AXA hit by fall in full-year net income

Both COVID-19 and catastrophes play a role

AXA hit by fall in full-year net income

Insurance News

By Terry Gangcuangco

It’s the turn of Paris-headquartered insurance group AXA to reveal how it fared in the past year.

“AXA’s revenues were resilient in 2020, down just 1% compared to the previous year, reflecting the relevance of our strategic choices and business mix,” said chief executive Thomas Buberl when the insurer released its full-year earnings. “Our preferred segments – P&C (property and casualty) commercial lines, health, and protection – continued to perform well, growing by 3% in 2020 and accelerating in the fourth quarter (+5%).

“The group’s underlying earnings were €4.3 billion in 2020, notably impacted by €1.5 billion of COVID-19 related claims, as previously communicated, and by higher natural catastrophes. We are confident in our earnings outlook and have set a 2020 starting base of €6.3 billion underlying earnings for our 2021-2023 strategic plan targets.”

According to AXA, its net income in 2020 fell 18% to €3.2 billion (around SG$5.14 billion). Broken down per business line, here’s how the group performed in terms of revenues:

Business line

Revenues

Change from 2019

Property & casualty

€48.7 billion

+1%

Health

€14.7 billion

+6%

Life & savings

€31.5 billion

-6%

Asset management

€1.3 billion

+4%

 

Meanwhile, a dividend of €1.43 per share will be proposed at the AXA annual general meeting taking place on April 29. Buberl said the figure was arrived at by the company’s board of directors after carefully considering the group’s balance sheet position, cash flows, and overall operational performance, as well as the continuing uncertainties related to the pandemic.

The CEO went on to state: “I would like to thank all AXA colleagues, agents, and partners for their unwavering commitment during these challenging times, as well as our clients for their loyalty and trust. Our strategy is aligned with the interests of all our stakeholders and firmly rooted in our purpose – ‘Acting for human progress by protecting what matters’.”

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