Bowhead Specialty Holdings, a specialty lines insurance group focused on casualty, professional liability and healthcare liability insurance, reported adjusted earnings of $0.42 per diluted share for the fourth quarter of 2024, higher than $0.24 a year earlier.
Gross written premiums for the quarter rose 26.3% to $184.8 million, driven by renewals, new business, and platform expansion across all divisions. Return on equity stood was 14.8%, while the company’s book value per share stood at $11.34.
For the full-year 2024, adjusted net income rose to $1.44 per share from $1.09 a year ago. Gross written premiums, on the other hand, rose 37% to $695.7 million.
Net investment income for the fourth quarter increased 79.8% to $12.2 million, while full-year investment income grew 107.1% to $40.1 million. Growth was attributed to an expanded investment portfolio and higher asset yields.
Baleen Specialty, a division launched in the second quarter of 2024, reported $1.2 million in gross written premiums in the fourth quarter, reflecting a 175% sequential increase. The division focuses on small, hard-to-place risks written on a non-admitted basis.
As part of its annual actuarial reserve review, Bowhead reallocated prior accident year loss reserves between divisions, primarily shifting reserves from Professional Liability to Casualty to align with industry loss ratios. As of December 31, incurred but not reported liabilities comprised 90.7% of net loss reserves.
The expense ratio decreased to 30.1% in the fourth quarter and 31.4% for the full year, reflecting business growth and cost management.
Commenting on the company’s performance, Bowhead chief executive Stephen Sills said that 2024 marked a milestone year as a public company, characterized by growth, innovation and execution across its underwriting divisions.
“After completing our fourth year of operations, we are once again incredibly proud of what we’ve accomplished,” he said.
Sills highlighted a 37% premium growth for the year, led by a 56% increase in the Casualty division and double-digit growth in Healthcare Liability and Professional Liability.
“As we look ahead into 2025, our focus is to build on the momentum we generated in 2024 and continue to grow our business profitably,” Sills said. “This is just the beginning for Bowhead and I couldn’t be more excited for what I expect to be a company that is capable of cross-cycle profitability.”
