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White Mountains Insurance Group Ltd.: Q1 FY2026 earnings call

What management said about Q1 FY2026, from the documents filed with the SEC on 6 May 2026: press release. The quarter’s numbers.

Key takeaways

  • Comprehensive loss against prior-year income: The company reported comprehensive loss attributable to common shareholders of $(27) million and diluted loss per share of $(12.59), against income of $35 million and EPS of $13.19 a year earlier. Source
  • Book value per share fell 1%: Book value per share was $2,169.66 at March 31, 2026, against $2,187.97 at December 31, 2025, a change of (0.8)% including dividends for the quarter. Source
  • Ark pre-tax income declined: Ark pre-tax income was $7 million, including $(33) million of net realized and unrealized investment losses, against $52 million a year earlier. Source
  • Ark combined ratio improved: Ark's combined ratio was 91% against 94%. Ark gross written premiums were $1,091 million against $1,108 million, and Ark/WM Outrigger's combined ratio was 91.1%. Source
  • Ark catastrophe losses lower: Ark catastrophe losses were 7 points in 2026, against 25 points in 2025, which included California wildfire losses. Source
  • MediaAlpha mark-to-market loss: Unrealized MediaAlpha losses were $65 million, against $37 million a year earlier. The carrying value of the investment fell to $166 million. Source

“Solid operating results were more than offset by a mark-to-market decline in our investment in MediaAlpha.”

Liam Caffrey, CEO

What changed from last quarter

  • New: WTM Partners closed the BaseSix Systems acquisition on April 1, 2026, an equity investment of about $97 million, after the quarter end. Source
  • New: WTM Partners closed the Hawkeye Electric acquisition on May 1, 2026, an equity investment of about $35 million. Source
  • New: White Mountains deployed $125 million of capital into Bishop Street Underwriters in February 2026. Source
  • New: Ark recorded estimated war-related losses of $25 million in the quarter, net of reinsurance and reinstatement premiums. Source

Results and growth drivers

  • Comprehensive loss against prior-year income: The company reported comprehensive loss attributable to common shareholders of $(27) million and diluted loss per share of $(12.59), against income of $35 million and EPS of $13.19 a year earlier. Source
  • Book value per share fell 1%: Book value per share was $2,169.66 at March 31, 2026, against $2,187.97 at December 31, 2025, a change of (0.8)% including dividends for the quarter. Source
  • Ark pre-tax income declined: Ark pre-tax income was $7 million, including $(33) million of net realized and unrealized investment losses, against $52 million a year earlier. Source

Segments and regions

  • Ark combined ratio improved: Ark's combined ratio was 91% against 94%. Ark gross written premiums were $1,091 million against $1,108 million, and Ark/WM Outrigger's combined ratio was 91.1%. Source
  • Written premiums fell, earned rose: Ark earned premiums rose 7%, while net written premiums fell to $590 million from $690 million on a delegated authority timing change. Ceded written premiums rose to $501 million. Source
  • Outrigger Re combined ratio 44%: WM Outrigger Re's combined ratio was 44% against 166%. The 2025 figure included $19 million of California wildfire losses, net of reinstatement premiums. Source
  • Kudu adjusted EBITDA rose: Kudu reported adjusted EBITDA of $17 million against $16 million, pre-tax income of $52 million against $53 million, and total revenues of $63 million against $64 million. Source
  • HG Global par assumed increased: Total par value of policies assumed was $518 million against $427 million. Pre-tax income was $11 million against $25 million, with a $(5) million investment loss. Source
  • Distinguished managed premiums and loss: Distinguished reported managed premiums of $132 million and a pre-tax loss of $18 million. Management said the quarter was flattish. Source

“Despite heightened volatility in global financial markets, Kudu delivered a solid first quarter that reflects both the resilience of our portfolio and investment discipline.”

Rob Jakacki, CEO of Kudu

Products and customers

  • Outrigger Re renewed with third-party capital: The 2026 underwriting year renewal of Outrigger Re drew $70 million of capital from unaffiliated investors. Source
  • Distinguished umbrella program declined: Distinguished said ScaleCo growth was muted, as environmental program premium growth was offset by a decline in the umbrella program. Source
  • HG Global premium growth from both markets: HG Global gross written premiums rose 24% in the quarter to $8 million, which management attributed to primary market activity and secondary market pricing. Source

Costs, margins and pricing

  • Ark catastrophe losses lower: Ark catastrophe losses were 7 points in 2026, against 25 points in 2025, which included California wildfire losses. Source
  • Prior-year reserve benefit smaller: Ark recorded 5 points of net favorable prior year development in 2026, against 14 points a year earlier, driven primarily by specialty and property lines in 2026. Source
  • Other Operations G&A rose: Other Operations pre-tax loss was $(80) million against $(59) million. G&A rose to $55 million from $36 million on incentive compensation and the Enterprise Solutions consolidation. Source
  • HG Global gross pricing rose: HG Global total gross pricing was 160 basis points against 157 basis points. Total pricing net of ceding commission was 112 basis points against 110. Source

“Absolute and relative results were solid amid challenging financial markets.”

Mark Plourde, President of White Mountains Advisors

Capital, investments and returns

  • Excluding MediaAlpha, portfolio returned 1.0%: Excluding MediaAlpha, the total consolidated portfolio returned 1.0%, against 0.2% including MediaAlpha. The same measure was 2.3% in the first quarter of 2025. Source
  • Fixed income and equities versus benchmarks: Fixed income returned 0.5%, against 0.1% for the longer-duration Bloomberg Intermediate Aggregate Index. Equities excluding MediaAlpha returned 1.6%, against -4.3% for the S&P 500. Source
  • Kudu return on equity 12%: Kudu's trailing 12-month return on equity was 12% at March 31, 2026, down from 13% at year-end 2025, due to lower net realized and unrealized investment gains. Source
  • Undeployed capital roughly $0.8 billion: Undeployed capital is roughly $0.8 billion after the deployments noted above. Source
  • Dividends held at $1.00: Dividends declared and paid were $1.00 per share in the quarter, the same as the first quarter of 2025. Source

MediaAlpha stake

  • MediaAlpha mark-to-market loss: Unrealized MediaAlpha losses were $65 million, against $37 million a year earlier. The carrying value of the investment fell to $166 million. Source
  • MediaAlpha share price fell: Share price was $9.30 at March 31, 2026, against $12.95 at December 31, 2025. White Mountains owned 17.9 million shares, a 28% basic interest. Source
  • Other Operations gains excluding MediaAlpha: Excluding MediaAlpha, Other Operations net realized and unrealized investment gains were $7 million, against $3 million a year earlier. Source

Coming up, as management said on 6 May 2026

  • Kudu pipeline continues: Kudu's CEO said the company continues to pursue an active pipeline after closing one new deal in the quarter. Source
  • Ark plans new teams and classes: Ark plans profitable growth through new teams and classes of business as the market softens. Source
  • Distinguished continues technology investment: Distinguished plans continued investment in technology and talent to drive organic growth over the medium term. Source
  • Form 10-Q filing expected: The company said it expected to file its Form 10-Q with the SEC on the day of the release. Source

Figures management reported

FigureReported
Combined ratio Source91.1% Ark/WM Outrigger; 91.4% Ark; 44.4% WM Outrigger Re
Net premiums written Source$590 million
Prior-year reserve development Source5 points favorable (Ark)
Catastrophe losses Source7 points (Ark)
Investment income Source$21 million (Kudu net investment income)
Book value per share Source$2,169.66

Risks management discussed

  • External: Management said Iran war losses could increase, since the war is ongoing. Source
  • Demand: Management said market conditions continue to soften, while it still sees growth opportunities in Ark's lines. Source
  • Financial: Management said each $1.00 change in MediaAlpha's share price moves book value per share by about $7.00 at current ownership. Source

Earlier plans management reported on

  • Met: Distinguished said it has launched four new programs since its acquisition, after the prior release described four programs as launched or set to launch. Source
  • Not stated: Distinguished said it continued its inorganic de novo build strategy and launched one new program in the quarter. Source

Other quarters

Summarised with AI from the documents the company filed with the SEC. Every point is checked against the filing before it is shown: management’s own words word for word, figures against the line or table row they come from. A point that fails the check is left out. Source opens the filing at that line.