MGIC Investment Corporation MTG reported first-quarter 2026 operating net income per share of 76 cents, which beat the Zacks Consensus Estimate by 4.1%. The bottom line also improved 1.3% year over year.
Total operating revenues declined 3% year over year to $297 million, attributable to lower net premiums earned and other revenues. The top line missed the Zacks Consensus Estimate by 1.4%.
The quarterly results reflected stable investment income, partially offset by lower net premiums earned and other revenues.
MGIC Investment Corporation Price, Consensus and EPS Surprise
MGIC Investment Corporation price-consensus-eps-surprise-chart | MGIC Investment Corporation Quote
Operational Update
Insurance in force increased 3% year over year to $302.7 billion, exceeding the Zacks Consensus Estimate of $293.7 billion as well as our estimate of $295.6 billion. Meanwhile, primary delinquency rose 6.2% to 27,006 loans during the quarter.
Net premiums earned declined 3.4% year over year to $235.4 million, surpassing our estimate of $234.3 million. Meanwhile, net investment income increased 0.5% year over year to $61.7 million, but came in below our estimate of $61.8 million and the Zacks Consensus Estimate of $62.4 million.
Persistency, the percentage of insurance remaining in force, was 84% as of March 31, 2026, and declined 70 basis points from the year-ago quarter’s level. Meanwhile, new insurance written increased 41.5% year over year to $14.4 billion.
Underwriting and other expenses, net, declined 9.4% year over year to $48.1 million. However, underwriting performance weakened materially, with the loss ratio surging to 14.1% from 3.9% in the prior-year quarter.
Total losses and expenses increased 26.1% year over year to $90.2 million, attributable to a sharp rise in losses incurred, net, which nearly doubled from the year-ago period.
Financial Update
Book value per share, a measure of net worth, increased 10.4% year over year to $23.63 as of March 31, 2026.
Shareholder equity was $5.3 billion as of March 31, 2026, down 2.1% from the 2025-end level.
MGIC Investment's PMIERs Available Assets totaled $5.8 billion, or $2.9 billion above its Minimum Required Assets as of March 31, 2026.
Total assets were $6.4 billion as of March 31, 2026, down 4.4% from the 2025-end level.
Senior notes totaled $646.5 million as of March 31, 2026, reflecting a 0.1% increase from the 2025-end level.
Capital Deployment
The company repurchased 7.2 million shares of common stock for $192.6 million and paid a dividend of $400 million to the holding company. MGIC also paid a dividend of 15 cents per common share to shareholders.
In January, the company executed an insurance-linked note transaction, that covers certain policies written between Jan. 1, 2022, and March 31, 2025.
MTG bought back shares worth $47.4 million in April 2026.
The board approved a dividend of 15 cents per common share payable in May 21 to shareholders of record on May 3, 2026.
Concurrently, the board of directors also approved a share repurchase program, authorizing MTG to repurchase an additional $750 million of common stock through Dec. 31, 2028.
Zacks Rank
MTG currently carries a Zacks Rank #3 (Hold). You can see the complete list of today’s Zacks #1 Rank (Strong Buy) stocks here.
Performance of Other Insurers
The Travelers Companies, Inc. TRV reported first-quarter 2026 core income of $7.71 per share, which beat the Zacks Consensus Estimate by 10.5%. The bottom line surged fourfold year over year. Travelers’ total revenues remained flat from the year-ago quarter to $11.9 billion. The top-line figure, however, missed the Zacks Consensus Estimate by 3.7%.
Net written premiums increased 2% year over year to a record $10.3 billion, driven by strong growth across Business Insurance and Bond & Specialty Insurance segments. Net investment income increased 8.4% year over year to $1 billion. The figure matched the Zacks Consensus Estimate.
The Progressive Corporation’s PGR first-quarter 2026 earnings per share of $4.96 beat the Zacks Consensus Estimate by 2.5%. The bottom line increased 6.7% year over year.
Operating revenues grew 8.2% year over year to $22.3 billion driven by 8% higher net premiums earned, a 12.7% increase in net investment income, a 3.5% rise in fees and other revenues, and 13.5% higher service revenues. The top line missed the Zacks Consensus Estimate by 1.2%. Net premiums earned grew 8% to $20.9 billion. The reported figure beat the Zacks Consensus Estimate by 1.5%.
Selective Insurance Group SIGI reported first-quarter 2026 operating income of $1.69 per share, which missed the Zacks Consensus Estimate by 2.3%. The bottom line decreased 11% year over year.
Operating revenues of $1.4 billion increased 6.4% from the year-ago quarter’s level, driven primarily by higher net premiums earned and net investment income. However, the top line missed the Zacks Consensus Estimate by 0.5%. Net premiums written decreased 1% to $1.3 billion. The figure was on par with our estimate.
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MGIC Investment Corporation (MTG): Free Stock Analysis Report
The Travelers Companies, Inc. (TRV): Free Stock Analysis Report
The Progressive Corporation (PGR): Free Stock Analysis Report
Selective Insurance Group, Inc. (SIGI): Free Stock Analysis Report
This article originally published on Zacks Investment Research (zacks.com).