Assicurazioni Generali Reports Lower Q3 Net Profit Amid Economic Slowdown

By Adria Calatayud

Assicurazioni Generali, the Italian insurer, has highlighted concerns of weaker demand in the insurance industry due to signs of a global economic slowdown. The company reported a decline in net profit for the third quarter.

Third Quarter Performance

In the third quarter, net profit for Assicurazioni Generali dropped to 579 million euros ($628.4 million) from last year's 591 million euros. Quarterly operating profit also experienced a decline of 5.8%, amounting to 1.38 billion euros.

The property-and-casualty segment of the insurer was adversely affected by natural-catastrophe claims resulting from floods and hailstorms in certain European countries during the same period. However, the life segment demonstrated improvement when compared to previous quarters.

January-September Results

Generali's net profit for the January-September period totaled 2.82 billion euros, an increase from the previous year's 1.46 billion euros.

During this period, gross written premiums witnessed a growth of 4.7%, reaching 60.46 billion euros. Operating profit also experienced a substantial increase of 17%, amounting to 5.10 billion euros. The growth in gross written premiums and operating profit was largely driven by the property-and-casualty insurance sector, which managed to offset the impact of natural catastrophes in the third quarter through a lower loss ratio.

Analyst Expectations

According to consensus estimates provided by the company, analysts anticipated that Generali would report gross written premiums of 60.21 billion euros and an operating profit of 5.04 billion euros for the first nine months.

Future Plans

Generali plans to rebalance its life-insurance portfolio with the intention of enhancing profitability. The company has also confirmed its mid-term targets until 2024.