(Reuters) — Generali on Tuesday reported first-quarter premiums and net profit that beat analysts’ estimates as the life segment returned to positive net flows, but the nonlife business failed to impress investors, sending its shares down.
The Italian insurer’s quarterly adjusted net profit of €1.12 billion ($1.22 billion) beat the €979 million analyst consensus provided by the company. It was down 9% from the year-earlier period because of a one-off capital gain related to the sale of a property development booked last year, Generali said.
The closely watched operating profit rose 5.5% to €1.9 billion, broadly in line with expectations.
J.P. Morgan analysts said that while the figure was 1% below their estimates Generali showed “strong relative performance” overall.
Generali shares were down 3%, underperforming the Italian blue-chip index and the European insurance index. Some analysts pointed to lower-than-expected profitability in the property/casualty business as a reason for disappointment.
Group premiums rose 21.4% to €26.4 billion, ahead of the €23 billion consensus, as the life segment recorded net inflows of €2.3 billion, which Generali credited mainly to a strong improvement in savings and pension products.
The insurer’s solvency ratio, a measure of its financial strength, was 215% at the end of March and rose to 217% as of May 15, head of finance Cristiano Borean told reporters.
He said Generali was well on track to achieve all its targets, including an annual growth rate in earnings per share between 6% and 8% in 2022-2024 and cumulative dividends up to €5.6 billion.
