By Michael Loney

Feb 27 - (The Insurer) - Fortegra grew gross written premiums (GWP) and premium equivalents 17.6% to $851.9 million in the fourth quarter, while the Tiptree and Warburg Pincus-backed specialty carrier also slightly improved its combined ratio to 89.5%.

• GWP and premium equivalents up 17.6% to $851.9 million in Q4; passes $3 billion for full year

• Q4 NWP drops 41.1% to $365.6 million; up 41.1% excluding Q4 2023 one-time book-roll transaction

• Combined ratio improves 0.3 pts to 89.5% in Q4; also improves 0.3 pts to 90.0% FY

• Parent Tiptree’s adjusted net income increases 96.6% to $27.2 million in Q4

Fortegra reported GWP and premium equivalents of $851.9 million for the fourth quarter, an increase of 17.6% from $724.1 million in the same period of 2023.

Its net written premium dropped 4.9% to $365.6 million from $384.3 million.

Net written premiums increased by 41.1% for the quarter, excluding the one-time assumption of premium from a book-roll transaction with one of Fortegra’s MGA partners in Q4 2023.

Fortegra’s total revenue grew to $484.0 million in the fourth quarter from $433.2 million in the prior-year period.

The combined ratio for the quarter was 89.5%, down 0.3 percentage points from 89.8% in Q4 2023, which Tiptree said reflects “the consistent underwriting performance and scalability of the company’s operations”.

Tiptree said in an investor presentation that Fortegra’s catastrophe losses of $48 million in Q4 2024 contributed to 2.6 pts on the combined ratio.

Fortegra’s adjusted net income for the quarter of $42.5 million was up 30.5% from Q4 2023.

For the full year, Fortegra grew GWP and premium equivalents 11.7% to $3.07 billion in 2024, which Tiptree said was driven by growth in specialty E&S insurance lines.

Net written premiums increased 9.0% to $1.44 billion for the year. “The increase for the year was consistent with the growth in gross written premiums and premium equivalents and increased retention on Fortegra’s whole account quota share reinsurance agreement,” Tiptree said.

The combined ratio for 2024 was 90.0%, an improvement on 90.3% in 2023.

Included in the 2024 combined ratio was 2.6 percentage points related to net catastrophe losses as compared to 0.2 percentage points in 2023. The primary catastrophic events impacting 2024 were hurricanes Helene and Milton.

Fortegra’s total stockholders’ equity was $625.5 million as of December 31, 2024, compared to $452.6 million as of December 31, 2023.

The increase was driven by net income and the aggregate capital contribution from Tiptree, Warburg and Fortegra directors of $40 million in March and April 2024, partially offset by an increase in the accumulated other comprehensive loss position.

Nasdaq-listed Tiptree in the fourth quarter reported revenue grew 12.8% to $503.6 million, driven by growth in Fortegra’s specialty insurance lines.

Tiptree’s adjusted net income of $27.2 million increased by 96.6% in the fourth quarter.

This publication first reported last month that Fortegra was appointing Barclays, BofA Securities and KBW to lead a sale process of the specialty carrier. That move follows a twice-aborted planned IPO.

The Tiptree investor presentation did not mention any process for Fortegra.

But it stated that looking ahead, the outlook is to “maintain consistent top-line growth and sustained underwriting profitability over the long-term in our insurance business” and “continue to look for opportunities to allocate capital for long-term value creation”.