Universal Insurance profit jumps 31.8% to $52.506 million in third quarter
Key Facts
Net income available to common shareholders at Universal Insurance Holdings rose 31.8% year over year to $52.506 million in the third quarter of 2026, compared with $39.827 million in the same period a year earlier, according to the company’s filing with the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission. Diluted earnings per share under generally accepted accounting principles were $1.80, versus $1.38 a year earlier. Adjusted diluted earnings per share also rose to $1.93 from $1.36. The company said adjusted net income increased mainly on improved underwriting and net investment income. The annualized return on average common equity was 32.7% for the quarter, Chief Executive Officer Stephen Donaghy said.
Total revenue increased 9.6% to $439.319 million from $400.981 million in the third quarter of 2025, while core revenue rose 11.1% to $444.310 million from $400.030 million. Net premiums earned climbed 12.1% to $403.196 million from $359.676 million. The company attributed the increase to higher direct premiums earned and a lower percentage of premiums ceded to reinsurers. The ceded premium ratio was 27.6%, compared with 32.7% in the year-earlier quarter. The company said the decline mainly reflected its new reinsurance program, which took effect on June 1, 2026.
Underwriting improved as the net loss ratio fell to 64.6% from 70.2% a year earlier. Meanwhile, the net expense ratio edged up to 26.4% from 26.2%. The lower loss ratio brought the net combined ratio down to 91.0% from 96.4% in the third quarter of 2025. The figures mean losses and expenses combined accounted for a smaller share of net premiums earned than a year earlier. Donaghy said the company delivered a “very strong annualized return of 32.7% on common equity,” linking it to underwriting and revenue performance. He added that new-business trends were solid and in-force policies grew 8%, according to his comments.
Growth in the customer base strengthened the company’s performance, with in-force policies reaching 953,611 as of September 30, 2026, up 7.9% from 883,888 on the same date a year earlier. Donaghy said in-force policies grew 8%, a reading broadly consistent with the year-over-year comparison in the filing. For the first nine months of the year, net income available to common shareholders rose to $165.980 million from $116.354 million in the same period, a 42.7% increase. Net investment income in the quarter also rose to $21.478 million from $18.337 million a year earlier. The company attributed the increase to higher invested assets and reinvestment yields on fixed income.
The company declared a quarterly cash dividend of 16 cents per share on July 8, 2026, payable on August 7 to shareholders of record on July 31. During the third quarter, it repurchased about 174,000 shares at a total cost of $7.4 million. It reported that about $1.1 million remained under its repurchase authorization after those transactions. Universal Insurance held a conference call to discuss its quarterly results on October 23, 2026, at 10:00 a.m. Eastern time. That day, UVE shares closed at $48.84, according to EL7 data.
The quarterly results preceded Hurricane Isaias’ landfall near Destin in Florida’s western Panhandle, after the financial period ended. The company said the hurricane made landfall as a Category 2 storm and then weakened quickly as it moved inland. It added that claims activity through the date of the statement was lower than initially expected. This places the claims estimate among developments after the quarterly figures, rather than within the period ended September 30. The filing did not provide a figure for losses caused by the hurricane.