Acquisition growth boost Hub in the second quarter

Broker consolidator Hub International (TSE: HBG) continued to realize the benefits of acquisitional growth, reporting net earnings of US$10.7 million for the second quarter to end June of this year. This reflects a year-on-year increase of 319% over the US$2.7 million in net earnings reported for the second quarter of 2001. Earnings amounted to US41 a share, showing a rise of 193% over the US14 reported a year prior.

The company’s total revenue, based on Canadian as well as U.S. operations, rose by 95% to US$28 million for the second quarter of 2002. The company says that about US$25.7 million of the revenue resulted from acquisitional growth. The network’s commission income grew to US$52.1 million from the US$27.3 million reported for the same period in 2001. Of this, 10% is attributable to organic growth from new business and the hardening rate environment.

For the first six months of this year, net earnings increased 212% to US$15.7 million, or US63 a share compared with the US$5 million, or US27 a share shown at the end of June 2001. Total revenue for the first half of 2002 came in at US$106.8 million versus the US$57.4 million reported for the same period in 2001. Again, acquisitions played a key role, resulting in US$44.5 million of the total US$49.4 million increase. “Our results clearly demonstrate the success of our strategy to acquire quality brokerages with strong management teams that can expand their market share through leveraging the operating scale, market channels and product breadth Hub International offers,” says Hub CEO Martin Hughes.