David Greenfield
Analyst · JMP Securities. Please proceed
Thank you, Fred and good morning everyone. Our first quarter results were very strong and represent a great start to the year underscoring the effectiveness of our business diversification and the strength of our underwriting capabilities. Net income was $55 million, or $1.22 per diluted share in line with the prior year quarter. Operating income was $57 million, or $1.27 per diluted share compared to $47 million or $1.05 per diluted share in the first quarter of last year. The combined ratio was 97% in the quarter compared to 98% in the prior year quarter. Catastrophe losses added 5 points to the combined ratio in line with the prior year quarter virtually all stemming from domestic business in both periods. The X catastrophe accident year combined ratio improved by 1 point compared to the prior year quarter reflecting the strengthening underwriting margins in our domestic business. As a company, we continue to improve our business mix. Our diversified footprint is evident from this quarter’s results despite the severe winter weather we encountered in the Northeast. Catastrophe losses in the quarter were $59 million domestically, primarily due to record snowfall and prolonged low temperatures in the Northeast, especially in Massachusetts that resulted in elevated claims for roof collapses, ice dams and associated water related damages. Non-catastrophe losses also were elevated compared to longer term averages. However, they were generally in line with the impact of the polar vortex that occurred in the first quarter last year making underlying accident year results for the two periods generally comparable. Chaucer catastrophe losses were low this quarter, which helped to offset the elevated weather impact in the domestic business. Moving on to underwriting results excluding catastrophe losses, in Commercial Lines through consistent pricing increases and mix management initiatives, we were able to drive roughly one point improvement in the loss ratio to 58% led by workers compensation and CMP lines. In commercial auto, the accident year loss ratio was unchanged compared to the prior year quarter. The underlying loss dynamics in the current quarter, however, were different from last year. Bodily injury was in line with expectations as we have seen some improvement coming from pricing actions and severity profile management. However, this quarter we noted an increase in physical damage frequency, which we attribute to the heavy snow accumulation this winter. Our recent experiences improved our confidence in this line, but overall this business remains below target profitability and continues to warrant a cautious approach. In that regard, we modestly added to prior year reserves this quarter. We will continue to carefully monitor business mix and rates in relation to loss trends and react appropriately to further improve our profitability. The underlying loss ratio in other Commercial Lines, which includes our domestic specialty business improved compared to the prior year quarter and was one point better than the full year 2014 results. We are definitely seeing the effect of continuing business maturation, mix management and pricing actions. However, this was somewhat offset during the quarter by normal volatility in property lines, which affected the current year as well as prior year reserves due to late reported large property losses from the fourth quarter of 2014. In Personal Lines, the underlying loss ratio for the quarter was 64%, two points better than the 66% in the first quarter of 2014. We experienced some improvement in the accident year loss ratio both in personal auto and homeowners, underscoring our underwriting initiatives. Rate increases in both lines are in the 5% range, which is comfortably above loss cost levels, providing confidence in our ability to generate further margin accretion. Domestic expense results were as we expected. In Commercial Lines, we delivered an expense ratio improvement over 0.5 point compared to the prior year quarter, reducing the ratio to 36%. This improvement reflects continued operating efficiencies and growth leverage, partially offset by mix shift impact of growing our specialty businesses. The Personal Lines expense ratio for the quarter remained relatively flat compared to the prior year quarter. Chaucer delivered a strong performance with a combined ratio of 89% compared to 88% in the prior year quarter. Catastrophe losses were low this quarter at one point of the combined ratio, while favorable development was strong at eight points helped by the impact of foreign exchange on carried reserves. In the quarter, Chaucer recognized $17.4 million of premium and an equal amount of loss reserves related to our reinsurance-to-close transaction or RITC that had no effect on underlying earnings and a negligible impact on the accident year combined ratio. However, this transaction increased the loss ratio by approximately two points and reduced the expense ratio by a similar amount. Excluding the impact of the RITC, the current quarter loss ratio would have been in line with the prior year quarter, while the expense ratio would have increased by about a point driven by change in business mix and the impact of foreign exchange on overseas deposits. Finally, I would like to provide some financial details around the recent UK Motor announcement. The transaction will be executed through 100% reinsurance arrangement for all prior claim liabilities and in-force policies along with property sales and policy renewals. Upon closing, which is expected in the third quarter, our net reserves and invested assets will be reduced by approximately $350 million each. That’s based on current exchange rates as these amounts will all be pound denominated. The impact on earnings this year will be negligible, but the components of Chaucer’s combined ratio will change going forward. The UK motor business produces a relatively higher loss ratio and lower expense ratio as compared to the rest of Chaucer’s business. We anticipate that pulling this business out of the mix will result in a target expense ratio for the go-forward business of around 39% to 40%, up from 38%, which will be offset by a decrease in the overall expected loss ratio. Additionally, the transfer of invested assets at closing will result in lower net investment income in the future. The total consideration for the transaction is approximately $60 million. We expect after adjusting for related intangibles, accounting for the value of the real estate sold, as well as transaction costs and other items, we will realize a gain on the transaction in the range of $30 million. The actual gain will depend on several factors, including the exchange rate at the time of closing. Moving on, consolidated net written premium growth for the quarter was 4%, driven by 8% growth in Commercial Lines and 2% in Personal Lines partially offset by a 2% decrease in Chaucer, which includes a negative impact from foreign exchange of about 3 points. Fred will have more to say on our top line performance in a few moments. Turning to investment results, cash and invested assets were $8.6 billion at the end of the quarter, with fixed income securities and cash representing 90% of the total. Our fixed maturity investment portfolio has the duration of 4.2 years and is roughly 94% investment grade. The portfolio remains high quality and well lathered. We increased net investment income by 5% for the quarter to $70 million compared to $67 million in the prior year quarter. The low rate environment continues to place pressure on income returns. The earned yield on our fixed maturity portfolio was 3.64% in the quarter compared to 3.79% in the prior year quarter and 3.65% in the fourth quarter of 2014. However, we continue to expand our portfolio mix into non-fixed income security instruments, including commercial mortgages, partnerships and other assets. Together with higher cash flows, this helped to offset the yield pressure in the first quarter and should lead to a modestly higher net investment income in 2015 after considering the U.K. motor transaction. I will finish with a few comments on the strength of our balance sheet and capital position. Book value per share grew 1.6% to $65.92 in the first quarter. Our total capitalization is $3.7 billion. Outstanding debt decreased to $841 million at quarter end after we opportunistically bought back $62 million of debt during the quarter. The debt-to-capital ratio decreased 1.6 points to 22.5% from 24.1% at the end of 2014. In addition to debt repurchases, we also purchased about 219,000 shares of common stock for a total of $15.4 million since the beginning of this year. Looking ahead, we will continue to actively evaluate opportunities to repurchase equity and debt though our belief remains that capital is best deployed for continued business growth. Overall, our balance sheet position remains strong and provides a solid basis on which to grow our business. And with that, I will turn the call back to Fred.