Mercer Capital review: agency valuation, M&A advice and fees
Mercer Capital is a business valuation firm with a team that works on insurance agencies and brokers. It values agencies for sales, perpetuation, buy-sell agreements, taxes and ESOPs. It also represents sellers and buyers.
It works with agencies of every size, from one office up to the biggest public brokers. Fees are quoted in an upfront proposal, and most valuations take four to six weeks once it has your information.
- Best for
- Owners who need a defensible valuation for a deal, a buy-sell agreement, taxes or a dispute
- Works for
- Whoever hires it: the owner, the company, its board, an ESOP trustee or a buyer
- Services
- Valuation, fairness opinions, quality of earnings and sale or purchase advice
- Agency size
- One-office agencies up to the biggest public brokers
- Valuation fee
- Quote in an upfront proposal
Our take
Mercer Capital is a strong pick when you need a valuation that will hold up with a buyer, a tax authority or a court. Its insurance team leader is a Chartered Financial Analyst and an Accredited Senior Appraiser.
It is one of the few firms here that states a turnaround and lists the documents it needs up front. It can also value the earn-out or buyer stock in an offer, which helps when the headline price isn't all cash.
Mercer Capital is employee owned and runs securities work through an unaffiliated broker-dealer. It lists no recent agency deals on its site.
Pros
- Most valuations done in four to six weeks, with a rush option
- Values earn-outs and buyer stock, not just the agency
- Fairness and solvency opinions for boards and trustees
- Quality of earnings reports for buyers and sellers
- Works with single-office agencies up to the largest brokers
Cons
- All fees are quoted
- No recent agency deals listed on its site
- Takes seller and buyer mandates
- Asks for three to five years of statements and tax returns
Who they work for
Sellers
Mercer Capital runs sales with marketing materials, confidential outreach to qualified buyers, negotiation and closing support.
Buyers
It also advises buyers and writes buy-side quality of earnings reports.
Who the valuation is for. Mercer Capital works for whoever engages it, which can be a buyer. If you are the seller, make sure the valuation is written for you.
Services
| Service | What you get |
|---|---|
| Agency valuation | For deals, perpetuation, buy-sell agreements, financial reporting and taxes |
| Gift, estate and ESOP | Valuations for tax filings and yearly or deal-related ESOP appraisals |
| Earn-out and rollover equity | Values the earn-out and the buyer stock in an offer |
| Fairness and solvency opinions | Independent opinions for boards, committees and trustees |
| Sale and purchase advice | Marketing, buyer outreach, negotiation and closing for sellers or buyers |
| Quality of earnings | Tests pro forma earnings, adjustments and working capital |
| Disputes | Valuation and testimony for buyouts, divorce and tax cases |
Agencies they work with
- Agency size
- One-office agencies up to the biggest public brokers
- Types
- Independent agents and brokers, bank-owned agencies, wholesalers, MGAs, MGUs and private equity backed brokers
- Where
- Clients nationwide
How they value an agency
- Method
- Asset, market and income approaches, including public company and deal comparisons and discounted cash flow
- Earnings measure
- Pro forma EBITDA
- What adjusts the value
- Recurring revenue, retention, carriers, producers, organic growth, the book of business, key people, concentration and technology
Mercer Capital takes out one-time costs, the owner's personal expenses and any owner pay above market rates.
Terms on this page in plain words
- EBITDA
- Profit for the year before interest, taxes, depreciation and amortization
- Book of business
- The policies the agency writes and the commission income they produce
- Earn-out
- Money paid after closing that depends on the agency reaching growth or profit goals
- Equity rollover
- Keeping a stake in the buying company as part of the price
- ESOP
- A plan that holds company stock for employees, sometimes used to buy out an owner
- Quality of earnings
- A check that the profit figures a deal rests on are real and will last
- Perpetuation
- Handing the agency to people inside it, such as producers, partners or family
- Success fee
- The advisor's fee that comes due only when a deal closes
- Retainer
- An advance or monthly fee for the advisor's time
- Tail
- A set period after the agreement ends when you still owe the fee if you sell to a buyer the advisor introduced
Valuation reports, cost and timing
- Report types
- A limited-scope analysis for planning, a full valuation report, fairness and solvency opinions and quality of earnings reports
- Turnaround
- Most valuations in four to six weeks once it has everything. Rush service is available
- How it's priced
- Quoted in an upfront proposal based on scope, purpose, complexity, data quality, size and deadline
- What it needs
- Three to five years of financial statements and tax returns, plus carrier and client mix, retention and pay data
Selling your agency with them
Preparation
A benchmark valuation, a financial review and marketing materials.
Confidential marketing
Mercer Capital approaches qualified buyers under confidentiality agreements.
Letter of intent
It negotiates terms up to a signed letter of intent.
Due diligence and closing
It guides the buyer's checks and the close.
Across all the industries it works in, Mercer Capital puts the average sale at six to twelve months, counting preparation through closing. It doesn't give a figure for insurance agencies alone.
Deal structure advice
Mercer Capital models how all-cash offers, earn-outs, seller financing and rollover stock change the value, the cash you get and the risk. Multi-year earn-outs or holdbacks can close a gap when buyer and seller disagree on price.
- Earn-outs
- Tied to revenue, EBITDA, client retention or producer retention in its examples
- Seller notes
- Modeled against cash and deal certainty
- Equity rollover
- Values the stock you would hold in a larger platform
- Timing
- You have the most room to plan before a buyer is picked or a letter of intent is signed
Succession and after the sale
For perpetuation and buy-sell agreements, Mercer Capital provides the valuation the plan rests on. It also values the stock owners keep after a sale.
Credentials and transactions
- Designations
- Lucas M. Parris is a CFA and an Accredited Senior Appraiser. Jack Carter is a CPA accredited in business valuation
- Securities firm
- StillPoint Capital, LLC, an unaffiliated FINRA and SIPC member
- Research
- A quarterly insurance industry newsletter on deal trends and valuation measures
Confidentiality
- NDA
- Everyone who asks for confidential information in a sale signs a confidentiality agreement
- Competitors
- Marketing materials are trimmed when competitors are among the buyers
Fees and engagement terms
Mercer Capital sends a written proposal before work starts. It doesn't post retainer, success fee, expense, exclusivity or tail terms for sale engagements.
Check the proposal for
- A fixed valuation fee and the cost of a rush job
- For a sale, the success fee and how it is measured
- Retainer and expenses
- Exclusivity and the tail period
Mercer Capital alternatives
- Reagan ConsultingFees not publishedValuations and quality of earnings for larger brokerages
- MarshBerryQuote onlyFour valuation scopes plus perpetuation planning
- B. H. Burke & Co.Quote onlyCertified appraisers with a perpetuation focus
- OPTIS PartnersQuote onlyFair market valuations and buyer due diligence
- IA ValuationsValuation from $2,500Association valuations priced for smaller agencies
See every option in insurance agency valuation.
Frequently asked questions
How much does a Mercer Capital valuation cost?
Mercer Capital quotes each job in an upfront proposal. The fee depends on scope, purpose, complexity, the quality of your data, size and deadline.
How long does a valuation take?
Most take four to six weeks once Mercer Capital has all your information, and a rush option is available.
Who does Mercer Capital work for?
Whoever hires it: an owner, the company, its board, an ESOP trustee or a buyer. It also represents sellers and buyers in deals.
Can Mercer Capital value an earn-out?
Yes. It values earn-outs and rollover stock, which helps when an offer isn't all cash.
Does it work with small agencies?
Its agency clients start at single-office agencies.
How we researched this review. We based this review on the terms and product pages published by Mercer Capital, reviewed in October 2026, together with our team's experience working with insurance agents and agency owners since 2008.
Corrections
Vendors change their pricing all the time and they don't email us when they do. So if you see a price on here that's gone up, a plan Mercer Capital quit selling or a contract term that reads different now, let us know and send the link to the page where Mercer Capital has it. Somebody here pulls up that page and checks it before we change anything on ours.