WR Berkley Corporation’s Q2 earnings improve
WR Berkley Corporation’s Q2 earnings improve
Insurance News
Written by Terry Jangkwangco
WR Berkley Corporation released its earnings report for the second quarter and first half of 2024.
The company’s performance during the periods is as follows:
measurement |
Q2 2024 |
Q2 2023 |
First half of 2024 |
First half of 2023 |
---|---|---|---|---|
Total written premiums |
$3.72 billion |
$3.34 billion |
$7.08 billion |
$6.39 billion |
net written premiums |
$3.13 billion |
$2.81 billion |
$5.98 billion |
$5.39 billion |
Net income attributable to common shareholders |
$371.9 million |
$356.3 million |
$814.4 million |
$650.4 million |
Operating income |
$418.1 million |
$310.9 million |
$841.3 million |
$586.5 million |
return on equity |
20% |
21.1% |
21.8% |
19.3% |
According to the insurance group, its net investment income also grew in the quarter by 51.8% to a record $372.1 million, driven by higher income from fixed-maturity bonds from a growing portfolio with higher yields.
“We expect the company’s new interest rate to remain higher than the current yield on our fixed-maturity securities for the foreseeable future,” the company said. “Combined with our growing investment portfolio of consistent record cash flows, we remain well positioned for further investment income growth.”
Meanwhile, total capital returned to shareholders was $381.3 million. This amount consists of $223.8 million in share repurchases, $127 million in special dividends, and $30.5 million in ordinary dividends.
WR Berkley Corporation noted that “continued strong underwriting and investment income led to a 20% annualized return on common stockholders’ equity at the start of the year in the second quarter.”
“Market conditions remained favorable in many of our business areas, resulting in net written premium growth of 11.2%. Our combined loss ratio was 91.1%, including a 3.2-point loss ratio from catastrophe losses.”
“Our decentralized structure and continued focus on long-term risk-adjusted returns allow us to operate effectively in a rapidly changing environment,” the company added. “We continue to believe that expertise matters in both underwriting and investing.”
The company expects to continue to deliver excellent returns to its shareholders during the remainder of 2024 and beyond.
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