Solid growth for Greenlight but its profits plummet in Q1

Gross written premiums grew steadily at Greenlight Capital Re in the first quarter as its CEO said he was pleased with the January renewals. But the company’s profits plummeted largely as a result of higher expenses.

The company made a net profit of $8.4 million for the first quarter of 2017, compared to net income of $28.7 million for the same period in 2016. One of the biggest changes in the quarter was the company’s expenses which increased to $154.7 million compared with $136.6 million a year earlier.

But Greenlight Re also made an underwriting loss of $0.2 million, compared with underwriting income of $3.7 million in the first quarter of 2016. Its combined ratio for the period was 100.1 percent compared with 97.3 percent for the prior-year period.

Its net investment income of $11.6 million, which represented a gain of 0.9 percent, was also down on the $28.4 million it reported in the comparable period in 2016 when Greenlight Re reported a 2.5% gain.

“The investment environment remains challenging for our value investing strategy,” said David Einhorn, chairman of the board of directors. “We continue to keep a conservative posture given the rising equity markets despite potential economic and political risks.”

The company enjoyed solid growth, however. Its gross written premiums of $197.2 million represented an increase from $166.8 million in the first quarter of 2016.

“We were pleased with our January 1 renewals. Our underwriting portfolio grew during the quarter, as we continue to identify attractive opportunities and retain relationships with partners who are growing their businesses,” said Leonard Goldberg, interim chief executive officer of Greenlight Re.

“The reinsurance market remains very competitive and we remain diligent in our underwriting and conservative in our growth expectations.”

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