Allianz posts surprise 6% rise in third-quarter net profit

FRANKFURT (Reuters) – German insurer Allianz on Friday posted an unexpected 6% rise in net profit in the third quarter from a year earlier, despite pressure on business from the pandemic but again shied away from updating its full-year profit guidance.

Allianz, like other insurers, has warned about prospects as clients make claims for business interruption and cancelled events, while demand for car and travel insurance has fallen.

Net profit attributable to shareholders of 2.063 billion euros ($2.44 billion) in the three months through September compares with 1.947 billion euros a year earlier. It was higher than a 1.626 billion euro consensus forecast.

“We remain confident to not just weather the COVID-19 crisis well, but to build an even stronger Allianz,” Chief Executive Oliver Baete said.

Earlier this year, the insurer abandoned its 2020 profit target of between 11.5 billion euros and 12.5 billion euros, blaming economic uncertainty resulting from the pandemic, and said it expects to post the first annual decline in profit in nearly a decade.

Allianz’s combined ratio, a measure of profitability for its property and casualty division, one of its highest revenue earners, worsened slightly to 94.5% in the third quarter, up from 94.3% a year earlier. Readings below 100% indicate profitability.

($1 = 0.8464 euros)

(Reporting by Tom Sims; Editing by Michelle Adair)