United Fire Group, Inc. (UFCS) Earnings
United Fire Group, Inc. is expected to report next earnings on August 4, 2026 (in NaN days), with a consensus EPS estimate of $0.72. UFCS has beaten EPS estimates in 9 of its last 12 reported quarters (average surprise +115.1% over the last four).
| Report date | EPS est | EPS actual | Surprise | Revenue | Rev. surprise |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| May 6, 2026 | $0.87 | $1.16 | +33.3% | $343M | +0.8% |
| Nov 4, 2025 | $0.69 | $1.50 | +117.4% | $354M | +6.5% |
| Feb 13, 2024 | $0.56 | $0.65 | +16.1% | $287M | +3.1% |
| Nov 1, 2023 | $-0.16 | $0.31 | +293.7% | $274M | -0.4% |
| Feb 15, 2023 | $0.36 | $0.18 | -50.0% | $288M | +18.8% |
| Nov 2, 2022 | $-0.48 | $-0.47 | +2.1% | $236M | -0.8% |
| Aug 4, 2022 | $0.47 | $0.24 | -48.9% | $220M | -7.5% |
| May 5, 2022 | $0.84 | $1.13 | +34.5% | $245M | -9.1% |
| Feb 15, 2022 | $0.41 | $1.69 | +312.2% | $273M | -1.4% |
| Nov 4, 2021 | $-0.31 | $-0.31 | +0.0% | $249M | -10.0% |
| Aug 4, 2021 | $-0.07 | $0.35 | +600.0% | $244M | -12.2% |
| May 5, 2021 | $-0.29 | $-0.03 | +89.7% | $301M | +11.2% |
Source: company filings + earnings calendar. For informational purposes only — not investment advice.
Earnings call summary
Q1 FY2026 · May 6, 2026
AI summary of management’s prepared remarks and analyst Q&A. For informational purposes only — not investment advice.
Management highlights
- UFG had a terrific start in 2026 with record net written premium, nearly 4-point improvement in combined ratio, 15% increase in net investment income, ROE of approx. 13% and highest first quarter EPS in seven years. - Core commercial business grew 11% in net written premium with all three units contributing, leveraging distribution relationships and expanded capabilities, with 4.3% rate achieved. - Specialty ENS faced intensifying competition with double-digit rate increases from a year ago now mid-single digits, renewal defense for adequately priced accounts is a priority. - Surety premiums were stable as focused on quality, alternative distribution grew 13% with successful treaty cycle and expanded funds at Lloyd's portfolio. - Loss ratio was 57% in Q1, commercial lines benefited from strong earned rate and refined underwriting, reinsurance business loss ratio increased due to market rate reductions, catastrophe loss ratio 3.7% was 1.3 points below prior year. - Fixed income portfolio delivered 15% growth in net investment income, fixed maturity income up 18%, expense ratio improved 3 points with 2 points from completion of policy administration system costs and 1 point from growth.
Segment performance
Core commercial business saw a 11% growth in net written premium in the first quarter. Specialty ENS net written premium growth was largely impacted by seeded premium adjustments in Q1 2025. Surety premiums were stable compared to prior year. Alternative distribution grew net written premium 13% over prior year. Net investment income grew 15% in the first quarter to $27 million. Fixed maturity income was $24.9 million, up 18% from prior year. Expense ratio in the first quarter was 34.9%, improving 3 points from prior year.
Analyst Q&A
Q: Good morning, this is Cameron from Paul Newsome. Congrats on the quarter. You're starting to see solid business growth in retention improvement and core commercial. Are you seeing any incremental competition in that business and how are you balancing that growth versus margin discipline in that business?
A: Hi, this is Julie. I'll answer that for you. You know, this moderation in rates and increased competition is not unexpected for the quarter. But we still feel very good about our growth trajectory. The underlying discipline that we've worked so hard to put in place over the past few years, I think, have positioned us really well going into this market. We believe there are still ample opportunities with positive margin available to us in this market. And we're very confident about the quality of the portfolio. So retention may fluctuate a bit quarter to quarter as the market continues to soften, but We'll continue to insist on adequate pricing account over account, and I think we're positioned very well to continue to grow.
Q: And then on the expense ratio improvement, you broke down a little bit how much of that is structural versus more of a one-time improvement. How can we begin to think about run rating those improvements from the new policy administration system on the expense ratio?
A: Hey, good morning, Cam. This is Eric. Thanks for joining us. Yes, as we mentioned in our comments, when you look quarter over quarter, we're down about three points on the expense ratio. And we had two points of that improvement was due to the completion of some costs from our policy administrative system that we were finishing up in the early stages of last year. And then we've got one point due to growth. So this quarter's number is a very clean number at 34.9. There's really nothing unusual from it. As we look forward here, we would continue to see improvement in the expense ratio with an assumption as we grow at 10%, we would expect it to come down around 60 or 70 basis points year over year looking into the future here.
Q: Hi, Jason. Is your line on mute? Hi. Good morning, guys. Thanks for taking my question. We're all back now. I know you touched on this before. It's just one for me. But looking at the deceleration trend and renewal rate increases, would you ascribe that to mix-related, reflective of the elevated competition that you've been speaking about, or possibly an intentional effort to bump share gains here?
A: I think it's more based on competitive behavior. You know, we're very pleased that the rates are still positive. It does vary significantly by line of business. And so, you know, we're trying to approach every single account and every single opportunity by finding the right rate for the exposures that we're underwriting. We feel very good about where we're positioned and we'll continue to navigate the competition in that way.