Insurance holding company W. R. Berkley Corporation has posted record high net premiums written for the first quarter of 2025 at $3.1 billion, compared to $2.8 billion in Q1’24.
This was supported by the growth in gross written premiums (GWP) for the quarter, reported at $3.6 billion compared to $3.3 billion in Q1’24.
The company explained that net premiums written grew 10% as market conditions remained favourable in several lines of business, particularly the insurance segment.
The insurance segment contributed $3.2 billion in GWP, while the reinsurance and monoline excess segment added $467 million for the first quarter of 2025.
The firm’s 90.9% combined ratio is up on last year’s 88.8%, and includes 3.7 points of catastrophe losses in the period, which totalled $111.1 million for the carrier, reflecting the firm’s approach to managing volatility as a component of risk-adjusted return.
The firm’s net investment income in Q1’25 grew by 12.6% to $360.3 million, and it also hit an all-time high for net invested assets of $30.7 billion.
The book value per share grew 7.1% in the quarter, before dividends and share repurchases. The return on equity and operating return on equity for Q1’25 are 19.9% and 19.3%, respectively. Meanwhile, the average rate increases, excluding workers’ compensation, were approximately 8.3%.
All in all, net income totalled $418 million in Q1 2025, down on Q1 2024’s $442 million.
W. R. Berkley commented, “We achieved strong results in the first quarter of 2025 with a 19.9% annualised return on beginning-of-year common stockholders’ equity, despite significant first-quarter industry-wide catastrophe losses. These results once again demonstrate our ability to successfully manage underwriting volatility.
“Net investment income increased significantly compared to the first quarter of 2024, and sequentially from the fourth quarter of 2024, reflecting the impact of higher new money rates on our growing fixed-maturity portfolio and improvement in our investment fund income. The strength of our operating cash flow continues to drive growth in net investable assets, positioning us well for further investment income growth.
“Our ability to expand or contract each of our distinct businesses based on specific market conditions remains a significant competitive advantage. This agility enables us to execute our strategy to grow profitably and optimise risk-adjusted returns, while successfully navigating risks and embracing opportunities. We are confident that we will continue to deliver outstanding value to shareholders over the remainder of 2025 and beyond.”
