Markel Corporation has reported that its comprehensive income increased by 75% to $1.09 billion in the second quarter of 2020, as investment gains recovered following an initial Q1 COVID-19 shock.
Comprehensive income was up from $623.3 million in Q2 2019, and the company’s combined ratio similarly improved from 95% to 88%.
Net investment gains more than doubled in the same period, moving from $425.7 million to $911.2 million.
However, Markel is still in the red for 2020 so far, having posted a net loss of $260.4 million for the first six months of the year, compared with net income of $1.356 billion in H1 2019.
In terms of investments, Markel is also operating at a loss of $770 million for the year so far, versus gains of $1.038 billion for the first six months of 2019.
The company noted that its underwriting, investing and Markel Ventures results for the quarter and six months ended June 30, 2020 were significantly impacted by the effects of the COVID-19 pandemic.
Most notably, significant volatility in the equity markets arising from economic uncertainty associated with the pandemic resulted in declines in the fair value of our equity portfolio during the first half of 2020.
Its underwriting results for H1 also included $325 million of underwriting loss attributed to the COVID-19 pandemic, which added 12 points to the consolidated combined ratio.
Looking at premiums earned, Markel posted an increase for both Q2 and H1, with the quarterly figure rising from $1.199 billion to $1.360 billion and the six-month total moving from $2.403 billion to $2.691 billion.
Despite moving to almost 100% remote working, our underwriting operations did not miss a beat as our insurance divisions globally took advantage of favorable market conditions,” said Thomas S. Gayner and Richard R. Whitt, Co-Chief Executive Officers of Markel.
“Our Ventures companies responded and adapted accordingly to the new normal and Markel Ventures delivered operating profits, and our investment results benefitted from a meaningful recovery in public equities this quarter,” they continued.
“As we enter the second half of 2020, we recognize that we will likely face ongoing uncertainties from the COVID-19 crisis. We will continue to focus on those things we can control and prepare for the challenges to come, while taking advantage of the opportunities in the marketplace.”
