FRANKFURT (Reuters) – Allianz reported net profit down 30% in the third quarter on Friday, hurt by natural disasters, but the German insurer maintained its profit forecast for the full year.
Net profit attributable to shareholders amounted to 2.02 billion euros for the three months to the end of September, compared to 2.87 billion euros a year earlier and above the expectations of analysts who were counting on 1.99 billion euros.
The group described the level of claims as “exceptionally high”.
Allianz nevertheless maintained its objective of an operating profit for 2023 of between 13.2 and 15.2 billion euros.
This decline contrasts with the gains made by Allianz in previous quarters, the group having recovered from losses linked to the war in Ukraine, market nervousness and the persistence of the pandemic.
Countries across continental Europe, including Germany, Italy and Austria, experienced a wave of flooding and hailstorms over the summer.
Allianz’s combined ratio – a measure of the profitability of its property division, one of its largest sources of revenue – deteriorated to 96.2% in the third quarter, from 92.5% for the year former. A result below 100% indicates profitability.
(Reporting Tom Sims and Christina Amann, French version Augustin Turpin, editing by Kate Entringer)
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