Berkshire Hills and Brown & Brown Announce Definitive Agreement to Sell Berkshire Insurance Group to Brown & Brown of Massachusetts
August 24 2021 - 4:32PM
Berkshire Hills Bancorp, Inc. (NYSE: BHLB) and Brown & Brown,
Inc. (NYSE: BRO) today announced the execution of a definitive
agreement for the sale of the assets and operations of Berkshire
Insurance Group, Inc. (BIG), a subsidiary of Berkshire Hills, to
Brown & Brown of Massachusetts, LLC, a subsidiary of Brown
& Brown. The transaction is subject to customary conditions and
is expected to be completed in the third quarter.
BIG has been providing insurance coverage to customers across
the Northeast since its inception in 2000, growing into one of the
largest insurance agencies in Western Massachusetts. They provide
personal and commercial property and casualty insurance
solutions.
"Consistent with Berkshire's Exciting Strategic Transformation
(BEST) program, this transaction allows us to simplify our
operating model, repurpose valuable resources and redeploy capital
to support core businesses and strategic initiatives that will
enhance long term stakeholder value," stated Berkshire CEO, Nitin
J. Mhatre. "As a result of this transaction, we will record a net
gain on sale of approximately $0.55 per share on a GAAP basis in
the third quarter, and anticipate $0.02 lower earnings per share in
the second half of 2021."
Sean Gray, President & COO of Berkshire Bank added,
"Berkshire has entered into an exciting partnership with Brown
& Brown through which we will be able to serve our customers
better with an expanded offering of insurance solutions. I also
want to thank the dedicated team of employees at BIG, whom I've had
the privilege of working alongside for the past ten years, for
their contributions to Berkshire and all our communities. I know
they will continue to serve Berkshire customers well in their new
roles with Brown & Brown."
Brown & Brown has offered positions to existing BIG
employees resulting in no job eliminations. Following the
acquisition, BIG will become a new stand-alone operation within
Brown & Brown's Retail Segment under the leadership of John
Flaherty. BIG's offices in Greenfield, Longmeadow,
Pittsfield, Stockbridge, and Westfield, Massachusetts will continue
to operate from their current locations, and its other locations
will physically combine with existing Brown & Brown offices. In
addition, through a partner relationship, Berkshire Bank will
continue to refer customers to Brown & Brown. Don
McGowan, a Regional President in Brown & Brown's Retail Segment
with responsibility for various offices in Massachusetts and the
Northeast, will oversee the new, combined operations.
McGowan stated, "This transaction allows us to further expand
our footprint in Massachusetts with several new strategic locations
that we believe enable us to better serve our customers. We are
excited to welcome all of the talented BIG teammates to the Brown
& Brown organization and look forward to finding fresh
opportunities to offer a wide range of insurance products and
services to new and existing customers."
RBC Capital Markets is acting as financial advisor to Berkshire
and Luse Gorman, PC is acting as legal advisor to Berkshire on this
transaction.
ABOUT BERKSHIRE HILLS BANCORPBerkshire Hills
Bancorp is the parent of Berkshire Bank, which is transforming what
it means to bank its neighbors socially, humanly and digitally to
empower the financial potential of people, families and businesses
in its communities as it pursues its vision of being the leading
socially responsible omni-channel community bank in the markets it
serves. Headquartered in Boston, Berkshire has $12.3 billion in
assets and operates 115 banking offices primarily in New England
and New York.
ABOUT BROWN & BROWN, INC.Brown & Brown,
Inc. (NYSE: BRO) is a leading insurance brokerage firm, delivering
risk management solutions to individuals and businesses since 1939.
With more than 11,000 teammates in more than 300 locations across
the U.S. and select global markets, we are committed to providing
innovative strategies to help protect what our customers value
most. For more information, please visit bbinsurance.com.
FORWARD-LOOKING STATEMENTSThis document
contains "forward-looking statements" within the meaning of section
27A of the Securities Act of 1933, as amended, and section 21E of
the Securities Exchange Act of 1934, as amended. You can identify
these statements from the use of the words "may," "will," "should,"
"could," "would," "plan," "potential," "estimate," "project,"
"believe," "intend," "anticipate," "expect," "target" and similar
expressions. There are many factors that could cause actual results
to differ significantly from expectations described in the
forward-looking statements. For a discussion of such factors,
please see Berkshire's and Brown & Brown's filings with the
Securities and Exchange Commission and available on the SEC's
website at www.sec.gov. Such factors include those factors
relevant to the consummation and integration of the announced
acquisition, including any matters analyzed in the due diligence
process, and material adverse changes in the business and financial
condition of the seller, the buyer, or both, and their respective
customers. All forward-looking statements made herein are made only
as of the date of this release, and neither Berkshire nor Brown
& Brown undertake any obligation to publicly update or correct
any forward-looking statements to reflect events or circumstances
that subsequently occur or of which either party hereafter becomes
aware.
BERKSHIRE BANK CONTACTS |
BROWN & BROWN CONTACT |
Investor Relations
ContactsKevin Conn, SVP, Investor Relations &
Corporate DevelopmentEmail: KAConn@berkshirebank.comTel: (617)
641-9206David Gonci, Capital Markets DirectorEmail:
dgonci@berkshirebank.comTel: (413) 281-1973Media
Contact:Gary Levante, SVP, Corporate Responsibility &
CultureEmail: glevante@berkshirebank.comTel: (413)
447-1737 |
R. Andrew
WattsChief Financial Officer(386) 239-5770 |
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