Lausanne – Vaudoise Insurance earned slightly less in the 2022 financial year. Nevertheless, shareholders can look forward to a higher dividend.
The net profit fell slightly to 130.8 million francs in 2022 after 134.2 million in the previous year, as the insurance group announced on Wednesday. In the same period, sales increased by 7.9 percent to CHF 1.3 billion.
For the first time in its history, premiums in the non-life business exceeded the one billion franc mark. The increase compared to the previous year was 6.3 percent to CHF 1.05 billion. Life insurance premiums increased in the same period to CHF 257.7 million (previous year: CHF 215.8 million).
Higher dividend
Despite the slightly worse result, the dividend should increase by 2 francs. The Board of Directors proposes a distribution of CHF 20.00 per B registered share. In the case of non-life insurance, 43 million francs are also to be distributed in the form of discounts.
The combined ratio (loss-cost ratio) was 93.4 percent. This is an improvement of three percentage points compared to the previous year. The insurance company attributes the decline primarily to its underwriting discipline in the non-life business.
decrease in equity
As in the first half of the year, equity continued to decline. The minus compared to the end of 2021 was 7.0 percent to 2.3 billion francs. The rate of the Swiss Solvency Test (SST) is given as 359.9 percent, which means that the insurance company continues to be well capitalized.
In terms of investment volume, the insurance company recorded a decline of CHF 323.5 million to CHF 7.6 billion. The net return fell to 1.5 percent, after 2.6 percent in the same period of the previous year. Net performance at market value was down 9.9 percent. In the previous year, the insurance company was able to achieve an increase of 4.5 percent.
Outlook cautiously optimistic
Vaudoise currently expects further growth in the non-life and life segments in the current financial year. Particular importance should be attached to the quality of the deals and the claims burden.
The processes should also be made more efficient by further strengthening digitization. The volatility on the financial markets and the great pressure in the banking sector have prompted the insurance company to remain highly diversified in its investments. (awp/mc/pg)
