Universal Insurance Holdings, Inc. (UVE) Earnings Call Transcript

Thank you. Good morning, ladies and gentlemen, and welcome to Universal Insurance Holdings, Inc.'s Third Quarter 2026 Earnings Conference Call. [Operator Instructions] As a reminder, this conference call is being recorded. I would now like to turn the conference over to Arash Soleimani, Chief Strategy Officer.

Good morning. Thank you for joining us today. Welcome to our quarterly earnings call. On the call with me today are Stephen J. Donaghy, Chief Executive Officer, and Frank Wilcox, Chief Financial Officer. Before we begin, please note today's discussion may contain forward-looking statements and non-GAAP financial measures. Forward-looking statements involve assumptions, risks, and uncertainties that could cause actual results to differ materially from those statements. For more information, please see the press release on Universal Insurance Holdings, Inc.'s SEC filings, all of which are available on the Investor section of our website at universalinsuranceholdings.com and on the SEC's website. A reconciliation of non-GAAP financial measures to comparable GAAP measures is included in the quarterly press release and can also be found on Universal Insurance Holdings, Inc.'s website at universalinsuranceholdings.com. With that, I'll turn the call over to Steve.

Thanks, Arash. Good morning, everyone. In the quarter, we delivered a very strong 32.7% annualized return on common equity, driven by solid underwriting and revenue performance. Our net loss ratio continues to improve, and new business trends are solid, including 8% growth in policies in force. Subsequent to quarter end, Hurricane Isaias made landfall near Destin in the western Florida Panhandle as a Category 2 hurricane and quickly weakened as it moved inland. Our claims team was deployed immediately with field adjusters on the ground in the affected areas. We have been in direct contact with policyholders to expedite inspections and payments. Our focus is on helping our customers recover as quickly as possible, and we view the storm as manageable based on claims activity to date. I'll turn it over to Frank to walk through our financial results. Frank.

Thanks, Steve, and good morning. Adjusted diluted earnings per common share was $1.93 compared to an adjusted diluted earnings per common share of $1.36 in the prior year quarter. The higher adjusted diluted earnings per common share mostly stems from higher underwriting and net investment income. Core revenue of $444.3 million was up 11.1% year-over-year, with growth primarily stemming from higher net premiums earned and net investment income. Direct premiums written were $608.9 million, up 2.7% from the prior year quarter. The increase stems from 18.5% growth in other states, partially offset by a 3.3% decrease in Florida. Overall growth mostly reflects higher policies in force across our multi-state footprint. Direct premiums earned were $556.7 million, up 4.2% from the prior year quarter, reflecting the direct written premiums growth over the last 12 months. Net premiums earned were $403.2 million, up 12.1% from the prior year quarter. The increase is primarily attributable to higher direct premiums earned and a lower ceded premium ratio. Next slide. The net combined ratio was 91%, down 5.4 points compared to the prior year quarter. The decrease reflects a lower net loss ratio, partially offset by a higher net expense ratio. The 64.6% net loss ratio was down 5.6 points compared to the prior year quarter, with the decrease reflecting a lower ceded premium ratio. The net expense ratio was 26.4%, up 0.2 points compared to the prior year quarter, with the increase driven by higher policy acquisition costs associated with growth outside of Florida and higher other operating costs and expenses, partly offset by a lower ceded premium ratio. During the third quarter, the company repurchased approximately 174,000 shares at an aggregate cost of $7.4 million. The company's current share repurchase authorization program has approximately 1.1 million remaining. On July 8th, 2026, the Board of Directors declared a quarterly cash dividend of $0.16 per share of common stock payable on August 7th, 2026, to shareholders of record as of the close of business on July 31st, 2026. With that, I'd like to ask the operator to open.

[Operator Instructions] Our first question comes from Paul Newsome with Piper Sandler. Your line is open.

Great. Congratulations on the quarter. Maybe some thoughts on the competitive environment, both in Florida and outside of Florida, and how you see the prospects for Universal's growth in the various markets here.