Investing.com -- Shares of Sampo Oyj (HEX:SAMPO) climbed 4.3% after the company reported stronger-than-expected earnings for the fourth quarter.
The Finnish insurer’s gross written premiums (GWP) for the quarter slightly surpassed expectations by 0.1%, while its full-year 2024 figures were in line with consensus. The company saw a notable performance in its Hastings segment, which exceeded forecasts by 12.8% for the quarter and 16.9% for the full year.
Sampo Oyj’s underwriting profits outperformed analyst estimates by 9.4% for the quarter and 2.4% for the full year. The If P&C Insurance segment also beat expectations with an 11.2% increase in the fourth quarter and a 3.0% rise for the fiscal year. Operating earnings per share (EPS) saw a significant leap, beating predictions by 27.5% for the quarter and 6.4% for the full year.
The company’s profit before tax was 17.7% higher than anticipated for the quarter, contributing to a 2.1% increase for the full year. However, If P&C Insurance missed estimates by 0.5%, with the full-year 2024 figures aligning with consensus. Topdanmark, another segment of Sampo, fell short of expectations by 16.0% for the quarter but is projected to improve by 2.2% for the full year.
Hastings continued to outperform with a 20.9% beat in the fourth quarter and a 4.9% increase for the full year. The holding segment of Sampo also reported a remarkable beat of 94.7% for the quarter, forecasting a 38.3% rise for the full year. Net income and EPS exceeded expectations by 27.7% and 29.2%, respectively, for the quarter, with a full-year increase of 3.6% for net income and 3.2% for EPS.
Despite these strong results, Sampo’s dividend per share (DPS) of €1.70 fell slightly short of expectations by 2.3%. The company’s Solvency II ratio stood at 177%, which was 4 percentage points higher than expected, indicating a strong capital position.
Analysts have taken note of Sampo’s solid performance. According to Jefferies, "Sampo’s 4Q 2024 result is reassuringly better than expected, with the underlying undiscounted combined ratio improving by 1.4%pts."
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