Cornerstone Insurance posts N14bn revenue as premium income rises

Cornerstone Insurance Plc grew its insurance revenue by 25.2 percent to N14.01 billion in the first quarter of 2026, supported by higher premium income across its underwriting businesses, although foreign exchange losses and higher insurance finance expenses weighed on profitability.

According to the company’s unaudited financial statement for the three months ended March 31, 2026, insurance revenue rose from N11.19 billion in the corresponding period of 2025 to N14.01 billion, while insurance premiums received increased to N16.54 billion from N13.83 billion a year earlier.

The increase in top-line earnings helped Cornerstone maintain a stable insurance service result of N3.27 billion, almost unchanged from N3.27 billion recorded in the first quarter of 2025. Insurance service expenses declined to N6.07 billion from N7.45 billion, reflecting lower claims and underwriting costs, but this was offset by a sharp rise in net expenses from reinsurance contracts held, which climbed to N4.67 billion from N472.7 million.

Despite stronger insurance revenue, profit after tax fell by 10 percent to N1.48 billion from N1.65 billion recorded in the same period last year. Profit attributable to shareholders declined to N1.50 billion from N1.63 billion.

The earnings pressure came largely from a N1.81 billion foreign exchange loss, compared with a gain of N1.18 billion in the first quarter of 2025, alongside higher insurance finance expenses of N1.60 billion against N1.06 billion a year earlier.

Investment income, however, provided some support. Interest revenue nearly doubled to N2.22 billion from N1.15 billion, while other investment income surged to N2.07 billion from N7.6 million, helping total investment returns remain broadly stable at N2.48 billion.

Management expenses declined by 12.2 percent to N2.49 billion from N2.84 billion, indicating efforts to contain operating costs amid a challenging business environment.

The insurer’s balance sheet remained resilient. Total assets increased to N144.47 billion as of March 2026 from N141.03 billion at the end of December 2025, driven by growth in financial assets measured at fair value through profit or loss, which rose to N52.10 billion from N46.03 billion. Shareholders’ equity also expanded to N76.28 billion from N72.86 billion over the same period.

Cash and cash equivalents, however, fell to N18.10 billion from N24.17 billion, reflecting net cash outflows from operating and investing activities. Net cash used in investing activities stood at N5.17 billion, largely due to purchases of financial assets, while operating activities recorded a net outflow of N197.6 million.

The company closed its last trading day on Tuesday at N6.75 per share on the Nigerian Stock Exchange (NGX), recording a 4.7 percent gain over its previous closing price of N6.45.

Cornerstone began the year with a share price of N5.96 and has since gained 13.3 percent on that price valuation, ranking it 74th on the NGX in terms of year-to-date performance.