Introduction & Market Context
The Hartford Insurance Group (NYSE:HIG) presented its first quarter 2025 financial results on April 24, 2025, revealing a mixed performance characterized by strong premium growth across segments but declining profitability compared to the same period last year. The company maintained its position as a diversified insurer with core strengths in underwriting, risk management, and distribution.
As shown in the following chart of revenue contribution across segments, Business Insurance remains the company’s largest segment, accounting for 55% of revenue, followed by Employee Benefits at 26%, Personal Insurance at 14%, and Hartford Funds at 4%:
Quarterly Performance Highlights
The Hartford reported core earnings of $639 million for Q1 2025, down 10% from $709 million in Q1 2024. Net income available to common stockholders decreased by 16% to $625 million, compared to $748 million in the prior year period. Despite these declines, the company achieved solid premium growth with Property & Casualty net written premiums increasing by 9% year-over-year.
The company’s core earnings per diluted share decreased by 6% to $2.20 from $2.34 in Q1 2024, while net income per diluted share fell by 13% to $2.15. Book value per diluted share (excluding AOCI) grew to $65.99, representing a 10% increase from $60.18 in Q1 2024.
The following slide highlights The Hartford’s key financial metrics for Q1 2025, including growth, profitability, and capital management:
A more detailed breakdown of the company’s financial performance by segment shows the specific contributions from each business unit:
Segment Analysis
Business Insurance
Business Insurance, The Hartford’s largest segment, reported written premiums of $3.7 billion in Q1 2025, a 10% increase compared to Q1 2024. The segment maintained pricing discipline with renewal written pricing at 6.5% overall and 9.9% excluding workers’ compensation. However, the combined ratio deteriorated to 94.4, up 4.3 points from the prior year, while the underlying combined ratio remained stable at 88.4.
The following chart illustrates Business Insurance performance trends across written premiums, pricing, and combined ratio:
Personal Insurance
Personal Insurance written premiums grew by 8% to $913 million in Q1 2025, with Automobile up 5% and Homeowners up 17%. While price increases remained substantial at 12.3% for Auto and 13.8% for Homeowners, they moderated from the higher increases seen in previous quarters. The segment’s combined ratio deteriorated to 106.1, up 4.5 points year-over-year, with Homeowners particularly challenged at 133.2, up 37.0 points, likely due to increased catastrophe losses.
The following chart shows Personal Insurance trends in premiums, pricing, and combined ratio:
Employee Benefits
The Employee Benefits segment delivered a strong performance with core earnings of $136 million, up 27% from Q1 2024. The core earnings margin improved to 7.6%, an increase of 1.5 points year-over-year. Fully insured ongoing premiums grew modestly by 2% to $1.6 billion. The disability loss ratio improved to 69.0%, down 1.1 points, while the life loss ratio increased to 79.9%, up 2.7 points.
The following chart details Employee Benefits performance metrics:
Hartford Funds
Hartford Funds reported core earnings of $44 million, up 7% from Q1 2024. However, the segment experienced net outflows of $1.4 billion during the quarter, compared to outflows of $2.5 billion in Q1 2024. Total assets under management stood at $138.1 billion as of March 31, 2025, with mutual fund and ETF assets accounting for $127.2 billion.
Investment Performance & Capital Management
The Hartford reported net investment income of $656 million for Q1 2025, with an annualized investment yield of 4.4%. The company maintains a high-quality investment portfolio with an A+ overall average credit rating. The portfolio is well-diversified across asset classes, with corporate bonds (36%) and securitized products (27%) representing the largest allocations.
The following chart illustrates the composition of The Hartford’s investment portfolio:
The company continued its disciplined capital management approach, repurchasing $400 million of shares and paying $150 million in common stockholder dividends during Q1 2025. The core earnings return on equity (ROE) stood at 16.2% for the trailing 12 months, slightly down from 16.6% in the comparable prior period.
The following chart shows ROE trends across the company’s segments:
Forward-Looking Statements
While The Hartford’s presentation did not provide explicit forward guidance, the company’s focus on disciplined underwriting, pricing adequacy, and risk management suggests a continued emphasis on balancing growth and profitability. The persistent pricing increases across both commercial and personal lines indicate ongoing efforts to address loss cost inflation and maintain underwriting margins.
The Hartford’s strong capital position, with book value per share continuing to grow at a 10% compound annual growth rate, provides flexibility for future investments in technology and data capabilities while sustaining shareholder returns through dividends and share repurchases.
In the previous earnings call for Q4 2024, CEO Chris Swift had expressed confidence in the company’s management of general liability reserves and its strategic positioning for 2025. The Q1 results suggest that while premium growth remains strong, the company continues to face challenges in certain segments, particularly Personal Insurance, where catastrophe losses appear to be impacting results.
The Hartford’s diversified business model, with strong performance in Employee Benefits offsetting some of the challenges in Personal Insurance, demonstrates the value of the company’s balanced approach to managing its insurance portfolio across multiple segments and risk categories.
Full presentation:
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