Median organic growth among mid-size and large privatelyheld P&C insurance agencies and brokerage firms is outpacingthe performance of publicly held brokers, according to a new surveyby management consulting firm.

Regan Consulting released its second-quarter “Organic Growth andProfitability” survey that asks 125 privately held agencies andbrokerage firms about their performance over 2013's second quarter.The median revenue of the firms completing the survey isapproximately $15 million.

Median organic revenue growth among theproducers reached 6.9 percent in the second quarter of 2013, thehighest since the survey began in 2008.

The survey also found that the agent-broker profitabilitymargin—the measure of EBITDA (earnings before interest, taxes,depreciation and amortization)—reached 24 percent, the highestrecorded since the survey began in 2008.

Other survey findings include:

• Privately-held firms maintained an organic growth advantageover public brokers, growing 1.6 percentage points faster than thepublic brokers' 5.3 percent average rate, as measured by reportedresults for five large publicly held brokerage firms. The five areAon, Arthur J. Gallaher, Brown & Brown, Marsh & McLennanand Willis. 
• Organic growth for commercial lines grew at a median rate of8.2 percent through the first half of the year, up 1.4 percentagepoints from the first quarter of 2013.
• The second quarter OGP survey found that agents and brokers,after a strong first-half performance, have increased theirfull-year 2013 organic growth projection to 7 percent.

Despite the fact that contingent commissions inflate Q2 results,Reagan says that the earnings trend is strong nonetheless.