Novae Group plc Interim results for the six months ended 30 June 2017
Novae Group plc (“Novae” or “the Group”), the specialty insurance group which has recently recommended an offer from AXIS Capital Holdings Limited (“AXIS”), today announces its interim results for the six months ended 30 June 2017.
· Gross written premium of £598.8 million (H1 2016: £513.1 million)
· Weighted average rates on renewal premium reduced by 1.8% (H1 2016: reduced by 3.9%)
· Combined ratio of 101.6% (H1 2016 restated: 95.7%)
· Combined ratio excluding our Exited Division 94.7% (H1 2016 restated: 89.3%)
· Net investment income of £17.3 million (H1 2016: £28.4 million)
· Loss before tax, foreign exchange and non-recurring items of £2.2 million (H1 2016 restated: profit of £39.4 million)
· Loss before tax of £14.0 million (H1 2016 restated: profit before tax of £65.3 million)
· The Board is not recommending payment of an interim dividend
Matthew Fosh, Chief Executive Officer, today said:
“Our strategy since 2015 has been to re-engineer our underwriting portfolio in the face of a deteriorating soft market which has tested even the largest industry players, and our result for H1 2017 should be seen in that context.
It has only been by Novae focussing on niche classes where it could demonstrate a sustainable competitive advantage that the long-term prospects of the business could best be served. Our specialist underwriting expertise is highly complementary with AXIS’ own successful specialty franchise and has resulted in their offer to acquire the business. The proposed transaction will provide us with the increased scale and financial resources to better compete in current markets.“
Novae Group plc interim report 2017
For further information:
Matthew Fosh/Reeken Patel
Novae Group plc 020 7050 9000
David Haggie
Haggie Partners 020 7562 4444