Spanish Mapfre Reports 2007 Net Profit Up Nearly 20%
On Wednesday, Mapfre stated that 2007 saw a net profit of 731.1 million euros ($1.1 billion), up 19.8 percent thanks to new acquisitions and joint ventures with Spanish banks. After results were announced, the Spanish insurer's shares were up 8 percent at 2.85 euros, while the European insurance sector was down 0.5 percent.
"Mapfre shares have suffered badly recently because the market was worried it would be hurt by the financial crisis. In the end, solid results prove that wasn't the case, and they've even upped the dividend," said Susana Felpeto, an analyst at Atlas Capital.
In a statement, Mapfre repeated that it had no exposure to the U.S. sub-prime mortgage meltdown and said it would increase its dividend by 44 percent to 0.13 euros per share.
Mapfre said premium income had risen 12.6 percent to 12.31 billion euros -- with 9.9 percent growth in Spain and a 16 percent increase abroad -- while its combined ratio, a measure of insurance profitability, improved to 92.6 percent from 93.9 percent in 2006.
Published on February 6, 2008
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