CNA Financial Corporation's second-quarter 2026 results, reported August 3, describe a carrier moving in two directions at once: holding the line on price in the lines where claims costs are climbing fastest, while giving ground in the lines where competition has intensified.
CNA reported net income of $321 million, or $1.18 per diluted share, up from $299 million a year earlier. Core income was $324 million, or $1.19 per diluted share, down from $335 million in the prior-year quarter, as investment gains offset softer underwriting results.
CNA's renewal premium change was up 2% overall, a figure that hides more than it reveals. The company said continued rate increases in casualty, tied to social inflation, the trend in which litigation funding and rising jury verdicts push claims costs up faster than general inflation, and higher rates in its Specialty segment offset rate decreases in property, workers' compensation and its International segment. Anyone renewing a casualty account with CNA this quarter met a carrier still pushing for more rate; anyone renewing property or workers' comp met one pulling back.
New business reached a record $718 million in the quarter, up 11%, even as CNA's underlying loss ratio rose 2.6 points to 64.1% across every segment. That combination, growth alongside rising loss ratios, typically signals a carrier actively chasing volume in specific areas while accepting some near-term margin pressure to get it.
Net written premiums rose 5% in both the Specialty and Commercial segments. Retention held at 83%, and renewal premium change was up 2% while rate increase was flat overall, a pattern more consistent with a carrier being selective about which accounts to push on than one applying blanket increases across its book.
"We delivered strong second quarter results with core income of $324 million reflecting deliberate and disciplined growth, excellent investment income and high-quality underwriting results underpinned by the prudent loss ratio selections we established in the first quarter," said Douglas Worman, chairman and chief executive officer of CNA. Worman added that the company still sees opportunities across its portfolio to write business at appropriate risk-adjusted returns, while remaining cautious in areas where market conditions warrant pulling back.
Within CNA's Commercial segment, the underlying combined ratio rose 2.2 points to 92.8%, driven primarily by increases in excess casualty and workers' compensation loss ratios. It's the same social inflation pressure showing up on the claims side that CNA is pricing for on the renewal side, which is part of why casualty rate is holding even as several other lines soften.
The quarter also included a $77 million after-tax charge tied to unfavorable prior period development on legacy mass tort exposure, the second consecutive year CNA has taken a charge of similar size for the same issue.
Charges of this kind are a recurring feature for carriers with older, long-tail books of business and don't necessarily reflect current underwriting capacity or appetite; the record new business figure and segment-level rate detail above point to a carrier still actively writing new accounts in several lines despite it.
