In This Article:
-
Net Income: $418 million or $1.04 per share.
-
Annualized Return on Equity: 19.9%.
-
Operating Earnings: $405 million or $1.01 per share.
-
Calendar Year Combined Ratio: 90.9%.
-
Current Accident Year Combined Ratio (excluding cat losses): 87.2%.
-
Catastrophe Losses: 3.7 loss ratio points or $111 million.
-
Net Premiums Earned: $3 billion.
-
Net Premiums Written: Over $3.1 billion.
-
Insurance Segment Growth: 10.2% to $2.7 billion.
-
Reinsurance & Monoline Excess Segment Growth: 8.2% to $439 million.
-
Net Investment Income: Increased 12.6% to $360 million.
-
Net Invested Assets: $30.7 billion.
-
Operating Cash Flows: $744 million.
-
Foreign Currency Losses: $19 million.
-
Effective Tax Rate: 22.5%.
-
Stockholders' Equity: Increased by more than $500 million to $8.9 billion.
-
Book Value Per Share Growth: 7.1% in the quarter.
-
Cash and Cash Equivalents: More than $1.9 billion.
-
Financial Leverage: 24.2%.
Release Date: April 21, 2025
For the complete transcript of the earnings call, please refer to the full earnings call transcript.
Positive Points
-
WR Berkley Corp (NYSE:WRB) reported a strong first quarter with net income of $418 million, or $1.04 per share, and an annualized return on beginning of year equity of 19.9%.
-
The company achieved record net premiums written of more than $3.1 billion, with the insurance segment growing by 10.2% and the Reinsurance & Monoline Excess segment by 8.2%.
-
Net investment income increased by 12.6% to $360 million, driven by record net invested assets and higher new money rates.
-
The company's balance sheet remains robust, with stockholders' equity increasing by more than $500 million to a record $8.9 billion.
-
WR Berkley Corp (NYSE:WRB) maintained a strong credit quality with a portfolio rated AA minus and a low financial leverage of 24.2%.
Negative Points
-
The company faced significant industry-wide catastrophic activity, particularly from the California wildfires, resulting in cat losses of $111 million.
-
The current accident year loss ratio, excluding cats, increased by 30 basis points over the prior year due to business mix.
-
Foreign currency losses amounted to $19 million due to the weakening US dollar.
-
Professional liability and cyber insurance markets have become particularly competitive, impacting growth opportunities.
-
The company is closely monitoring the impact of tariffs on loss costs, which could affect future pricing and profitability.
Q & A Highlights
Q: Can you elaborate on the growth in short-tail lines, particularly property and A&H? A: We continue to see opportunities in property lines and the A&H space. In property, we are pushing rates at a healthy pace, especially in risk and cat fronts, despite competition from Lloyds. Berkley One, our high net worth personal lines business, is also growing while taking healthy rates.