Brown & Brown took legal action against Howden, joining other brokers such as Alliant, Aon, Marsh, and Willis Towers Watson, who are also seeking redress for the alleged poaching of their employees by Howden. During the call, Brown refrained from mentioning Howden by name, referring to them simply as “the start-up.”
Brown expressed his belief in healthy competition, stating, “That’s what makes great companies, great leaders, and great individuals. We also believe in integrity, honesty, loyalty, and trust.” However, he raised concerns about the aggressive tactics employed by the start-up, noting, “When a start-up U.S. broker conducts what appears to be a highly coordinated plan to lift entire teams from its competitors, taking information and customers in the process, it must be addressed.”
He confirmed that other U.S. brokers are also utilizing aggressive hiring methods. “The start-up firm [Howden] is one of many that are aggressively looking to hire people. The question is how they’re doing it,” he remarked. Brown & Brown, on the other hand, insists that when hiring from other firms, they require compliance with existing contracts.
‘Strong Performance’
Despite the revenue loss attributed to employee departures, Brown characterized the company’s fourth quarter results as a continuation of “another year of strong top and bottom-line financial performance.” For the full year, Brown & Brown reported a 23% revenue growth, driven by a combination of mergers and acquisitions (M&A), organic growth, and robust contingent commission growth.
“We expanded our margins materially and grew our cash flow from operations by nearly 24%. This strong performance was in spite of softening catastrophe property rates and economies returning to more normal growth levels,” he added.
Record M&A Year
A highlight of the year was the acquisition of Accession Risk Management, which marked Brown & Brown’s largest-ever acquisition. This deal, first announced in June and completed in August, contributed to a record year for M&A, adding approximately $1.8 billion in annual revenue from 43 acquisitions.
For the fourth quarter ending December 31, 2025, the company reported total revenues of $1.6 billion, an increase of $423 million, or 35.7%, compared to the same period the previous year, despite a 2.8% decrease in organic revenue. This decline in organic revenue was described as “disappointing” by equities analyst Keefe, Bruyette & Woods (KBW), primarily due to flood claims processing revenue recognized in the fourth quarter of the prior year.
Net income attributable to the company for Q4 was $264 million, reflecting a $54 million increase, or 25.7%, compared to the fourth quarter of the previous year. For the full year ending December 31, Brown & Brown reported total revenue of $5.9 billion, a $1.1 billion increase, or 22.8%, compared to 2024, with organic revenue rising by 2.8%. Full-year net income attributable to the company was $1.1 billion, marking a $61 million increase, or 6.1%, compared to 2024.
Related:
Interested in Profit Loss?
Get automatic alerts for this topic.
The ongoing talent war driven by Howden has had a significant financial impact on Brown & Brown, resulting in a loss of $23 million in revenue. J. Powell Brown, the president and CEO of the brokerage, disclosed this during an analysts’ call on January 27, where he discussed the company’s 2025 fourth quarter and full-year results.
“As of today, approximately 275 of our former teammates have joined this start-up, taking with them customers currently representing known annual revenues of $23 million,” Brown stated. He emphasized that most of these former employees were not producers but were involved in the employee benefits sector.
In December, Brown & Brown took legal action against Howden, joining other brokers such as Alliant, Aon, Marsh, and Willis Towers Watson, who are also seeking redress for the alleged poaching of their employees by Howden. During the call, Brown refrained from mentioning Howden by name, referring to them simply as “the start-up.”
Brown expressed his belief in healthy competition, stating, “That’s what makes great companies, great leaders, and great individuals. We also believe in integrity, honesty, loyalty, and trust.” However, he raised concerns about the aggressive tactics employed by the start-up, noting, “When a start-up U.S. broker conducts what appears to be a highly coordinated plan to lift entire teams from its competitors, taking information and customers in the process, it must be addressed.”
He confirmed that other U.S. brokers are also utilizing aggressive hiring methods. “The start-up firm [Howden] is one of many that are aggressively looking to hire people. The question is how they’re doing it,” he remarked. Brown & Brown, on the other hand, insists that when hiring from other firms, they require compliance with existing contracts.
‘Strong Performance’
Despite the revenue loss attributed to employee departures, Brown characterized the company’s fourth quarter results as a continuation of “another year of strong top and bottom-line financial performance.” For the full year, Brown & Brown reported a 23% revenue growth, driven by a combination of mergers and acquisitions (M&A), organic growth, and robust contingent commission growth.
“We expanded our margins materially and grew our cash flow from operations by nearly 24%. This strong performance was in spite of softening catastrophe property rates and economies returning to more normal growth levels,” he added.
Record M&A Year
A highlight of the year was the acquisition of Accession Risk Management, which marked Brown & Brown’s largest-ever acquisition. This deal, first announced in June and completed in August, contributed to a record year for M&A, adding approximately $1.8 billion in annual revenue from 43 acquisitions.
For the fourth quarter ending December 31, 2025, the company reported total revenues of $1.6 billion, an increase of $423 million, or 35.7%, compared to the same period the previous year, despite a 2.8% decrease in organic revenue. This decline in organic revenue was described as “disappointing” by equities analyst Keefe, Bruyette & Woods (KBW), primarily due to flood claims processing revenue recognized in the fourth quarter of the prior year.
Net income attributable to the company for Q4 was $264 million, reflecting a $54 million increase, or 25.7%, compared to the fourth quarter of the previous year. For the full year ending December 31, Brown & Brown reported total revenue of $5.9 billion, a $1.1 billion increase, or 22.8%, compared to 2024, with organic revenue rising by 2.8%. Full-year net income attributable to the company was $1.1 billion, marking a $61 million increase, or 6.1%, compared to 2024.
Related:
Interested in Profit Loss?
Get automatic alerts for this topic.
