Zurich Insurance 1st Half Net Profit Climbs Slightly; To Launch CHF1.8 Billion Share Buyback

By Ed Frankl

Zurich Insurance Group AG said Thursday that first-half net profit rose slightly, missing expectations, but that operating profit jumped as it dealt with turbulent markets and said it would launch a 1.8 billion Swiss franc ($1.91 billion) share buyback.

The Swiss insurer reported net profit of $2.20 billion in the six months to the end of June, up slightly from $2.19 billion in the same period last year.

However, its closely watched business operating profit measure climbed 25% to $3.39 billion in the quarter, its highest since 2008, driven by an underlying improvement across all businesses, Zurich said.

That compares with expectations of net profit of $2.48 billion and BOP of $3.28 billion.

The improvement in BOP was largely offset by adverse effects from financial markets, hitting the net profit figure, it said.

The strength of the U.S. dollar versus other currencies was also a headwind, Zurich said.

Meanwhile, natural-catastrophe claims were above expected levels, while Covid-19 impacts continue to decline.

The company said it would launch a special share-buyback program of around CHF1.8 billion in the coming months to offset dilution from the June sale of its German life back book.

Write to Ed Frankl at [e-mail]

(END) Dow Jones Newswires

August 11, 2022 01:33 ET (05:33 GMT)

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