White Mountains reports Q1 loss driven by MediaAlpha investment
White Mountains Insurance Group reported a loss in the first quarter of 2021, with the chief executive admitting the business had got off to a slow start this year, but stressing the fundamental health of the business.
White Mountains reported a comprehensive loss of $74 million in Q1 2021, compared to a loss of $132 million in the same period the previous year.
Ark, the business White Mountains acquired at the start of 2021, reported gross written premiums of $404.5 million, up more than twofold year on year, with renewal pricing up more than 10 percent. Its combined ratio was 108 percent in Q1, with the business suffering heavy cat losses, primarily related to Winter Storm Uri.
BAM reported gross written premiums of $12.5 million in Q1, up from $9.7 million the previous year. HG Global reported net written premiums of $10.7 million, up from $8.3 million.
White Mountains said its losses had been driven primarily by $42 million of net investment losses from its investment in MediaAlpha, and a $29 million loss related to NSM's sale of its Fresh Insurance motor business.
Manning Rountree, White Mountains chief executive officer, admitted the business had got off to a slow start in 2021, but insisted its underlying operating results were sound. “BAM enjoyed its strongest first quarter on record, driven by primary market penetration and another significant assumed reinsurance transaction,” he said.
“Excluding MediaAlpha, our investment portfolio was up 0.7 percent in the quarter," he added. "Reflecting $160 million of net proceeds from the MediaAlpha secondary offering in March, we finished the quarter with roughly $300 million in undeployed capital."
