Globe Life (GL) Q1 Earnings Beat, Revenues Miss Estimates
Globe Life Inc.’s GL first-quarter 2023 net operating income of $2.53 per share beat the Zacks Consensus Estimate by 2.4%. The bottom line improved 4.1% year over year, primarily driven by higher Insurance underwriting income and excess investment income.
Globe Life Inc. Price, Consensus and EPS Surprise
Globe Life Inc. price-consensus-eps-surprise-chart | Globe Life Inc. Quote
Behind the Headlines
Globe Life reported total premium revenues of $1 billion, up 3% year over year. This upside was primarily driven by higher premiums from Life and Health insurance.
Net investment income increased 5% year over year to $257 million.
The company reported operating revenues of $1.3 billion, up 3.3% from the year-ago quarter. The improvement was driven by growth in Life and Health insurance premiums and higher net investment income. The top line however missed the Zacks Consensus Estimate by 0.8%.
Excess investment income, a measure of profitability, increased 13% year over year to $29.2 million.
Total insurance underwriting income increased 1% year over year to $311 million. The increase was attributable to higher Life, Annuity and Health underwriting income.
Administrative expenses were up 2% year over year to $73.9 million.
Total benefits and expenses increased 3.8% year over year to $1 billion, primarily due to higher total policyholder benefits, amortization of deferred acquisition costs, commissions, premium taxes and non-deferred acquisition costs and interest expense.
Segmental Results
Premium revenues at Life increased 3% year over year to $772 million, driven by higher premiums written by distribution channels like American Income, Direct to Consumer and Liberty National. American Income grew 5%, Direct to Consumer increased 1% and Liberty National gained 6%.
Net sales of $140.4 million increased 1% on a year-over-year basis. Underwriting margins increased 1% year over year to $291.3 million.
Health insurance premium revenues rose 2% year over year to $322 million, primarily driven by higher premiums from United American, American Income and Family Heritage. Net health sales increased 17% year over year to $50 million. Underwriting margins increased 4% year over year to $91.3 million.
Financial Update
Shareholders’ equity, excluding accumulated other comprehensive income (AOCI), as of Mar 31, 2023, increased 6.8% year over year to $6.8 billion.
As of Mar 31, 2023, Globe Life reported book value per share, excluding AOCI, of $70.34, up 10% year over year.
Operating return on equity, excluding AOCI, was 14.6% in the reported quarter, reflecting an expansion of 80 basis points year over year.
Share Repurchase
Globe Life repurchased 1.2 million shares worth $135 million in the reported quarter.
2023 View
New accounting guidance related to long-duration insurance contracts became effective on Jan 1, 2023. Under this new requirement, Globe Life estimates net operating income between $10.28 per share and $10.52 per share for the year ending Dec 31, 2023.
Zacks Rank
Globe Life currently carries a Zacks Rank #3 (Hold). You can see the complete list of today’s Zacks #1 Rank (Strong Buy) stocks here.
Performance of Other Finance Stocks
BlackRock, Inc.’s BLK first-quarter 2023 adjusted earnings of $7.93 per share surpassed the Zacks Consensus Estimate of $7.71. However, the figure reflects a decrease of 16.7% from the year-ago quarter. Our estimate for adjusted earnings was $7.37. Results have benefited from a decline in expenses. However, lower revenues and AUM balance were major headwinds.
Net income attributable to BlackRock (on a GAAP basis) was $1.16 billion, down 19.4% from the prior-year quarter. We had projected the metric to be $1.07 billion. Revenues (on a GAAP basis) were $4.24 billion, marginally beating the Zacks Consensus Estimate of $4.23 billion. However, the top line declined 9.7% year over year. Our estimate for GAAP revenues was $4.17 billion.
Total expenses amounted to $2.81 billion, down 4.4% from the prior-year quarter. Our estimate for expenses was $2.79 billion. Non-operating income (on a GAAP basis) was $116 million against non-operating expenses of $138 million in the year-ago quarter. BlackRock’s adjusted operating income was $1.51 billion, down 17.1% from the prior-year period.
Ameriprise Financial, Inc.’s AMP first-quarter 2023 adjusted operating earnings of $7.25 per share handily surpassed the Zacks Consensus Estimate of $7.13. The bottom line reflects a rise of 25% from the year-ago quarter. We had projected the same to be $6.60. After considering significant items, net income (GAAP basis) was $417 million or $3.79 per share, down substantially from $825 million or $7.10 per share in the prior-year quarter.
On an operating basis, adjusted total net revenues were $3.7 billion, up 3% year over year. The top line missed the Zacks Consensus Estimate of $3.72 billion. Our estimate for the metric was $3.52 billion. On a GAAP basis, net revenues were $3.74 billion, growing 3%.
Adjusted operating expenses totaled $2.72 billion, which declined 2%. We had projected the same to be $2.60 billion. Total AUM and assets under administration decreased 8% year over year to $1.24 trillion.
Invesco Ltd.’s IVZ first-quarter 2023 adjusted earnings of 38 cents per share surpassed the Zacks Consensus Estimate of 36 cents. The bottom line, however, plunged 32.1% from the prior-year quarter. Our estimate for earnings was 31 cents.
On a GAAP basis, net income attributable to common shareholders was $145 million or 32 cents per share, down from $197.7 million or 43 cents per share a year ago. Adjusted quarterly net revenues were $1.08 billion, falling 14.1% year over year. The top line matched the Zacks Consensus Estimate. Our estimate for net revenues was $1.03 billion. Adjusted operating expenses were $749 million, down 1.2%. We expected the metric to be $749.1 million. The adjusted operating margin was 30.4%, down from 39.5% a year ago.
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