W. R. Berkley Corporation Reports First Quarter Results

Net Premiums Written Increased to a Record $3.1 Billion;

Return on Equity of 19.9% and Operating Return on Equity of 19.3%

W. R. Berkley Corporation (NYSE:WRB) today reported its first quarter 2025 results.

First quarter highlights included:

• Return on equity and operating return on equity of 19.9% and 19.3%, respectively.
• Record net premiums written grew to $3.1 billion.
• The current accident year combined ratio before catastrophe losses of 3.7 loss ratio points was 87.2%.
• The reported combined ratio was 90.9%, including current accident year catastrophe losses of $111.1 million.
• Average rate increases excluding workers' compensation were approximately 8.3%.
• Net investment income grew 12.6% to $360.3 million.
• Record net invested assets of $30.7 billion.
• Book value per share grew 7.1% in the quarter, before dividends and share repurchases.

The Company commented:

We achieved strong results in the first quarter of 2025 with a 19.9% annualized return on beginning-of-year common stockholders' equity, despite significant first-quarter industry-wide catastrophe losses. These results once again demonstrate our ability to successfully manage underwriting volatility.

Net premiums written grew 10% as market conditions remained favorable in many lines of business, particularly in our Insurance segment. Our 90.9% combined ratio includes 3.7 points of catastrophe losses in a quarter with significant industry catastrophe losses, reflecting our approach to managing volatility as a component of risk-adjusted return.

Net investment income increased significantly compared to the first quarter of 2024, and sequentially from the fourth quarter of 2024, reflecting the impact of higher new money rates on our growing fixed-maturity portfolio and improvement in our investment fund income. The strength of our operating cash flow continues to drive growth in net investable assets, positioning us well for further investment income growth.

Our ability to expand or contract each of our distinct businesses based on specific market conditions remains a significant competitive advantage. This agility enables us to execute our strategy to grow profitably and optimize risk-adjusted returns, while successfully navigating risks and embracing opportunities. We are confident that we will continue to deliver outstanding value to shareholders over the remainder of 2025 and beyond.

Webcast Conference Call

The Company will hold its quarterly conference call with analysts and investors to discuss its earnings and other information on April 21, 2025, at 5:00 p.m. eastern time. The conference call will be webcast live on the Company's website at https://ir.berkley.com/events-and-presentations/default.aspx. Please log on early to register. A replay of the webcast will be available on the Company's website approximately two hours after the end of the conference call. Additional financial information can be found on the Company's website at https://ir.berkley.com/investor-relations/financial-information/quarterly-results/default.aspx.

About W. R. Berkley Corporation

Founded in 1967, W. R. Berkley Corporation is an insurance holding company that is among the largest commercial lines writers in the United States and operates worldwide in two segments of the property casualty business: Insurance and Reinsurance & Monoline Excess.

Forward Looking Information

This is a "Safe Harbor" Statement under the Private Securities Litigation Reform Act of 1995. Any forward-looking statements contained herein, including statements related to our outlook for the industry and for our performance for the year 2025 and beyond, are based upon the Company's historical performance and on current plans, estimates and expectations. The inclusion of this forward-looking information should not be regarded as a representation by us or any other person that the future plans, estimates or expectations contemplated by us will be achieved. They are subject to various risks and uncertainties, including but not limited to: the cyclical nature of the property casualty industry; the impact of significant competition, including new entrants to the industry; the long-tail and potentially volatile nature of the insurance and reinsurance business; product demand and pricing; claims development and the process of estimating reserves; investment risks, including those of our portfolio of fixed maturity securities and investments in equity securities, including investments in financial institutions, municipal bonds, mortgage-backed securities, loans receivable, investment funds, including real estate, merger arbitrage, energy related and private equity investments; the effects of emerging claim and coverage issues; the uncertain nature of damage theories and loss amounts, including claims for cyber security-related risks; natural and man-made catastrophic losses, including as a result of terrorist activities; the ongoing effects of the COVID-19 pandemic, or other epidemics and pandemics; the impact of climate change, which may alter the frequency and increase the severity of catastrophe events; general economic and market activities, including inflation, interest rates, the impact of tariffs and volatility in the credit and capital markets; the impact of the conditions in the financial markets and the global economy, and the potential effect of legislative, regulatory, accounting or other initiatives taken in response to such conditions, on our results and financial condition; foreign currency and political risks relating to our international operations; our ability to attract and retain key personnel and qualified employees; continued availability of capital and financing; the success of our new ventures or acquisitions and the availability of other opportunities; the availability of reinsurance; our retention under the Terrorism Risk Insurance Program Reauthorization Act of 2019; the ability or willingness of our reinsurers to pay reinsurance recoverables owed to us; other legislative and regulatory developments, including those related to business practices in the insurance industry; credit risk related to our policyholders, independent agents and brokers; changes in the ratings assigned to us or our insurance company subsidiaries by rating agencies; the availability of dividends from our insurance company subsidiaries; cyber security breaches of our information technology systems and the information technology systems of our vendors and other third parties, or related processes and systems; the effectiveness of our controls to ensure compliance with guidelines, policies and legal and regulatory standards; and other risks detailed from time to time in the Company's filings with the Securities and Exchange Commission. These risks and uncertainties could cause our actual results for the year 2025 and beyond to differ materially from those expressed in any forward-looking statement we make. Any projections of growth in our revenues would not necessarily result in commensurate levels of earnings. Forward-looking statements speak only as of the date on which they are made, and the Company undertakes no obligation to update publicly or revise any forward-looking statement, whether as a result of new information, future developments or otherwise.

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Karen A. Horvath

Vice President - External

Financial Communications

(203) 629-3000