Travelers reports huge turnaround

Travelers reports huge turnaround | Insurance Business America

Insurance News

Travelers reports huge turnaround

Chief executive lifts the lid on improved financials

Insurance News

By
Terry Gangcuangco

Insurance company Travelers has published its interim financial results, revealing a major turnaround in the second quarter.

Here’s how the insurer performed in the three months and six months ended June 30, 2024:

Metric

Q2 2024

Q2 2023

H1 2024

H1 2023

Net written premiums

$11.12 billion

$10.32 billion

$21.30 billion

$19.71 billion

Total revenues

$11.28 billion

$10.10 billion

$22.51 billion

$19.80 billion

Net income (loss)

$534 million

$(14 million)

$1.66 billion

$961 million

Core income

$585 million

$15 million

$1.68 billion

$985 million

Combined ratio

100.2%

106.5%

97.1%

101.1%

Lifting the lid on the numbers, Travelers chair and chief executive Alan Schnitzer stated: “We are pleased to have generated a strong bottom line result in a quarter that included a record level of severe convective storms across the United States.

“Core income of $585 million, or $2.51 per diluted share, benefited from excellent underlying results, favorable net prior year reserve development, and higher investment income.

“Underlying underwriting income of $1.2 billion pre-tax was up 55% over the prior year quarter, driven by record net earned premiums of $10.2 billion and a consolidated underlying combined ratio that improved 3.4 points to an excellent 87.7%.

“Net earned premiums were higher in all three of our business segments. The underlying combined ratio in our business insurance segment was an excellent 89.2%; the underlying combined ratio in our bond & specialty insurance business improved 1.7 points to a very strong 86.1%; and the underlying combined ratio in personal insurance improved by nearly eight points to a terrific 86.3%.”

The firm’s net written premiums for business insurance grew by 7%; for bond & specialty insurance, 8%; and for personal insurance, 9%.

Investments-wise, the company’s portfolio generated after-tax net investment income of $727 million, thanks to what Schnitzer described as “strong and reliable returns” from Travelers’ growing fixed income portfolio as well as higher returns from its non-fixed income portfolio.

The CEO highlighted that Travelers returned $498 million of excess capital to its shareholders in the quarter, including share repurchases worth $253 million.

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