Insurer Ageas beats H1 estimates, launches buyback lifting shares
Updates with share move, adds detail throughout
By Dagmarah Mackos and Mathias de Rozario
Aug 28 (Reuters) -Insurer Ageas AGES.BR on Wednesday beat expectations for half-year net operating profit, after higher inflows into Asia and a recovery in Europe boosted its non-life and life products, and it launched a buyback programme, which lifted shares.
The stock was set for its best day in more than two years, gaining 5.7% by 0900 GMT.
Ageas' net operating profit for the first six months was 613 million euros ($683 million), ahead of a company-compiled consensus of analyst expectations for 575 million euros.
European rivals Generali GASI.MI, Allianz ALVG.DE and ASR Nederland ASRNL.AS also beat first-half expectations.
The Belgium-based group said it will launch a 200-million-euro share buyback, citing a strong cash position and Solvency II ratio.
It will also pay out an interim gross dividend of 1.50 euros per share, it said.
The group's total inflows rose by 14% to 10.2 billion euros, including 5.01 billion euros from Asia. This was driven by strong sales of life insurance products and lower capital consumption in China following efforts to reduce risk in its equity portfolio that helped to offset higher taxes in the country.
Ageas, which operates through joint ventures in nine countries in Asia, has been looking to limit exposure to business with low cash flows that had concerned investors.
Asked about China Taiping Insurance's (CTIH) dividend policy, Ageas said its Chinese partner depends on Taiping's Life subsidiary for dividends to meet its goal, aligning both parties' interests in increasing cash flow.
Ageas' life insurance segment saw strong recovery in Europe, helped by new savings products in Portugal and growth across all businesses in Turkey.
The non-life insurance segment expanded across all European markets, with the UK experiencing the largest rise due to more customers and higher motor insurance premiums. Portugal also saw improvements from price adjustments in health care and motor products.
($1 = 0.8975 euros)
Reporting by Dagmarah Mackos and Mathias de Rozario; Editing by Tom Hogue, Bernadette Baum and Barbara Lewis
免責聲明: XM Group提供線上交易平台的登入和執行服務，允許個人查看和/或使用網站所提供的內容，但不進行任何更改或擴展其服務和訪問權限，並受以下條款與條例約束：（i）條款與條例；（ii）風險提示；（iii）完全免責聲明。網站內部所提供的所有資訊，僅限於一般資訊用途。請注意，我們所有的線上交易平台內容並不構成，也不被視為進入金融市場交易的邀約或邀請 。金融市場交易會對您的投資帶來重大風險。
所有缐上交易平台所發佈的資料，僅適用於教育/資訊類用途，不包含也不應被視爲適用於金融、投資稅或交易相關諮詢和建議，或是交易價格紀錄，或是任何金融商品或非應邀途徑的金融相關優惠的交易邀約或邀請。
本網站的所有XM和第三方所提供的内容，包括意見、新聞、研究、分析、價格其他資訊和第三方網站鏈接，皆爲‘按原狀’，並作爲一般市場評論所提供，而非投資建議。請理解和接受，所有被歸類為投資研究範圍的相關内容，並非爲了促進投資研究獨立性，而根據法律要求所編寫，而是被視爲符合營銷傳播相關法律與法規所編寫的内容。請確保您已詳讀並完全理解我們的非獨立投資研究提示和風險提示資訊，相關詳情請點擊 這裡查看。
