RenaissanceRe NYSE: RNR executives said the company delivered strong results in 2025 despite several industry headwinds, pointing to a more diversified earnings profile supported by underwriting, fee income, and investments. Management also emphasized continued capital returns and a plan to run a similar “playbook” in 2026, even as reinsurance pricing trends lower.
2025 results highlighted by operating income and book value growth
President and CEO Kevin O’Donnell said RenaissanceRe is “larger and significantly more diversified” than it was a few years ago, with greater geographic and product spread and “much larger contributions from investments and fees.” He noted that few would have predicted the company’s 2025 performance given headwinds that included the California wildfires, a softening reinsurance market, and lower interest rates.
O’Donnell said operating income was $1.9 billion, operating return on equity was 18%, and tangible book value per share plus accumulated dividends (the company’s primary metric) grew by 30% in 2025. He said this was the third consecutive year that this metric grew by more than 25%, and that tangible book value per share has more than doubled over the last three years.
Fourth-quarter strength and three “drivers of profit”
CFO Bob Qutub said 2025 operating income of $1.9 billion came “even with a $786 million net negative impact from large events.” He highlighted fourth-quarter operating earnings per share of $13.34 and an operating ROE of 22%.
For the fourth quarter, Qutub said all three drivers of profit produced strong results:
- Underwriting income: $669 million, with a 71% combined ratio
- Fee income: $102 million
- Retained investment income: $314 million
Qutub also reiterated four figures he said demonstrate the company’s earnings profile and ability to absorb volatility: 15 points of annual return contribution from investment and fee income in 2025; underwriting income of $1.3 billion for 2025 (which he said included a $1.1 billion underwriting loss from the California wildfires); $1.6 billion of capital returned to shareholders during the year; and 31% growth in tangible book value per share plus accumulated dividends in 2025.
Underwriting performance: property offset by favorable development, casualty remains tight
For 2025, Qutub reported an adjusted combined ratio of 85%. In Property Catastrophe, he said the company posted a current accident-year loss ratio of 64% and an adjusted combined ratio of 60%. The accident-year loss ratio included 50 percentage points of losses from the California wildfires and 3 points from Hurricane Melissa. Property Catastrophe also benefited from 24 points of prior-year favorable development, primarily from large events in 2022 through 2024 and changes to attritional loss estimates.
Qutub noted that in the fourth quarter RenaissanceRe reduced its estimate of the net negative impact from the California wildfires by $42 million, citing lower case reserves reported by cedents during the renewal process.
In Other Property, Qutub said the company delivered a current accident-year loss ratio of 62% and an adjusted combined ratio of 60%, calling it the lowest annual combined ratio since RenaissanceRe began reporting the class. The accident-year result included 8 points from the California wildfires and 2 points from Hurricane Melissa, while prior-year favorable development totaled 33 points, primarily related to attritional losses.
In Casualty and Specialty, the company reported an adjusted combined ratio of 102% for 2025, including 4 points from large loss events. Qutub said fourth-quarter results included losses from two events—the UPS aircraft crash and the Grasberg Mine landslide in Indonesia—which together added 4 points to the quarterly adjusted combined ratio, pushing it to 102%. Prior-year development in casualty and specialty on a cash basis was slightly favorable for both the year and the quarter, before purchase accounting adjustments.
On volume, Qutub said 2025 gross premiums written were $11.7 billion and net premiums written were $9.9 billion, both roughly flat versus 2024. Property Catastrophe gross premiums written increased 5% for the year (excluding reinstatement premiums), Other Property gross premiums written declined 11%, and casualty and specialty gross premiums written were roughly flat, with credit growth offsetting declines and adjustments in other areas.
Capital Partners fees, investment income, and tax developments
In Capital Partners, Qutub said fee income was $329 million in 2025, up from 2024, including $207 million of management fees and $121 million of performance fees. He said the California wildfires suppressed fees in the first quarter, but the business recovered in the first half of the year and performance fees exceeded expectations for the last three quarters due to strong underwriting results and favorable development. Looking to the first quarter, he said management fees are expected to be around $50 million and performance fees around $30 million, absent large catastrophe losses or favorable development.
On investments, Qutub said retained net investment income was $1.2 billion for the year, up 4%, and increased each quarter from $279 million in the first quarter to $314 million in the fourth quarter. He attributed the increase to asset growth and selective additions to credit exposure, including investment-grade credit, agency mortgage-backed securities, and high yield. He also reported $1.1 billion in retained mark-to-market gains driven by equities, interest rate movements in the fixed maturity portfolio, and commodities—“mainly gold.” Qutub said the company’s gold position, initiated at the end of 2023 and added to over the last two years, led to over $400 million in retained mark-to-market gains in 2025 as gold prices doubled. In response to a question, management said the exposure is held through futures contracts, with unrealized gains marked to market and a modest margin requirement.
Qutub said 2025 was the first year RenaissanceRe incurred a 15% corporate income tax in Bermuda. He also discussed substance-based tax credits introduced by the Bermuda government in the fourth quarter, which he said are designed to encourage investment on the island and will phase in from 50% in 2025 to 100% in 2027. He said the credits reduced the annual operating expense ratio by about 60 basis points and reduced annual corporate expenses by about 15%. The company expects to recognize the credits quarterly in 2026 at 75% of their value, and at full value in 2027. He also said the company recognized about $70 million in cash benefit from its Bermuda deferred tax asset in 2025 and expects to continue using it in 2026, assuming the law does not change.
Renewal trends and 2026 outlook: rate pressure, focus on margins and portfolio shaping
On the January 1 renewal, O’Donnell said Property Cat rates for the company were down in the low teens, but the company found opportunities to grow such that top-line premium in Property Cat is expected to be down only mid-single digits in 2026, excluding reinstatement premiums. He said terms and conditions “mostly held solid,” including retentions. Underwriting chief David Marra said reinsurance supply increased after several years of strong results, creating pressure on rates and margins, but he said RenaissanceRe was starting from a strong position and remains confident in rate adequacy.
Marra said the company renewed its existing Property Cat line and deployed new limits selectively across owned and managed balance sheets. He described mitigants to the impact of rate decreases on net retained business, including portfolio shaping with ceded reinsurance (with ceded rates down high teens), renewing Mona Lisa cat bonds at larger size with spread tightening of more than 50% on a risk-adjusted basis, and sharing a significant part of the portfolio with Capital Partner vehicles, producing fee income that is less sensitive to rate movement.
In Other Property, Marra said the company sought to reduce peak exposure and maintain margins amid rate pressure, while keeping terms and conditions such as deductibles and sublimits strong. In casualty, he said RenaissanceRe continued to manage exposure to areas most at risk of claims inflation, trimming back on programs with below-average results while benefiting from rate increases across the book. He said ceding commissions were “pretty flat” overall at renewal. Management repeatedly emphasized the role of claims handling practices in evaluating casualty cedents, noting increased information flow and more qualitative insight into cedents’ approaches.
For 2026, Marra said gross premiums in casualty and specialty are likely to be down versus 2025, with net premiums down more than gross due to increased ceded purchases. He said underwriting margins remain tight and the company continues to expect an adjusted combined ratio in the high 90s% for the segment (absent large losses), while stressing that investment income from the float is a key component of returns. O’Donnell said the company will continue to monitor rising technical ratios in specialty and make adjustments, adding that investment and fee income from casualty are currently a substantial driver of book value growth.
Management also provided several first-quarter 2026 expectations, including Other Property net premiums earned of approximately $360 million with an attritional loss ratio in the mid-50s, and casualty and specialty net premiums earned of around $1.4 billion with an adjusted combined ratio in the high 90s, absent large losses. Qutub said the company anticipates retained net investment income around similar levels in the first quarter as the fourth quarter, and guided to an operating expense ratio averaging 5% to 5.5% as the company continues investing in infrastructure and technology.
On capital management, O’Donnell said the company repurchased $650 million of shares in the fourth quarter, 13% of shares during 2025, and 17% since the first quarter of 2024 when repurchases began post-Validus. He said RenaissanceRe has now repurchased more shares than it issued for the Validus acquisition. Qutub said the company expects repurchases to continue in 2026, consistent with its historical approach.
About RenaissanceRe NYSE: RNR
RenaissanceRe Holdings Ltd. is a global provider of reinsurance and insurance solutions, specializing in property catastrophe, casualty, and specialty lines. Established in 1993 and headquartered in Bermuda, the company trades on the New York Stock Exchange under the symbol RNR. With a focus on underwriting and risk assessment, RenaissanceRe offers tailored programs designed to help insurers and corporations manage exposure to natural disasters, liability claims, and other complex risks.
The company operates through two primary segments: Reinsurance and Insurance.
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