Chubb posts record operating earnings per share of $7.66 despite higher catastrophe losses
Key Facts
Insurer Chubb said on October 20, 2026, that core operating income per share rose to a record $7.66 in the third quarter, while total core operating income declined year on year. The company said in its earnings release that net income was $2.84 billion for the period, while core operating income reached $2.98 billion. The increase in earnings per share came during a period of higher catastrophe losses, while adjusted pre-tax investment income hit a record. Compared with the previous quarter, total core operating income exceeded its second-quarter level of $2.84 billion. The company had reported year-on-year growth in core operating income of 14.6% in that quarter, before the annual trend turned negative in the third quarter.
Net pre-tax catastrophe losses rose to $705 million in the third quarter from $285 million in the same period a year earlier, according to the company's announcement. Management linked the year-on-year performance comparison to exceptionally low catastrophe losses in the previous year, which made the comparison with that period more difficult. In property and casualty insurance, underwriting income totaled $2.06 billion for the quarter as the company absorbed higher catastrophe losses. The business recorded a combined ratio of 84.1%, according to figures Chubb included in its insurance results for the period. The business thus continued to generate underwriting income while facing a higher catastrophe burden than in the corresponding quarter, as the group's core operating income declined year on year.
On the investment side, adjusted pre-tax net investment income reached a record $1.89 billion, according to Chubb's third-quarter earnings release. Management attributed the support for this income to higher interest rates and the fixed-income investment environment, as the insurance business faced increased catastrophe losses. The record investment contribution came alongside property and casualty underwriting income as part of the group's performance during the period. On cash generation, the company also reported record operating cash flow of $6.07 billion in the third quarter. The reported records thus extended to investment income, operating cash flow and core operating income per share, despite the year-on-year decline in the total for the latter measure.
Group net premiums written totaled about $15.1 billion in the third quarter, with business trends diverging between North America commercial insurance and overseas general insurance. North America commercial insurance premiums fell 2.7% year on year, according to the company's reported results. Chubb attributed the decline to reduced risk exposure, increased reinsurance and policy non-renewals. By contrast, overseas general insurance premiums grew 6.7% from the same period a year earlier, as commercial premiums in the North American market contracted. The life insurance segment generated income of $369 million during the quarter, alongside the property and casualty and investment businesses covered in the group's earnings announcement.
Chubb operates in 54 countries and territories, according to the company profile included in its earnings conference call announcement. Its businesses covered in the results include North America commercial insurance and overseas general insurance, as well as life insurance and property and casualty insurance. Evan Greenberg had described the company's approach when announcing the previous quarter's results, saying: "As long-term compounders of wealth in a cyclical business." In that statement, Greenberg linked the approach to wealth creation to the long term and the cyclical nature of insurance, as part of his comments on the second-quarter results. The third-quarter announcement followed those earlier results, with premiums growing outside North America and declining in its commercial insurance business within the region, while catastrophe losses rose from a year earlier.
In trading ahead of the earnings announcement, the company's shares, traded under the ticker CB, closed at $356.27 in the October 19, 2026, session, according to EL7 data. That close preceded the October 20 release of third-quarter results, which included record operating earnings per share and higher catastrophe losses. Chubb scheduled its earnings conference call for October 21, 2026, according to its announcement of the call. The call follows the publication of figures showing a year-on-year decline in total core operating income, alongside record investment income and operating cash flow. The earnings call is scheduled for 8:30 a.m. U.S. Eastern Time to discuss the company's third-quarter performance.