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8-K - FORM 8-K - GREENLIGHT CAPITAL RE, LTD.form8k.htm
 
 
FOURTH QUARTER AND YEAR END 2011 FINANCIAL RESULTS
 
GRAND CAYMAN, Cayman Islands (February 21, 2012) - Greenlight Capital Re, Ltd. (NASDAQ: GLRE) today announced financial results for the fourth quarter and year ended December 31, 2011.  Greenlight Re reported net income of $70.2 million for the fourth quarter of 2011 compared to net income of $56.4 million for the same period in 2010.  Net income per share was $1.89 on a fully diluted basis compared to $1.51 for the same fourth quarter period in 2010.
 
Fully diluted adjusted book value per share as of December 31, 2011 was $21.61, a 1.0% increase from $21.39 per share as of December 31, 2010.
 
For the year ended December 31, 2011, net income was $6.8 million compared to net income of $90.6 million for the year ended December 31, 2010.  The net income per share for 2011 was $0.18, on a fully diluted basis, compared to net income per share of $2.44 for 2010.
 
“Our disciplined approach allowed us to preserve capital and make continued progress in executing our strategy during 2011, which proved to be a challenging year for both underwriting and investing,” said Bart Hedges, Chief Executive Officer of Greenlight Re.  “We experienced significant competitive head winds on the underwriting side including a difficult pricing environment and a large number of natural catastrophes.  Even so, we found some attractive new opportunities and achieved a rating upgrade from A.M. Best.”
 
”In a difficult environment, Greenlight Re improved its market recognition and continued to build the platform,” stated David Einhorn, Chairman of the Board of Directors. “We believe we are well positioned for 2012 and beyond as we continue to pursue our strategy of developing productive, long term reinsurance partnerships and investing assets prudently.”
 
Financial and operating highlights for Greenlight Re in the fourth quarter and year ended December 31, 2011 include:
 
·  
Gross written premiums in the fourth quarter of 2011 were $90.5 million compared to $107.8 million in the fourth quarter of 2010, while net earned premiums were $77.1million, a decrease from $103.6 million reported in the fourth quarter of last year.  For the full year 2011, gross written premiums were $397.7 million compared to $414.9 million in 2010, while net earned premiums were $379.8 million compared to $287.7 million in the prior year.
 
·  
The combined ratio for 2011 was 103.8%, up from 102.8% in 2010.
 
·  
Net investment income reported in the fourth quarter 2011 was $77.7 million, a gain of 7.6%, compared to $64.3 million, or a 6.5% gain, in the fourth quarter of 2010.  For the full year 2011, net investment income was $23.1 million, a 2.1% gain, compared to $104.0 million in 2010, an 11.0% gain.
 
 
 

 
 
Conference Call Details
 
Greenlight Re will hold a live conference call to discuss its financial results for the fourth quarter and year ended December 31, 2011 on Wednesday, February 22, 2012 at 9:00 a.m. Eastern time.  The conference call title is Greenlight Capital Re, Ltd. Fourth Quarter and Year End 2011 Earnings Call.
 
To participate, please dial in to the conference call at:
 
U.S. toll free                          1-877-317-6789
International                         1-412-317-6789
 
The conference call can also be accessed via webcast at:
 
http://services.choruscall.com/links/glre120222.html
 
A telephone replay of the call will be available from 12:00 p.m. Eastern time on February 22, 2012 until 9:00 a.m. Eastern time on March 1, 2012.  The replay of the call may be accessed by dialing 1-877-344-7529 (U.S. toll free) or 1-412-317-0088 (international), access code 10009959. An audio file of the call will also be available on the Company’s website, www.greenlightre.ky .
 
###

Regulation G
Fully diluted adjusted book value per share is a non-GAAP measure and represents basic adjusted book value per share combined with the impact from dilution of share based compensation including in-the-money stock options as of any period end.  Book value is adjusted by subtracting the amount of the non-controlling interest in joint venture from total shareholders’ equity to calculate adjusted book value.  We believe that long term growth in fully diluted adjusted book value per share is the most relevant measure of our financial performance.  In addition, fully diluted adjusted book value per share may be of benefit to our investors, shareholders and other interested parties to form a basis of comparison with other companies within the reinsurance industry.

Forward-Looking Statements
This news release contains forward-looking statements within the meaning of the U.S. federal securities laws. We intend these forward-looking statements to be covered by the safe harbor provisions for forward-looking statements in the U.S. Federal securities laws. These statements involve risks and uncertainties that could cause actual results to differ materially from those contained in forward-looking statements made on behalf of the Company. These risks and uncertainties include the impact of general economic conditions and conditions affecting the insurance and reinsurance industry, the adequacy of our reserves, our ability to assess underwriting risk, trends in rates for property and casualty insurance and reinsurance, competition, investment market fluctuations, trends in insured and paid losses, catastrophes, regulatory and legal uncertainties and other factors described in our annual report on Form 10-K filed with the Securities Exchange Commission.  The Company undertakes no obligation to publicly update or revise any forward-looking statements, whether as a result of new information, future events or otherwise.

About Greenlight Capital Re, Ltd.
Greenlight Re (www.greenlightre.ky) is a specialist property and casualty reinsurance company based in the Cayman Islands and Ireland.  The Company provides a variety of custom-tailored reinsurance solutions to the insurance, risk retention group, captive and financial marketplaces.  Established in 2004, Greenlight Re selectively offers customized reinsurance solutions in markets where capacity and alternatives are limited.  With a focus on deriving superior returns from both sides of the balance sheet, Greenlight Re's assets are managed according to a value-oriented equity-focused strategy that complements the Company's business goal of long-term growth in book value per share.
 
 
 

 
 
Contact:
Alex Stanton
Stanton Public Relations & Marketing
(212) 780-0701
astanton@stantonprm.com
 
 
 

 
 
 
GREENLIGHT CAPITAL RE, LTD.
CONSOLIDATED BALANCE SHEETS
 
December 31, 2011 and 2010
(expressed in thousands of U.S. dollars, except per share and share amounts)
 
   
2011
   
2010
 
Assets
           
Investments
           
Debt instruments, trading, at fair value
 
$
10,639
   
$
15,610
 
Equity securities, trading, at fair value
   
890,822
     
839,921
 
Other investments, at fair value
   
128,685
     
179,023
 
Total investments
   
1,030,146
     
1,034,554
 
Cash and cash equivalents
   
42,284
     
45,540
 
Restricted cash and cash equivalents
   
957,462
     
977,293
 
Financial contracts receivable, at fair value
   
23,673
     
46,168
 
Reinsurance balances receivable
   
141,278
     
109,567
 
Loss and loss adjustment expenses recoverable
   
29,758
     
11,976
 
Deferred acquisition costs, net
   
68,725
     
87,389
 
Unearned premiums ceded
   
27,233
     
7,424
 
Notes receivable
   
17,437
     
14,205
 
Other assets
   
5,492
     
3,886
 
Total assets
 
$
2,343,488
   
$
2,338,002
 
Liabilities and shareholders’ equity
               
Liabilities
               
Securities sold, not yet purchased, at fair value
 
$
683,816
   
$
725,990
 
Financial contracts payable, at fair value
   
6,324
     
23,493
 
Due to prime brokers
   
260,359
     
273,071
 
Loss and loss adjustment expense reserves
   
241,279
     
186,467
 
Unearned premium reserves
   
225,735
     
234,983
 
Reinsurance balances payable
   
38,379
     
20,164
 
Funds withheld
   
31,844
     
22,887
 
Other liabilities
   
10,054
     
11,786
 
Total liabilities
   
1,497,790
     
1,498,841
 
Shareholders’ equity
               
Preferred share capital (par value $0.10; authorized, 50,000,000; none issued)
   
     
 
Ordinary share capital (Class A: par value $0.10; authorized, 100,000,000; issued and outstanding, 30,283,200 (2010: 30,200,835): Class B: par value $0.10; authorized, 25,000,000; issued and outstanding, 6,254,949 (2010: 6,254,949)
   
 
3,654
     
 
3,646
 
Additional paid-in capital
   
488,478
     
485,555
 
Retained earnings
   
310,971
     
304,202
 
Shareholders’ equity attributable to shareholders
   
803,103
     
793,403
 
Non-controlling interest in joint venture
   
42,595
     
45,758
 
Total equity
   
845,698
     
839,161
  
Total liabilities and equity
 
$
2,343,488
   
$
2,338,002
 
 
 
 
 

 
 
 
GREENLIGHT CAPITAL RE, LTD.
CONSOLIDATED STATEMENTS OF INCOME
 
Years ended December 31, 2011, 2010 and 2009
(expressed in thousands of U.S. dollars, except per share and share amounts)
 
 
2011
 
2010
 
2009
 
Revenues
           
Gross premiums written
$
397,659
 
$
414,850
 
$
258,818
 
Gross premiums ceded
 
(46,920
)
 
(12,011
 
(13,276
Net premiums written
 
350,739
   
402,839
   
245,542
 
Change in net unearned premium reserves
 
29,036
   
(115,138
 
(30,862
Net premiums earned
 
379,775
   
287,701
   
214,680
 
Net investment income 
 
23,118
   
104,006
   
199,861
 
Other income (expense), net
 
253
   
(1,079
 
4,538
 
Total revenues
 
403,146
   
390,628
   
419,079
 
Expenses
                 
Loss and loss adjustment expenses incurred, net
 
241,690
   
177,018
   
119,045
 
Acquisition costs, net
 
138,751
   
102,645
   
69,232
 
General and administrative expenses
 
13,892
   
16,187
   
18,994
 
Total expenses
 
394,333
   
295,850
   
207,271
 
Income from continuing operations before income tax expense
 
8,813
   
94,778
   
211,808
 
Income tax (expense) benefit
 
(247
)
 
(396
)
 
49
 
Net income including non-controlling interest
 
8,566
   
94,382
   
211,857
 
Income attributable to non-controlling interest in joint venture
 
(1,797
)
 
(3,740
 
(2,312
)
Net income
$
6,769
 
$
90,642
 
$
209,545
 
Earnings per share
                 
Basic
$
0.19
 
$
2.49
 
5.78
 
Diluted
 
0.18
   
2.44
   
5.71
 
Weighted average number of ordinary shares used in the determination of earnings per share:
                 
Basic
 
36,548,466
   
36,420,719
   
36,230,501
 
Diluted
 
37,286,454
   
37,224,173
   
36,723,552
 
 
 
The following table provides the ratios for the years ended December 31, 2011, 2010 and 2009.
 
 
2011
 
2010
 
2009
 
Frequency
Severity
Total
 
Frequency
Severity
Total
 
Frequency
Severity
Total
Loss ratio
65.7
%
25.4
%
63.6
%
 
         68.9
%
       (4.3
)%
61.5
%
 
     56.6
%
51.2
%
55.4
%
Acquisition cost ratio
37.4
%
20.9
%
36.5
%
 
         36.7
%
26.3
%
35.7
%
 
     38.6
%
8.3
%
32.3
%
Composite ratio
103.1
%
46.3
%
100.1
%
 
      105.6
%
22.0
%
97.2
%
 
     95.2
%
59.5
%
87.7
%
Internal expense ratio
       
3.7
%
         
5.6
%
         
8.8
%
Combined ratio
       
103.8
%
         
102.8
%
         
96.5
%