RenRe sees profits rise despite nat cat impact

RenaissanceRe (RenRe) Holdings has said that it made a profit of $36.7 million in the third quarter of 2019, a rise on the $32.7 million it announced for the third quarter of 2018.

Operating income for the period was $13.0 million, a fall from the $17.8 million reported from the third quarter of 2018.

The company said that it had been hit by a net negative impact on net income of $154.9 million from Hurricane Dorian and Typhoon Faxai in the third quarter of 2019.

Gross premiums written increased by $235.4 million, or 37.6 percent, to $861.1 million, in the third quarter of 2019 compared to the third quarter of 2018, driven by an increase of $222.4 million in the casualty and specialty segment and an increase of $13.0 million in the property segment.

RenRe also reported an underwriting loss of $3.4 million and a combined ratio of 100.4 percent in the third quarter of 2019, compared to an underwriting loss of $29.0 million and a combined ratio of 105.5 percent in the third quarter of 2018.

Looking at RenRe’s segments in more detail, its property segment incurred an underwriting loss of $7.7 million and had a combined ratio of 101.7 percent in the third quarter of 2019. The casualty and specialty segment generated underwriting income of $4.5 million and had a combined ratio of 99.0 percent the third quarter of 2019. The company’s underwriting results in the third quarter of 2019 were principally impacted by the Q3 2019 catastrophe events, which resulted in an underwriting loss of $181.9 million and added 20.6 percentage points to the combined ratio.

The third quarter of 2018 included the impacts of Typhoons Jebi, Mangkhut and Trami, Hurricane Florence and the wildfires in California during the third quarter of 2018, which resulted in an underwriting loss of $178.0 million and added 34.4 percentage points to the combined ratio.

Total investment result was a gain of $145.8 million in the third quarter of 2019, generating an annualised total investment return of 3.6 percent.

“In an active period for the industry, we assisted our customers in managing the quarter’s catastrophic events while rapidly paying their claims,” said Kevin J. O’Donnell, president and CEO of RenaissanceRe. “I am proud of our team’s hard work during the quarter and pleased to report positive net and operating income and growth in tangible book value per share plus accumulated dividends. Our value proposition lies in quantifying risk and absorbing large losses as they occur, contributing to the resilience of communities and building stronger relationships with our partners. As we look forward to 2020, these strong relationships combined with our differentiated strategy will provide us with many opportunities to continue delivering long-term value.”