(Reuters) -Australian insurer Suncorp reported a better-than-expected full-year cash earnings on Thursday, driven by improved underlying insurance margins and higher investment returns, and announced a share buyback plan of up to A$400 million ($261.72 million).
The general insurer’s underlying insurance trading ratio, a key profitability indicator, ticked 8 basis points higher to 11.9% in the year to June 30, while net investment returns jumped 16% to A$766 million.
Natural hazard costs came in at A$1.36 billion, more than A$200 million below its allowance for the year.
As a result, the general insurer’s cash earnings jumped to A$1.49 billion for the year ended June 30, ahead of the Visible Alpha consensus estimate of A$1.47 billion and last year’s A$1.37 billion.
The Brisbane-headquartered firm declared a final dividend of 49 Australian cents per share, up from 44 Australian cents per share last year.
($1 = 1.5284 Australian dollars)
(Reporting by Sameer Manekar and Adwitiya Srivastava in Bengaluru; Editing by Alan Barona)
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