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Alison Hill, CEO, The Argus Group
7 December 2022

Argus posts H1 profit of $26.3m

Argus Group Holdings has announced net income for the six months to September 30, 2022 of $26.3 million, compared to $8.1 million in the previous year.

Operating earnings–a key measure of group profitability–was $7.8 million for the period, compared to $9.8 million last year. For the six months to September 30, 2022 the group’s combined ratio for the health and general insurance businesses was 76.5% which compares well, Argus said, with the three-year average of 76.3%.

Substantial rises in market interest rates over the six-months to September 2022 resulted in unrealised losses in the group’s fixed-income bond portfolios and a $16.2 million decline in consolidated net equity over the period.

Argus chief executive officer, Alison Hill, said the financial results for the six-month period had been driven largely by the global inflationary pressures and the resulting increases in interest rates.

“We invite our investors and customers to take a closer look at our group results to recognise the core strength and resilience of our underlying operations during these volatile times,” Hill said.

She added: “The group’s fixed income bonds are of high quality and typically held to maturity, allowing unrealised losses to unwind over the remaining life of the asset. We therefore view the six-month decline in shareholders’ equity as temporary.”

Shareholders’ equity has grown $20.9 million, or approximately 20%, since March 2018. During the same period the group has deployed $2.9 million in share buy-backs and returned $18.2 million to shareholders in dividend payments.

Economic activity returned to more normal levels during the six-month period, Argus said, with benefit and claims costs across its core businesses increasing $2.2 million, or about 6 percent, compared to the prior year. Net premiums earned within its core insurance businesses increased $4.0 million, or about 7 percent.

Combined fee income was $21.3 million, a decrease of $0.4 million (about 2%) over the prior year, largely from market driven declines in pension administration fee income.




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31 October 2022   Its commitments are “natural and authentic”.
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22 June 2022   Its combined ratio was 78%.