AXIS swings to loss in Q3 but optimistic on strong pricing momentum

Bermuda-based re/insurer AXIS Capital Holdings saw its business shrink and swung to loss in the third quarter of 2020, blaming "exceptional levels" of  catastrophe loss activity, but its chief executive Albert Benchimol showed "great optimism" on positive pricing momentum with rates up 16 percent in the insurance segment.

AXIS reported a net loss of $73 million in Q3 2020, having made a $28 million profit in the same period of 2019.

Gross written premiums decreased by $75 million to $1.3 billion. AXIS said the reversal was due to a decrease of $116 million in the reinsurance segment, and was partially offset by an increase of $41 million in the insurance segment.

The re/insurer’s combined ratio jumped to 114.5 percent, from 109.4 percent in Q3 2019.

Albert Benchimol, president and chief executive officer of AXIS Capital, highlighted the “encouraging progress” the company has made in a “quarter in which the world and our industry were impacted by exceptional levels of cat loss activity.”

"The losses that we experienced during the quarter were consistent with our reduced catastrophe exposure, reflecting the changes that we’ve made in recent years to re-position our portfolio," he said. "We continue to see positive trends in our underlying performance, highlighted by a year-over-year improvement of 5.2 points to our current accident year combined ratio ex-cat and weather this quarter, bringing the year-to-date reduction to 4.5 points.

Benchimol added: "We look to the future with great optimism. AXIS is well positioned in its chosen markets, we have excellent relationships with our producers, and we’re seeing strong pricing momentum, highlighted by a 16% rate increase during the quarter in our Insurance segment. We’re confident that AXIS is on a strong path forward, as we continue to build a world class leader in specialty risks."