ClearView reports top line growth despite Q1 FY25 adversity

In an ASX announcement on Thursday morning, ClearView reported $15.2 million in life insurance underlying net profit after tax (NPAT) for the first half of the 2024-25 financial year, marking a 22 per cent decrease on the prior corresponding period.

The insurer explained that adverse claims experience during Q1 FY25 had short-term impacts on the half-year margin, however this normalised in Q2 FY25, restoring the life insurance underlying NPAT margin from 4 per cent in Q1 to 11 per cent in Q2, resulting in an overall margin of 8 per cent for the half-year period.

ClearView also suffered a considerable hit to its group underlying NPAT, reporting $12.5 million for HY25, a 28 per cent decrease on the prior corresponding period.

However, the insurer reported a strong track record of top line growth, with its gross premiums and in-force premium both seeing an 8 per cent bump, coming in at $191.4 million and $387.2 million, respectively.

ClearView’s in-force premiums market share experienced a minor bump of 0.5 per cent, hitting 3.8 per cent, while its new business market share held steady at between 10 and 11 per cent.

“ClearView has established a diversified distribution network and is on 1,059 approved product lists comprised of over 5,500 advisers. ClearView remains well positioned to continue to increase its new business market share with a key focus in 2H FY25 to start to accelerate new business growth,” the insurer said.

It reported a 9.5 per cent increase in growth in embedded value, excluding franking credits, to $525.7 million or 80.7 cps.

The insurer said that repricing, claims management and retention activities will be the key drivers for the rest of this financial year.

Despite the minor setbacks of HY25, ClearView said the insurer is still on track to hit its FY26 goals, even upping its gross premiums target from $400 million to $440 million.

Notably, the insurer has the intention of conducting a share buyback of up to 10 per cent of the share capital over the next 12 months in lieu of dividends, “given the significant discount of the share price to the embedded value and the company’s view of this value”, which the board considers to be the best use of surplus capital.

In a deal announced late 2023, ClearView sold nearly 20 per cent (19.99 per cent) of its interest in Cetrepoint Alliance to COG Financial Services for $13 million, signalling the exit from advice to focus on its life insurance services.

ClearView managing director Nadine Gooderick said the insurer will be wrapping up its exit from the advice at the end of the financial year, leaving ClearView to focus solely on life insurance.

“Significant progress has been made on the key strategic imperatives of our wealth exit and technology transformation in the first half of 2025 as part of our business simplification, and both are on track,” Gooderick said.

“Our exit from wealth will be complete by the 30th June 2025, including the removal of its cost base. The technology and business transformation program is expected to complete in 1H26 with the efficiencies to flow progressively thereafter.

“We remain focused on being the best at Life Insurance. Our distribution footprint and data insights capability continue to expand and, together with our simplified technological architecture and more agile company size, this combination of factors drives our unique differentiation, enabling us to meet the needs of our customers and advisers more quickly and efficiently.”