AI
AMERICAN INTERNATIONAL GROUP, INC. (AIG)·Q1 2025 Earnings Summary
Executive Summary
- Q1 2025 delivered strong underwriting amid heavy catastrophe losses: Combined ratio rose to 95.8% and accident-year combined ratio, as adjusted, improved to 87.8% (best first-quarter AYCR since the financial crisis) .
- EPS beat consensus while revenue missed: Adjusted EPS was $1.17 vs Wall Street $0.99; revenue was $6.55B vs $6.89B; EPS beat driven by disciplined underwriting and lower expense ratio, while revenue miss reflects catastrophe impacts and portfolio reshaping; values retrieved from S&P Global*.
- Net premiums written grew 8% on a comparable basis, led by Global Commercial (+10% comp), North America Commercial (+14% comp), and International Commercial (+8% comp) .
- Capital return accelerates: $2.5B returned in Q1 (repurchases $2.2B, dividends $234M), Board raised quarterly dividend 12.5% to $0.45; AIG expects $5–$6B of share repurchases in 2025 (subject to market), and repurchase authorization increased to $7.5B (~$7.1B remaining) .
- Catalysts: aggressive reinsurance (aggregate and occurrence limits) mitigates catastrophe volatility, AI-enabled underwriting advances, and dividend/repurchase upgrades support sentiment; management reaffirmed 2025 core operating ROE ≥10% and 20%+ EPS CAGR target over next three years .
What Went Well and What Went Wrong
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What Went Well
- Comparable NPW growth and strong Global Commercial profitability despite elevated cats; North America Commercial AYCR improved 160 bps YoY to 84.3% with a 200 bps decline in the expense ratio .
- Expense discipline: General Insurance expense ratio fell to 30.5% (–130 bps YoY), aided by travel business divestiture and AIG Next initiatives; “best first quarter AYCR since the financial crisis” .
- Strategic capital actions: $2.5B returned, dividend raised to $0.45, repurchase authorization to $7.5B; management expects $5–$6B repurchases in 2025 .
- Quote: “Operating EPS is on track... we expect to achieve a 20% plus earnings per share compound annual growth rate over the next 3 years” .
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What Went Wrong
- Heavy catastrophe losses: $525M cat charges in Q1 (9.1 loss ratio points), mainly California wildfires; combined ratio increased to 95.8% .
- Property pricing pressure: retail and Lexington Property rates decreased 7% and 10% respectively; financial lines down mid-single digits; management remains disciplined and may pull back if pressure persists .
- Global Personal: combined ratio at 107.9% given wildfire impact; AYCR improved to 95.6% but segment still above target; management targets 500 bps improvement over 3 years toward ~94% .
Financial Results
Values retrieved from S&P Global*.
Guidance Changes
Earnings Call Themes & Trends
Management Commentary
- “In the first quarter, adjusted after-tax income was $702 million or $1.17 per diluted share... Net premiums written were $4.5 billion, an increase of 8% year-over-year on a comparable basis” .
- “If I had to choose just one key takeaway from our Investor Day, it is that AIG is in every way, a different company” .
- “We expect to achieve a 20% plus earnings per share compound annual growth rate over the next 3 years” .
- “The Board... approved a 12.5% increase in our quarterly dividend to $0.45 per share” .
- “Altogether, tariffs create uncertainty... it’s important to consider implications to loss costs and inflation... Canada represents roughly 85% of all U.S. softwood lumber imports” .
Q&A Highlights
- AI underwriting transformation: multi-year investment with partners (Palantir/LLMs), moving from pilots to live deployments; focus on data quality and cycle time reduction .
- Pricing dynamics: Property rates down in retail/wholesale; casualty rates above loss trend, particularly excess casualty; management will pull back if rate decreases persist .
- Tariff/uncertainty response: adding risk margin in certain lines; monitoring inflation inputs to loss costs; no underlying deterioration observed in international portfolio .
- Expense migration: AIG Next achieved run-rate savings; lean parent allocations moved costs to segments with minimal ratio impact; expect 2025 expense run-rate to resemble Q1 levels .
- Capital deployment/M&A: disciplined approach; uncertainty may create opportunities; ample liquidity and low leverage support flexibility; will return capital if no additive deals .
Estimates Context
- Q1 2025: Adjusted EPS $1.17 vs consensus $0.99 (beat), revenue $6.55B vs consensus $6.89B (miss); prior quarters: Q4 2024 EPS $1.30 vs $1.23 (beat), revenue $7.10B vs $6.74B (beat); Q3 2024 EPS $1.23 vs $1.10 (beat), revenue $6.69B vs $6.77B (miss). Values retrieved from S&P Global*.
- Given EPS beats and revenue variability driven by cats and portfolio divestitures, consensus may need to adjust for catastrophe frequency, segment mix (growth in higher-loss-ratio casualty vs property), and lower ADC amortization in 2025 .
Key Takeaways for Investors
- Underwriting momentum intact: AYCR improved to 87.8% despite heavy cats; expect volatility managed via robust aggregate/occurrence reinsurance structures .
- Mix shift implications: Lexington/mid-market casualty growth raises reported loss ratios; watch the balance between growth and margin preservation .
- Capital returns as a near-term catalyst: dividend raised to $0.45 and $5–$6B buyback expected in 2025; authorization at $7.5B supports flexibility .
- AI strategy moving to execution phase: live deployments should enhance underwriting throughput and selection; monitor productivity and cycle-time metrics .
- Global Personal turnaround path: wildfire headwinds mask progress; management targets ~500 bps CR improvement over 3 years toward 94% .
- Guidance signals stability: core operating ROE ≥10% in 2025 reaffirmed; ADC amortization lower at ~$31M per quarter; GI NII modestly up in Q2 .
- Trading lens: EPS beats vs revenue misses suggest near-term stock reaction tied to capital return pace and AI/reinsurance narratives rather than top-line; watch rate trends in property and excess casualty and Q2 cat activity for path of CR.
Footnote: Values retrieved from S&P Global*.