Executive Summary

ABVPS decreased 3% QoQ to $1,833.92 while GAAP BVPS fell 2.8% QoQ to $1,745.87; full-year ABVPS rose 8% including dividends, with declines driven primarily by mark-to-market losses, notably a $122 million loss from MediaAlpha in Q4 .
Consolidated revenues fell sharply to $358.0 million in Q4 from $839.1 million in Q3, and diluted EPS swung to a loss of $(50.78) versus $69.68 in Q3; YoY comparisons were also lower versus $736.8 million revenues and $111.87 EPS in Q4 2023, largely due to investment losses and MediaAlpha’s decline .
Operating segments showed mixed results: Ark grew gross written premiums 14% YoY to $264 million and delivered a 77% combined ratio despite 27 points of catastrophe losses; Bamboo posted strong growth with Q4 managed premiums of $127 million and MGA adjusted EBITDA of $16 million .
Management highlighted undeployed capital of roughly $700 million and a $150 million commitment to renew Outrigger Re for the 2025 underwriting year; they do not expect California wildfire losses to cause 2025 actual catastrophe losses to diverge materially from plan, limiting near-term risk .

What Went Well and What Went Wrong

What Went Well

Ark delivered profitable underwriting with a 77% Q4 combined ratio and $264 million GWP, aided by new underwriting teams and products; “Full year gross written premiums were $2.2 billion, up 16% YoY… we continue to see opportunities for profitable growth in 2025” (Ian Beaton, CEO of Ark) .
Bamboo scaled strongly: managed premiums rose to $127 million in Q4 (vs. $75 million YoY), with MGA adjusted EBITDA at $16 million; “Bamboo had a strong fourth quarter… MGA adjusted EBITDA grew to $53 million, up seven-fold year-over-year” (John Chu, CEO) .
Excluding MediaAlpha, investment returns were only modestly down in Q4 (-0.4%) and achieved a solid +6.5% for the year; “Excluding MediaAlpha, the total portfolio was down -0.4% in the quarter and up 6.5% for the year” (Mark Plourde) .

What Went Wrong

MediaAlpha’s 38% share price decline produced a $122 million mark-to-market loss, materially impacting Q4 comprehensive income and ABVPS; comprehensive loss attributable to common shareholders was $(131) million in Q4 versus $288 million in Q4 2023 .
HG Global reported pre-tax loss of $(20) million in Q4, with $(19.6) million net realized/unrealized losses and a $(15.3) million decrease in BAM surplus note fair value driven by higher interest rates .
Kudu faced a tough quarter with total revenues of $(9) million and a pre-tax loss of $(20) million, reflecting $(26.2) million net losses and a 3% decline in fair value due to rising rates and a stronger dollar .

Financial Results

Metric	Q4 2023	Q3 2024	Q4 2024
Total Revenues ($USD Millions)	$736.8	$839.1	$358.0
Diluted EPS ($USD)	$111.87	$69.68	$(50.78)
GAAP Book Value per Share ($USD)	$1,656.14	$1,795.31	$1,745.87
Adjusted Book Value per Share ($USD)	$1,703.82	$1,883.24	$1,833.92
Ark/WM Outrigger Combined Ratio (%)	69.2%	76.9%	77.3%
Ark Gross Written Premiums ($USD Millions)	$231.7	$373.6	$264.3
Total Consolidated Portfolio Return (%)	5.8%	4.6%	-2.3%
Ex-MediaAlpha Portfolio Return (%)	4.8%	3.3%	-0.4%
S&P Global Consensus Revenue ($USD Millions)	N/A (unavailable)*	N/A (unavailable)*	N/A (unavailable)*
S&P Global Consensus EPS ($USD)	N/A (unavailable)*	N/A (unavailable)*	N/A (unavailable)*

*Estimates unavailable from S&P Global at time of request; Values would be retrieved from S&P Global.

Segment breakdown (Q4 2024):

Segment	Revenues ($USD Millions)	Pre-tax Income ($USD Millions)
Ark	$389.8	$50.6
WM Outrigger Re	$27.6	$6.0
HG Global	$(13.4)	$(19.5)
Kudu	$(9.3)	$(19.6)
Bamboo	$51.0	$9.9
Other Operations	$(87.7)	$(148.1)
Total	$358.0	$(120.7)

Selected KPIs:

KPI	Q4 2023	Q3 2024	Q4 2024
HG Global Par Value Assumed ($USD Millions)	$762.4	$688.4	$940.1
Bamboo Managed Premiums ($USD Millions)	$75	$148	$127
Kudu Adjusted EBITDA ($USD Millions)	$22.1	$14.4 (Q3 TTM provided)	$13.8
BAM Surplus Notes Fair Value ($USD Millions)	N/A	$411.1	$381.7
Undeployed Capital ($USD Millions)	N/A	~$650	~$700

Guidance Changes

Metric	Period	Previous Guidance	Current Guidance	Change
Ark/WM Outrigger 2025 Cat Loss vs Plan	FY 2025	Planned catastrophe losses baseline	Do not expect actual 2025 catastrophe losses to diverge materially from plan (re: California wildfires)	Maintained
WM Outrigger Re Capital Commitment	2025 Underwriting Year	N/A	$150 million commitment for 2025	New disclosure
Bamboo Wildfire Impact	Q1 2025	N/A	MGA earnings impact not material; captive loss capped at ~$3 million; losses within reinsurance limits	New disclosure
Dividends per Share	FY 2024	$1.00 YTD	$1.00 YTD at year-end	Maintained
Undeployed Capital	Current	~$650 million (Q3)	~$700 million (Q4)	Increased

No formal revenue, EPS, margin, or tax rate guidance was provided by management .

Earnings Call Themes & Trends

Note: No Q4 2024 earnings call transcript was available; themes are synthesized from press releases.

Topic	Previous Mentions (Q-2: Q2 2024)	Previous Mentions (Q-1: Q3 2024)	Current Period (Q4 2024)	Trend
MediaAlpha exposure	Sold 5.0M shares in May; carrying value declined on share price fall; notable P&L volatility	+38% share price; $88M unrealized gain; ABVPS uplift sensitivity ($7 per $1 share)	-38% share price in Q4; $(122)M loss; $202M carrying value; $7 per share sensitivity reiterated	Volatility remains key driver; negative in Q4
Catastrophe losses (Ark/WM Outrigger)	Minimal cat losses in Q2; notable non-cat events (political risk, tornado, satellites)	Q3 cat losses from Helene, Debby, Beryl; combined ratio held ~77–79%	Q4 cat losses 27 points (Milton, Helene); combined ratio 77%	Elevated cat load, yet profitability maintained
BAM/HG Global structure & fair value	BAM consolidated in Q2; surplus notes carried at nominal with TVM discount in ABVPS	BAM deconsolidation July 1; fair value of surplus notes $411M at Q3; unrealized loss on deconsolidation $115M	Fair value $382M at Q4; $(15)M Q4 fair value decrease due to rates; $22M principal/interest payment	Rate-driven fair value sensitivity highlighted
Kudu portfolio and pipeline	Strong Q2 revenues and adjusted EBITDA; TTM adjusted EBITDA ~$60M; portfolio grew 7%	Q3 annualized adjusted EBITDA ~$63M; active pipeline; investment in Revelation (closed early Q4)	Q4 adjusted EBITDA $14M; fair value down 3%; new investments in Revelation and RiverNorth; portfolio surpassed $1B	Continued deployment; quarter impacted by rates/USD
Bamboo growth and resilience	Managed premiums tripled YoY in Q2; record MGA Adj. EBITDA	Q3 managed premiums doubled YoY; MGA Adj. EBITDA record	Q4 managed premiums $127M; Q1 2025 wildfire earnings containment plan; new $110M term loan and cash dividends	Scaling with proactive risk financing
Macro/interest rate impacts	Fixed income outperformed BBIA; equity ex-MediaAlpha slightly behind S&P 500	Ex-MediaAlpha portfolio +3.3% Q3; lagging benchmarks due to international equities	Q4 ex-MediaAlpha −0.4%; rate-driven MTM losses called out by WMA	Rates and international equities drove relative underperformance

Management Commentary

“ABVPS was down 3% in the quarter, driven primarily by mark-to-market declines in our investment portfolio, including our position in MediaAlpha… Excluding MediaAlpha, investment returns were down slightly in the quarter but up 6.5% for the year, a solid result. Undeployed capital stands at roughly $700 million” (Manning Rountree, CEO) .
“Ark had a good quarter and full year, producing combined ratios of 77% and 83%… Full year gross written premiums were $2.2 billion, up 16% year-over-year… we continue to see opportunities for profitable growth in 2025” (Ian Beaton, CEO of Ark) .
“HG Global recorded a strong quarter to close out the year, with a record quarter for par value assumed… gross written premium assumed grew 5%… driven by strong primary market volume, partially offset by lower pricing” (Kevin Pearson, President of HG Global) .
“Kudu proved resilient in a tough fourth quarter… the fair value of Kudu’s continuing portfolio declined 3%… For the full year, Kudu produced a return on equity of 9% and annualized adjusted EBITDA of $61 million” (Rob Jakacki, CEO of Kudu) .
“Bamboo had a strong fourth quarter to close out an excellent year… MGA adjusted EBITDA grew to $53 million, up seven-fold year-over-year… immediate focus is on supporting our policyholders impacted by the wildfires in Los Angeles” (John Chu, CEO of Bamboo) .
“Excluding MediaAlpha, the total portfolio was down -0.4% in the quarter and up 6.5% for the year… Relative underperformance was attributable to our portfolio of international common stocks and other long-term investments” (Mark Plourde, President of White Mountains Advisors) .

Q&A Highlights

No Q4 2024 earnings call transcript was available; therefore, no Q&A themes or clarifications can be provided for this period [ListDocuments search result].

Estimates Context

Wall Street consensus (S&P Global) for WTM’s Q4 2024 EPS and revenue was unavailable at time of request due to a data access limitation; as a result, we cannot formally assess beat/miss versus consensus for EPS and revenue in Q4 2024. WTM’s performance is often evaluated by ABVPS trajectory and segment underwriting profitability, which showed QoQ declines in ABVPS and consolidated EPS due to investment losses, while Ark maintained strong underwriting profitability .

Key Takeaways for Investors

Book value-focused narrative: ABVPS decline of 3% QoQ to $1,833.92 underscores investment portfolio sensitivity, especially to MediaAlpha; ex-MediaAlpha returns were only modestly negative in Q4, with +6.5% for the year .
Ark execution remains strong: 77% combined ratio in Q4 despite 27 points of cat losses and GWP up 14% YoY; supports medium-term underwriting-led BVPS growth potential .
BAM/HG Global rate sensitivity: Higher rates reduced surplus note fair value by $(15)M in Q4; record par value assumed indicates strong demand, but fair value marks can weigh on reported results .
Bamboo growth plus resilience: Rapid scaling with Q4 managed premiums at $127M and strong MGA adjusted EBITDA; wildfire impact expected to be contained via reinsurance and capped captive losses (~$3M) .
Kudu deployment pipeline intact: Despite a tough quarter on rates/USD, portfolio value >$1B and continued investments (Revelation, RiverNorth, Homestead) position Kudu for 2025 opportunities .
Capital flexibility: ~$700M undeployed capital and renewed $150M commitment to Outrigger Re for 2025 provide capacity to pursue accretive opportunities and support underwriting .
Risk watch items: MediaAlpha exposure remains a key swing factor for quarterly ABVPS/EPS; California wildfire exposures are being monitored but not expected to materially diverge from plan for Ark/WM Outrigger .

WHITE MOUNTAINS INSURANCE GROUP LTD (WTM)·Q4 2024 Earnings Summary