Shares of the UK-based Beazley PLC (GB:BEZ) surged by nearly 12% as of writing after the company reported a 7% growth in written premiums, reaching $3.12 billion in the first half. Additionally, its net insurance written premiums grew by 10% year-over-year to $2.6 billion. Beazley further stated that its pre-tax profit almost doubled to a record $728.9 million in the first half from $336.4 million a year earlier.
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Beazley’s expertise in underwriting and managing its risks effectively was the major driving force behind the company’s strong performance in the first half. The company delivered impressive results even though the market for setting insurance rates is becoming less favourable.
Beazley is a leading cyber insurance company that provides a wide range of solutions for data privacy and security risk management.
Beazley’s Improved Combined Ratio
Beazley reported an improved undiscounted combined ratio of 81% in H1 2024 as compared to 88% in H1 2023. Similarly, the discounted combined ratio improved to 77%, down from 84% a year ago. Beazley has updated its undiscounted combined ratio guidance for the full year to around 80%.
The combined ratio, a key insurance profitability metric, reflects the ratio of claims and expenses to earned premiums. A lower combined ratio signals better performance, showing the insurer is earning more from premiums than it spends on claims and expenses.
Earlier in July, Beazley reaffirmed its full-year combined ratio guidance in the low-80s, despite a global IT outage that affected millions of Microsoft (MSFT) Windows devices. The company assured investors that this incident would not impact its profitability.
More on BEZ’s H1 Results
Among its businesses, Beazley’s Insurance Service results increased by 63% year-over-year to $558 million. Moreover, the company announced that its share buyback of up to $325 million is on track for completion by the end of 2024.
Looking ahead, the company maintained its premium growth outlook of high single digits for the full year.
Are Beazley Shares a Good Buy?
As per the consensus of analysts on TipRanks, BEZ stock holds a Strong Buy rating, supported by seven Buy recommendations. The Beazley share price forecast is 887.14p, which is 24% higher than the current trading level.
