Travelers reports huge turnaround | Insurance Business America

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:

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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