The Van Wert County Courthouse

Friday, Mar. 29, 2024

Central Ins. reports on strong financials

VW independent/submitted information

“Connecting the Dots” was the message at the Central Mutual Insurance Company’s annual policyholders’ meeting held May 9 in Van Wert.

President and Chairman of the Board F.W. Purmort noted the “dots” represent the different facets of the company: its values, its people, the actions it takes, and the results it hopes to achieve.

“Each dot has value,” said Purmort. “They connect what we value with what we want our company to be. The ideals of integrity, relationships, and excellence resonate in everything we do as individuals and as a company to maintain the financial strength to provide security, protection, and peace of mind to our policyholders.”

Purmort noted the company grew the strength of its Policyholders’ Security Fund by 10.6 percent to an all-time high of $822 million. The fund not only allows the company to be adequately prepared to respond to a catastrophe, but to maintain a long-term viewpoint on products and pricing, as well as the ability to invest in the future.

“Connecting our value proposition to the people we serve drives the actions that produce positive results,” Purmort said. “It’s a simplistic but challenging plan in the market we’re in, but we’ve executed it successfully.”

In conclusion, Purmort thanked policyholders for their investment in the company and noted that Central will continue to connect the dots and deliver on its promise.

“We have a fantastic group of people who come to work and do much more than just show up,” he said. “We solve problems and create solutions. We interact with our partners and customers who want to help us make this company more than it was yesterday. That is a great connection.”

Thad Eikenbary, vice president and treasurer, began the treasurer’s report by stating, “I am pleased to report that Central Mutual continued to add to its outstanding financial position in calendar year 2017.”

Direct written premiums for the company increased from $667.3 million in 2016 to $720.0 million in 2017. Commercial premium writings increased by 8.3 percent to $292 million and policy counts increased by 5.3 percent. Personal lines business increased by 7.6 percent to $428 million with a 1.9 percent increase in policy counts.

After paying out $414 million in losses and loss adjusting expenses, and $222 million in underwriting expenses, the company recorded a $630,000 underwriting gain resulting in a combined ratio of 98.4 percent for 2017, which compares quite favorably to the industry’s 105 percent.

Net investment income increased by $700,000, from $40.6 million in 2016 to $41.3 million in 2017, and action taken on individual non-affiliated holdings during the year led to realized capital gains of $6.1 million as compared to losses of about $500,000 in the prior year. In a year where the S&P 500 was up 18.7 percent, Central’s portfolio experienced $38.8 million in unrealized capital gains on non-affiliated holdings, as compared to $10.5 million in unrealized gains in 2016.

“A consistent message of positive underwriting results and steady investment returns tell the story again this year,” said Eikenbary.

After combining both the insurance operations and investment results, Central registered a net income after taxes and dividends of $40.7 million in 2017.

Central’s assets increased by 6.7 percent, to $1.75 billion, by the end of 2017. Central’s bond portfolio totaling $1.008 billion made up 58 percent of those total assets. The quality of the portfolio remained very solid and Central continued to manage the maturity of the portfolio to ensure that it maintained the liquidity necessary to meet the company’s financial needs. Central’s stock portfolio investments represented nearly 21 percent of the company’s total assets.

By the end of 2017, the company’s Policyholders’ Security Fund had another great year, increasing by $79 million to an all-time high of $822 million.

The company also maintained its “A” excellent rating with A.M. Best while continuing to provide high quality customer service, enhanced Internet technology, and support to its agency partners.

In other business, Keith Moore, senior vice president and secretary, read the minutes from the 142nd Policyholders’ Meeting. S.K. Moore and T.B. Kearney were re-elected to the Board of Directors for a three-year term. Other directors include E.R. Buhl, J.L Covington, E.J. Noonan, F.W. Purmort, D.D. Stripe, and E.P. Purmort.

Central Mutual Insurance Company is a personal and commercial property and casualty insurance company operating exclusively through independent insurance agents in 23 states. The home office is located in Van Wert, with regional offices located in Dallas, Atlanta, Boston, and Van Wert.

POSTED: 05/26/18 at 1:41 pm. FILED UNDER: Business