Shares in insurance group Beazley PLC (LSE:BEZ), the parent group that manages six of insurer Lloyd’s of London's syndicates, dipped in morning trade after it posted a relatively flat pre-tax profit result for the first half of 2023.
Its share price fell by more than 7% from 541p at the end of trading on Wednesday to a low of 502p in early trading on Thursday.
The insurance group posted a pre-tax profit for the period of US$366.4 million, up from US$364.9 million in the first half of last year, on the back of increased insurance premiums that were offset by higher insurance service costs, according to a statement released today.
Beazley’s total insurance written premiums rose 13% to US$2.92 billion through to the end of June 2023, up from US$2.57 billion in the equivalent part of 2022.
It grew its written insurance premiums in the property sector by 65% to US$805.2 million in the recent period, and premiums in its cyber security segment rose by 14%.
However, its return on equity fell to 18%, down from 26% a year earlier, as this year marked its first year of reporting under the new IFRS 17 international reporting standards.
Its insurance service result, the profit earned from providing insurance coverage and managing assets combined with insurance financing expenses, dropped 37% to US$342 million, down from US$540 million as insurance service costs rose.
The company said its year-end growth guidance including an anticipated net profit in the mid-twenties and gross in the mid-teens “remains unchanged”.
Beazley chief executive officer Adrian Cox said: "Looking ahead, I am confident we are on track to deliver the guidance we set out at the start of the year."