Reinsurance Group of America Reports Third Quarter Results
– Earnings per diluted share: $4.12 from net income, $4.02 from adjusted operating income*
– ROE 7.6% and adjusted operating ROE* 10.7% for the trailing twelve months
– Deployed capital of $150 million into in-force and other transactions in the quarter Reinsurance Group of America, Incorporated (NYSE: RGA), a leading global provider of life reinsurance, reported third quarter net income of $262.8 million, or $4.12 per diluted share, compared with $301.2 million, or $4.68 per diluted share, in the prior-year quarter. Adjusted operating income* totaled $256.3 million, or $4.02 per diluted share, compared with $259.4 million, or $4.03 per diluted share, the year before. Net foreign currency fluctuations had an adverse effect of $0.02 per diluted share on net income and adjusted operating income as compared with the prior year.
In the third quarter, consolidated net premiums totaled $2.8 billion, up 10% from last year’s third quarter of $2.6 billion, with adverse net foreign currency effects of $34.9 million. Excluding spread-based businesses and the value of associated derivatives, investment income increased 13% versus a year ago, reflecting asset growth of 7% and higher variable investment income. The average investment yield, excluding spread business, was up 26 basis points from the third quarter of 2018 to 4.83% primarily due to higher variable investment income.
The effective tax rate this quarter was 24.3% on pre-tax income. The effective tax rate was 23.5% on pre-tax adjusted operating income for the quarter, at the higher end of the expected range of 21% to 24%.
Anna Manning, President and Chief Executive Officer, commented, “This was a very good quarter for us in many respects, as bottom-line results, premium growth and capital deployment were all strong. We continue to benefit from earnings diversity that comes from our global operating platform. Outstanding performances by several of our key businesses helped us to deliver strong bottom-line results in spite of earnings variability by segment and ongoing macroeconomic headwinds including lower interest rates and a strong U.S. dollar.
“Highlights for the quarter included strong results in EMEA, Canada and U.S. Asset-Intensive, and the U.S. Group business performed above expectations. Investment results were very good, as alternative investments produced strong returns. These areas of strength more than offset a loss in Australia and unfavorable U.S. Individual Mortality experience. “We had another successful quarter with $150 million of capital deployed into in-force and other transactions, bringing the year-to-date total to $385 million. We also repurchased $30 million of common shares during the quarter for a year-to-date total of $80 million. We ended the quarter with an excess capital position of approximately $1.0 billion.
“Looking forward, we remain optimistic about the future and our business prospects, as RGA is well positioned in its markets, and we have a proven strategy. Ours is a long-term business and can be best judged by results over longer periods of time. We point to a long track record of successful execution and strong financial results, and we expect to continue to deliver attractive financial returns into the future.”
SEGMENT RESULTS
U.S. and Latin America
Traditional
The U.S. and Latin America Traditional segment reported pre-tax income of $112.5 million, compared with $116.3 million in the third quarter of 2018. Pre-tax adjusted operating income totaled $122.1 million, compared with $116.4 million the year before, benefiting from favorable experience in the Group business and strong variable investment income, in part offset by unfavorable individual mortality experience. The year-ago period reflected favorable mortality experience and above-average variable investment income. Traditional net premiums were up 3% from last year’s third quarter to $1,404.2 million.
Financial Solutions
The Asset-Intensive business reported pre-tax income of $99.7 million compared with $65.5 million last year. Third quarter pre-tax adjusted operating income increased to $65.6 million, up from $63.8 million a year ago, attributable to new business and favorable longevity experience on a block of payout annuities. The Financial Reinsurance business reported pre-tax income and pre-tax adjusted operating income of $19.2 million, down modestly from $21.6 million the year before.
Canada
Traditional
The Canada Traditional segment reported pre-tax income of $43.7 million, compared with $21.1 million the year before. Pre-tax adjusted operating income more than doubled to $44.3 million from $20.0 million a year ago, reflecting continued favorable individual mortality experience. The prior-year quarter reflected unfavorable individual mortality experience. Foreign currency exchange rates had an adverse effect of $0.5 million on pre-tax income and pre-tax adjusted operating income. Reported net premiums totaled $270.8 million for the quarter, up 11% over the year-ago period, primarily due to in-force transactions entered into in 2018. Net foreign currency fluctuations had an adverse effect of $2.9 million on net premiums.
Financial Solutions
The Canada Financial Solutions business segment, which consists of longevity and fee-based transactions, reported third quarter pre-tax income and pre-tax adjusted operating income of $3.1 million, compared with $1.6 million a year ago. The current period reflected favorable longevity experience. Net foreign currency fluctuations had an immaterial effect on pre-tax income and pre-tax adjusted operating income.
Europe, Middle East and Africa (EMEA)
Traditional
The EMEA Traditional segment reported pre-tax income of $25.3 million compared with $18.4 million in last year’s third quarter. Pre-tax adjusted operating income totaled $25.5 million, compared with $18.4 million, attributable primarily to favorable underwriting experience overall, while the year-ago period reflected modestly favorable underwriting results. Net foreign currency fluctuations adversely affected pre-tax income and pre-tax adjusted operating income by $1.2 million for the quarter. Reported net premiums increased 6% to $359.4 million in the third quarter. Foreign currency exchange rates adversely affected net premiums by $17.1 million.
Financial Solutions
The EMEA Financial Solutions business segment, which consists of longevity, asset-intensive and fee-based transactions, reported third quarter pre-tax income of $61.2 million, compared with $56.2 million in the year-ago period. Pre-tax adjusted operating income totaled $59.0 million, compared with $56.4 million the year before. Both periods were above expectations, reflecting favorable experience in both asset-intensive and longevity business. Net foreign currency fluctuations adversely affected pre-tax income by $3.4 million and pre-tax adjusted operating income by $3.3 million.
Asia Pacific
Traditional
The Asia Pacific Traditional segment’s pre-tax income and pre-tax adjusted operating income totaled $21.5 million, compared with $62.0 million in the prior-year period. The current-period results reflected a larger loss than experienced in recent quarters in Australia and modestly unfavorable results in Asia. The year-ago period reflected favorable experience in Asia, which was slightly offset by a loss in Australia. Net foreign currency fluctuations had a favorable effect of $3.1 million on pre-tax income and pre-tax adjusted operating income. Reported net premiums increased 19% to $655.9 million, reflecting growth on new and existing treaties in Asia, partially offset by a reduction in Australia. Foreign currency exchange rates had an adverse effect of $11.9 million on net premiums.
Financial Solutions
The Asia Pacific Financial Solutions business segment, which consists of asset-intensive and fee-based transactions, reported third quarter pre-tax income of $1.9 million, compared with $0.2 million in the prior-year period. Pre-tax adjusted operating income totaled $4.6 million, compared with $1.3 million the year before, attributable to new business in Asia. Net foreign currency fluctuations had a favorable effect of $0.4 million on pre-tax income and $0.1 million on pre-tax adjusted operating income. Reported net premiums increased significantly to $30.0 million, attributable to new treaties added in this year. Foreign currency exchange rates had a favorable effect of $0.8 million on net premiums.
Corporate and Other
The Corporate and Other segment’s pre-tax losses totaled $41.0 million, compared with pre-tax losses of $40.3 million the year before. Pre-tax adjusted operating losses totaled $29.9 million, compared with year-ago pre-tax adjusted operating losses of $18.1 million. The current-period loss was higher than the average expected run rate due primarily to costs related to higher incentive based compensation accruals, strategic initiatives and service businesses. The prior-year period benefited from higher variable investment income.
Dividend Declaration
The board of directors declared a regular quarterly dividend of $0.70, payable December 3 to shareholders of record as of November 12.