Everest Group more than tripled its first-quarter 2026 net income to US$653 million, even as gross premiums fell sharply, with the insurance and reinsurance carrier's results reflecting a deliberate strategic reset against the backdrop of a softening reinsurance market.

Diluted earnings per share rose to US$16.21, from US$4.90 a year earlier. Net operating income came in at US$648 million, or US$16.08 per diluted share, against US$276 million, or US$6.45 per diluted share, in the same period last year. Total shareholder return reached an annualised 16.1%, with operating return on equity at 16.7%.

Gross written premium totalled US$3.6 billion, down 18.5% year-on-year on a comparable basis. Reinsurance Treaty premium fell 8.5%, while Global Wholesale & Specialty grew 1.6%. Stripping out the Legacy segment, the decline narrowed to 6.4%.

The contraction stems from Everest's October 2025 agreement, announced at the time, to sell renewal rights for its Global Retail Commercial Insurance business across the US, UK, Europe and Asia-Pacific to AIG, covering roughly US$2 billion in gross written premiums.

The same deal saw Everest enter a US$1.2 billion adverse development reinsurance arrangement with Longtail Re, an affiliate of Stone Ridge Holdings Group, shielding it against reserve development on North American policies for accident years 2024 and prior.

Combined ratio steady, catastrophe bill drops

The group combined ratio settled at 91.2%, with Reinsurance Treaty at 87.2% and Global Wholesale & Specialty at 96.8%. Attritional combined ratios were 88.5%, 85.0% and 92.6%, respectively.

Pre-tax catastrophe losses, net of recoveries and reinstatement premiums, fell to US$130 million from US$472 million in Q1 2025, when the Los Angeles wildfires alone accounted for around US$442 million of Everest's bill, as previously disclosed.

The current quarter coincided with an exceptionally quiet period for the wider industry; broker Guy Carpenter pegged global insured catastrophe losses at roughly US$13 billion for the quarter, more than 50% below the five-year average.

Prior-year reserves contributed US$33 million of net favourable development, trimming the combined ratio by 0.9 points. Pre-tax underwriting income was US$316 million, with Reinsurance Treaty contributing US$315 million and Global Wholesale & Specialty US$23 million, offset by a US$22 million Legacy loss.

Discipline tested by softening renewals

Net investment income rose to US$567 million from US$491 million, helped by alternative returns. Operating cash flow stood at US$649 million, against US$928 million a year earlier. An US$81.0 million net pre-tax expense linked to the AIG transaction was also booked.

President and chief executive Jim Williamson said the company "delivered a strong start to the year as the strategy we implemented to improve our return profile and capital efficiency is becoming evident in our results."

That message carries weight given a clearly softening market. Broker Aon put global reinsurer capital at a record US$785 billion at the end of 2025, while Howden Re said risk-adjusted property catastrophe rates fell about 12% at the January 1 renewals and Japanese property cat pricing slipped 15% to 20% at April 1.

Williamson said Everest would stay focused on underwriting discipline and accelerating capital return.