Everest Group's core businesses generated US$317 million in pre-tax underwriting income for the second quarter of 2026, with the reinsurance treaty and global wholesale and specialty segments delivering a 90% combined ratio as the group's strategic reset moves into a second year.
Group net income reached US$559 million for the quarter, with net operating income of US$585 million and an annualized net operating income return on equity of 14.9%. Book value per share rose to US$398.83 from US$379.83 at year-end 2025.
The results came alongside a planned contraction in premium volume. Core businesses wrote US$3.7 billion in gross written premium, down 7.1% on a comparable basis year on year. Reinsurance treaty fell 9.1% to US$2.7 billion and global wholesale and specialty declined 1% to US$958 million.
Reinsurance treaty leads underwriting
Everest's reinsurance treaty segment produced US$283 million of the group's pre-tax underwriting income at a combined ratio of 88.5% and an attritional combined ratio of 85.4%. Pre-tax catastrophe losses were US$75 million, driven primarily by losses from the Iran War and mid-sized events globally. Excluding elevated non-catastrophe weather losses, the attritional combined ratio would have been 82.7%.
Global wholesale and specialty contributed US$34 million in pre-tax underwriting income at a combined ratio of 95.2%, matching the same quarter a year earlier. The attritional combined ratio improved 110 basis points to 93.8%, aided by portfolio changes including a 16.7% reduction in workers' compensation and a 7.2% decline in specialty casualty. These reductions were partially offset by growth of 10.1% in other specialty and 8.6% in professional liability.
Legacy segment and group outlook
Everest's legacy segment, which now covers the commercial retail insurance business following the sale of renewal rights to AIG, recorded a US$36 million pre-tax underwriting loss on US$94 million of gross written premium. Legacy premium stood at US$772 million a year earlier, showing the pace of the retail exit.
At group level, the combined ratio was 92% against 90.4% a year earlier. Catastrophe losses added 2.7 points versus 0.5 points in Q2 2025, driven by Iran War losses and a cluster of mid-sized global events. Net investment income was US$523 million, marginally down from US$532 million on lower alternative investment returns, while year-to-date net operating income reached US$1.23 billion.
The group repurchased US$395 million of common shares during the quarter and US$725 million year to date, a pace that nearly doubled the US$200 million bought back in the same quarter of 2025. Annualized total shareholder return reached 16.8% for the year to date.
Jim Williamson, Everest president and chief executive, said the mid-year reinsurance renewals showed the treaty team's execution, with outperformance on rate and terms versus the market. He added that the global wholesale and specialty segment was benefiting from expansion in specialty lines and targeted international markets and that capital deployment through share repurchases remained a top priority.
