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Ambac Financial Group Inc

Ambac Financial Group Inc (AMBC)

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US Market News US Market News 2 months ago
Octave Specialty Group Reports First Quarter 2026 ResultsMay 6, 2026 4:35 PM
Business Wire Total P&C premium production increased 66% for the quarter to $531 million Insurance Distribution Segment Total revenue grew 92% to $79 million, including the impact of the October 2025 acquisition of ArmadaCare Organic revenue growth equaled 42% Net income to Shareholders of $13 million, compared to net loss of $(3) million in 1Q25 Adjusted EBITDA to Shareholders of $25 million, compared to $7 million in 1Q25 Pre-tax income and Adjusted EBITDA margin to shareholders reached 16% and 32%, respectively Specialty P&C Insurance Segment ("Everspan") Gross and net premiums written of $104 million and $32 million were up 19% and 80%, respectively Net loss was $(8) million, compared to net income of $1 million in 1Q25 The first quarter 2026 net loss was driven primarily by losses and LAE from the settlement of a potential litigation matter related to an insurance claim Adjusted net income was $1.2 million, compared to Adjusted net income of $1.5 million a year ago Adjusted EBITDA to Shareholders of $1.6 million, up 2% compared to 1Q25   Octave Specialty Group, Inc. (NYSE: OSG) ("Octave" or "OSG"), a global specialty insurance firm, today reported its results for the First Quarter 2026. "I am very pleased with our first quarter results," said Claude LeBlanc, President and Chief Executive Officer of Octave. "Our core Insurance Distribution business delivered 92% revenue growth, 42% organic growth, the rest from our recent ArmadaCare acquisition. Insurance Distribution Adjusted EBITDA increased to $25 million, nearly four times the same period last year. The diversification of our distribution platform demonstrated the resilience and value of the Octave platform as we delivered our strongest quarter yet, even as we witnessed some headwinds in certain segments of the market." LeBlanc continued, “Everspan's turnaround is also gaining momentum. Gross premiums written topped $100 million, up 19%, while net premiums written grew 80%. Regrettably, we experienced some adverse development this quarter from the settlement of a potential litigation matter related to an insurance claim from a program in run-off. This loss was primarily attributable to legal expenses incurred in connection with the settlement which had an adverse impact on our reported quarterly underwriting results. Importantly however, our active programs were running at a loss ratio of 57% in the first quarter, right in line with the current accident year performance." LeBlanc concluded, "Overall, this quarter's results reflect solid execution and reinforces our confidence in the strength of our business." Octave's First Quarter 2026 Summary Results     Three Months Ended March 31, (in thousands, except per share data)1     2026       2025     % Change Total revenues from continuing operations   $ 104,170     $ 62,756     66 % Total expenses from continuing operations   $ 107,514     $ 77,863     38 % Pretax income (loss) from continuing operations   $ (3,344 )   $ (15,107 )   (78 )% Provision (benefit) for income taxes from continuing operations   $ (481 )   $ (617 )   NM   Net income (loss) from continuing operations   $ (2,863 )   $ (14,490 )   (80 )% Net income (loss) from continuing operations attributable to shareholders, net of tax   $ (6,851 )   $ (16,144 )   (58 )% Net income (loss) from discontinued operations   $ —     $ (30,247 )   NM   Net income (loss) attributable to shareholders   $ (6,851 )   $ (46,391 )   NM   Net income (loss) from continuing operations attributable to stockholders per diluted share 3   $ (0.13 )   $ (0.57 )   (77 )% Net income (loss) attributable to stockholders per diluted share 3   $ (0.13 )   $ (1.21 )   (89 )% Non-GAAP             EBITDA to shareholders 2   $ 3,610     $ (5,477 )   (166 )% Adjusted EBITDA to shareholders2   $ 20,069     $ (1,287 )   NM   Adjusted net income (loss) attributable to shareholders   $ 16,615     $ (6,037 )   (375 )% Per Share             Adjusted net income (loss) to shareholders per diluted share 2   $ 0.37     $ (0.13 )   (385 )% Adjusted EBITDA to shareholders per diluted share2   $ 0.44     $ (0.03 )   NM                 Weighted-average diluted shares outstanding     45,303       47,313     (4 )% (1) Some financial data in this press release may not add up due to rounding (2) See Non-GAAP Financial Data section of this press release for further information (3) Per diluted share includes the impact of adjusting redeemable noncontrolling interests to current redemption value First Quarter 2026 Summary(4) Total revenue from continuing operations for the first quarter of 2026 was $104 million, an increase of 66% compared to the $63 million in the same prior-year period. The growth in total revenue was driven by the Insurance Distribution segment, which included the acquisition of ArmadaCare and organic revenue growth of 42%. Net (loss) from continuing operations to shareholders for the first quarter of 2026 was $(7) million compared to $(16) million in the same prior-year period. The improvement was attributable to our Insurance Distribution segment, which reported net income of $13 million compared to a net loss of $(3) million in the prior year quarter. The strong results in the Insurance Distribution business were partially offset by a net loss of $(8) million in our Specialty Property & Casualty segment, which included $2.1 million of losses and $5.8 million of LAE (legal expenses) to settle a potential litigation matter related to an insurance claim. Adjusted net income to shareholders, which excludes non-recurring expenses along with other items, was $17 million compared to a net loss of $(6) million in the same prior-year period. Adjusted EBITDA from continuing operations to shareholders for the first quarter of 2026 was $20.1 million compared to $(1.3) million in the same prior-year period. The improvement was driven by an $18.2 million increase in Insurance Distribution Adjusted EBITDA. Our Insurance Distribution results reflected the first full quarter of ArmadaCare and the seasonal impact of our A&H business, in addition to growth across our core MGA platform. Everspan reported an Adjusted EBITDA of $1.6 million, up 2% from the prior-year period. Included within first quarter 2026 results was a Corporate net (loss) of $(12) million compared to a net (loss) of $(14) million in the first quarter of 2025. Corporate Adjusted EBITDA was a (loss) of $(7) million compared to a loss of $(10) million in the first quarter of 2025. (4) For definitions of each non-GAAP measure referred to above, as well as reconciliation of such non-GAAP measures to their most directly comparable GAAP measures, see "Non-GAAP Financial Measures" below. Earnings Call and Webcast On May 7, 2026, at 8:30am ET, Claude LeBlanc, President and Chief Executive Officer, and David Trick, Executive Vice President and Chief Financial Officer, will discuss Octave's first quarter 2026 results during a conference call. A live audio webcast of the call will be available through the Investor Relations section of Octave’s website, https://octavegroup.com/investor-relations/events-and-presentations/. Participants may also listen via telephone by dialing (877) 407-9716 or (201) 493-6779. The webcast will be archived on Octave's website. A replay of the call will be available through May 21, 2026, and can be accessed by dialing (Domestic) (844) 512-2921 or (International) (412) 317-6671; and using ID# 13759400. Additional information is included in an operating supplement and presentations on Octave's website, www.octavegroup.com. Results of Operations by Segment Insurance Distribution Segment     Three Months Ended March 31, ($ in thousands)     2026       2025     % Change Premiums placed   $ 426,833     $ 233,186     83 % Total revenues   $ 78,526     $ 40,998     92 % Pretax income (loss)   $ 16,785     $ (2,243 )   (848 )% Pretax income (loss) to shareholders1   $ 12,797     $ (3,897 )   (428 )% Net income (loss)   $ 17,153     $ (1,743 )   (1084 )% Net income (loss) to shareholders1   $ 13,165     $ (3,397 )   (488 )% EBITDA   $ 30,817     $ 12,083     155 % EBITDA to shareholders1   $ 23,467     $ 7,083     231 % Adjusted EBITDA   $ 32,995     $ 12,112     172 % Adjusted EBITDA to shareholders1   $ 25,340     $ 7,112     256 % Adjusted net income (loss)   $ 28,749     $ 7,049     308 % Adjusted net income (loss) to shareholders   $ 22,045     $ 2,549     765 % Pretax income margin to shareholders2     16.3 %     (9.5 )%   2580 bps Adjusted EBITDA margin to shareholders3,4     32.3 %     17.3 %   1500 bps Organic Growth     41.8 %     (2.1 )%     (1) After the impact of noncontrolling interests
(2) Represents Pretax income (loss) to shareholders divided by total revenues
(3) See Non-GAAP Financial Data section of this press release for further information
(4) Represents Adjusted EBITDA to shareholders divided by total revenues Specialty Property & Casualty Insurance Segment     Three Months Ended March 31, ($ in thousands)     2026       2025     % Change Gross premium written   $ 103,716     $ 86,915     19 % Net premiums written   $ 32,449     $ 18,004     80 % Net premiums earned   $ 20,001     $ 15,678     28 % Total revenue   $ 25,299     $ 21,171     19 % Net income (loss)   $ (7,690 )   $ 1,425     (640 )% Adjusted EBITDA to shareholders(1)   $ 1,618     $ 1,589     2 % Loss Ratio     98.4 %     66.9 %   3150 bps Expense Ratio     51.3 %     35.2 %   1610 bps Combined Ratio     149.7 %     102.1 %   4760 bps (1) See Non-GAAP Financial Data section of this press release for further information OSG Corporate (holding company only) OSG on a standalone basis, excluding its ownership interests in its Specialty P&C Insurance and Insurance Distribution subsidiaries, had net assets of $61 million as of March 31, 2026. Assets included cash and liquid securities of $39 million and other investments of $22 million. Consolidated Octave Specialty Group, Inc. Stockholders' Equity and NCI Impact to EPS Stockholders’ equity attributable to common shareholders at March 31, 2026, was $713 million, or $15.83 per share compared to $716 million or $15.90 per share as of December 31, 2025. The decline was primarily a result of the total comprehensive loss attributable to common shareholders of $(14) million, partially offset by increased additional paid-in capital of $10 million related to changes in noncontrolling interest and stock compensation. Calculation of Earnings (Loss) Per Share (EPS) Diluted net income (loss) per share is computed by dividing net income (loss) attributable to shareholders, including adjustments to the redemption value of redeemable noncontrolling interests, by the basic weighted-average shares outstanding plus all potentially dilutive common shares outstanding during the period. The following table provides a reconciliation of net income (loss) attributable to shareholders to the numerator in the diluted earnings per share calculation, together with the resulting earnings per share amounts:   Three Months Ended March 31, (in thousands, except per share data)   2026       2025   Net income (loss) from continuing operations attributable to shareholders $ (6,851 )   $ (16,144 ) Adjustment for Redeemable NCI   807       (10,825 ) Numerator of diluted EPS $ (6,044 )   $ (26,969 ) Per Share — Diluted $ (0.13 )   $ (0.57 )         Net income (loss) attributable to shareholders $ (6,851 )   $ (46,391 ) Adjustment for Redeemable NCI   807       (10,825 ) Numerator of diluted EPS $ (6,044 )   $ (57,216 ) Per Share — Diluted $ (0.13 )   $ (1.21 )         WASO-Diluted   45,303       47,313   OCTAVE SPECIALTY GROUP, INC. AND SUBSIDIARIES Consolidated Statements of Income (Loss) (Unaudited)     Three Months Ended March 31, ($ in thousands, except share data)     2026       2025   Revenues:         Commissions   $ 68,178     $ 36,771   Servicing and other fees     9,362       4,964   Net premiums earned     20,001       15,678   Program fees     3,644       3,652   Investment income     2,355       2,815   Other     630       (1,124 ) Total revenues     104,170       62,756   Expenses:         Commissions     14,005       10,365   Losses and loss adjustment expenses     19,679       10,496   Policy acquisition costs     6,371       3,841   General and administrative     53,155       38,531   Intangible amortization and depreciation     12,214       9,176   Interest     2,090       5,454   Total expenses     107,514       77,863   Pretax income (loss) from continuing operations     (3,344 )     (15,107 ) Provision (benefit) for income taxes from continuing operations     (481 )     (617 ) Net income (loss) from continuing operations     (2,863 )     (14,490 ) Net income (loss) from discontinued operations     —       (30,247 ) Net income (loss)     (2,863 )     (44,737 ) Net (gain) loss attributable to noncontrolling interest     (3,988 )     (1,654 ) Net income (loss) attributable to shareholders   $ (6,851 )   $ (46,391 )           Net income (loss) from continuing operations attributable to stockholders   $ (6,851 )   $ (16,144 ) Net income (loss) from discontinued operations attributable to stockholders     —       (30,247 ) Net income (loss) attributable to shareholders   $ (6,851 )   $ (46,391 )           Net income (loss) from continuing operations per share attributable to stockholders         Basic   $ (0.13 )   $ (0.57 ) Diluted   $ (0.13 )   $ (0.57 )           Net income (loss) per share attributable to stockholders         Basic   $ (0.13 )   $ (1.21 ) Diluted   $ (0.13 )   $ (1.21 )           Weighted-average number of common shares outstanding:         Basic     45,302,933       47,313,012   Diluted     45,302,933       47,313,012   OCTAVE SPECIALTY GROUP, INC. AND SUBSIDIARIES Consolidated Balance Sheets ($ in thousands, except share data)   March 31,
2026   December 31,
2025     (Unaudited)     Assets:         Investments:         Fixed maturity securities, at fair value (amortized cost: $139,242 and $123,414)   $ 137,092     $ 122,295   Short-term investments, at fair value (amortized cost: $92,295 and $146,434)     92,295       146,442   Other investments (includes $7,454 and $7,454 at fair value)     24,971       24,971   Total investments (net of allowance for credit losses of $0 and $0)     254,358       293,708   Cash and cash equivalents (including $46,634 and $40,754 of restricted cash)     93,537       68,440   Premium receivables (net of allowance for credit losses of $500 and $500)     87,653       75,085   Commission and fees receivable     106,198       86,549   Reinsurance recoverable on paid and unpaid losses (net of allowance for credit losses of $100 and $100)     469,859       436,092   Deferred ceded premium     145,420       146,365   Policy acquisition costs     16,451       9,732   Intangible assets, less accumulated amortization     458,380       474,998   Goodwill     533,497       540,345   Other assets (net of allowance for credit losses of $350 and $350)     101,673       92,003   Total assets   $ 2,267,026     $ 2,223,317   Liabilities and Stockholders’ Equity:         Liabilities:         Unearned premiums   $ 198,681     $ 187,178   Loss and loss adjustment expense reserves     487,261       459,990   Ceded premiums payable     89,148       80,561   Deferred program fees and reinsurance commissions     6,929       6,978   Commission payable     118,086       115,555   Deferred taxes     60,553       65,217   Long-term debt     117,062       117,558   Accrued interest payable     1,305       1,343   Other liabilities     158,458       102,771   Total liabilities     1,237,483       1,137,151   Redeemable noncontrolling interest     195,969       252,981   Stockholders’ equity:         Preferred stock, par value $0.01 per share; 20,000,000 shares authorized shares; issued and outstanding shares—none     —       —   Common stock, par value $0.01 per share; 130,000,000 shares authorized; issued shares: 48,876,882 and 48,876,882     489       489   Additional paid-in capital     380,263       369,860   Accumulated other comprehensive income     1,224       8,483   Retained earnings     363,751       370,431   Treasury stock, shares at cost: 3,863,290 and 3,871,598     (33,109 )     (33,473 ) Total Octave Specialty Group, Inc. stockholders’ equity     712,618       715,790   Nonredeemable noncontrolling interest     120,956       117,395   Total stockholders’ equity     833,574       833,185   Total liabilities, redeemable noncontrolling interest and stockholders’ equity   $ 2,267,026     $ 2,223,317   Non-GAAP Financial Data In addition to reporting the Company’s quarterly financial results in accordance with GAAP, the Company is reporting non-GAAP financial measures: EBITDA, Adjusted EBITDA and Adjusted EBITDA Margin, Organic Revenue Growth Rate (Insurance Distribution segment only), Adjusted Net Income and Adjusted Net Income Margin. These amounts are derived from our consolidated financial information, but are not presented in our consolidated financial results because they are not calculated in accordance with GAAP. We present non-GAAP supplemental financial information because we believe such information is of interest to the investment community, and that it provides greater transparency and enhanced visibility into the underlying drivers and performance of our businesses on a basis that may not be otherwise apparent on a GAAP basis. We view these non-GAAP financial measures as important indicators when assessing and evaluating our performance on a segmented and consolidated basis, and they are presented to improve the comparability of our results between periods by eliminating the impact of the items that may not be representative of our core operating performance. These non-GAAP financial measures are not substitutes for the Company’s GAAP reporting, should not be viewed in isolation, and may differ from similar reporting provided by other companies, which may define non-GAAP measures differently The following paragraphs define each non-GAAP financial measure. A tabular reconciliation of the non-GAAP financial measure to the most comparable GAAP financial measure is also presented below. Non-GAAP Financial Measures Organic Revenue Growth & Rate (Insurance Distribution Only) — Organic revenue is based on commissions and fees for the relevant period by excluding (i) the first twelve months of commissions and fees generated from acquisitions, (ii) commissions and fees from divestitures and (iii) other items such as contingent commissions, profit commissions and the impact of changes in foreign exchange rates. Organic Revenue Growth is the change in organic revenue period-to-period, with prior period results adjusted to (i) include commissions and fees that were excluded from organic revenue in the prior period and reached the twelve-month owned mark in the current period, and (ii) exclude commissions and fees related to divestitures from organic revenue. Total Specialty P&C Insurance Production includes gross premiums written by Octave's Specialty P&C Insurance segment and premiums placed by the Insurance Distribution segment. Specialty P&C Insurance revenues are dependent on gross premiums written, as specialty program insurance companies earn premiums based on the portion of gross premiums written retained (i.e., net premiums written) and fees on gross premiums written that are ceded to reinsurers. Insurance Distribution revenues are dependent on premium volume, as Managing General Agents/Underwriters and brokers receive commissions based on the amount of premiums placed (i.e., gross premiums written on behalf of insurance carriers) with insurance carriers. EBITDA — EBITDA is net income (loss) from continuing operations before interest expense, income taxes, depreciation and amortization of intangible assets. EBITDA Margin — EBITDA divided by total revenues. Adjusted EBITDA and Adjusted EBITDA Margin — We define Adjusted EBITDA as net income (loss) from continuing operations before interest expense, income taxes, depreciation, amortization of intangible assets, change in fair value of contingent consideration and certain items of income and expense, including share-based compensation expense, acquisition and integration-related expenses, severance, and other exceptional or non-recurring items, including those related to raising capital. We believe that Adjusted EBITDA is an appropriate measure of operating performance because it eliminates the impact of income and expenses that may obfuscate business performance, and that the presentation of this measure enhances an investor's understanding of our financial performance. Adjusted Net Income and Adjusted Net Income Margin — We define Adjusted Net Income as net income (loss) from continuing operations attributable to Octave adjusted for amortization of intangible assets, change in fair value of contingent consideration and certain items of income and expense, including share-based compensation expense, acquisition and integration-related expenses, severance and non-recurring income and loss items that, in the opinion of management, significantly affect the period-over-period assessment of operating results, and the related tax effect of those adjustments. Per share amounts exclude any impact of revaluing noncontrolling interests as otherwise reported under GAAP earnings per share. We believe that Adjusted Net Income is an appropriate measure of operating performance because it eliminates the impact of income and expenses that may obfuscate business performance. Results of Operations by Segment (Continued) Three Months Ended March 31, 2026   Specialty Property & Casualty Insurance   Insurance Distribution   Corporate & Other   Consolidated ($ in thousands)                 Gross premiums written   $ 103,716             $ 103,716   Net premiums written     32,449               32,449   Total revenues     25,299       78,526       345       104,170   Total expenses     33,581       61,741       12,192       107,514   Pretax income (loss)     (8,282 )     16,785       (11,847 )     (3,344 ) Provision (benefit) for income taxes     (592 )     (368 )     479       (481 ) Net income (loss)   $ (7,690 )   $ 17,153     $ (12,326 )   $ (2,863 )                   Adjustments to EBITDA                 Add: Interest expense       $ 2,090         $ 2,090   Add: Income tax expense     (592 )     (368 )     479       (481 ) Add: Depreciation     —       295       272       567   Add: Intangible amortization         11,647           11,647   EBITDA   $ (8,282 )   $ 30,817     $ (11,575 )   $ 10,960   EBITDA attributable to shareholders   $ (8,282 )   $ 23,467     $ (11,575 )   $ 3,610                     Adjustments to Adjusted EBITDA                 Add: Acquisition and integration-related expenses   $ —     $ 1,404     $ 1,064     $ 2,468   Add: Equity-based compensation expense     697       774       3,121       4,592   Add: Change in fair value of contingent considerations     —       —       —       —   Add: Restructuring related expense     —       —       —       —   Add: Severance and restructuring expense     1,291       —       419       1,710   Add: Other non-operating (income) losses     7,912       —       82       7,994   Adjusted EBITDA   $ 1,618     $ 32,995     $ (6,889 )   $ 27,724   Adjusted EBITDA attributable to shareholders   $ 1,618     $ 25,340     $ (6,889 )   $ 20,069                     Net income (loss)   $ (7,690 )   $ 17,153     $ (12,326 )   $ (2,863 ) Adjustments:                 Add: Acquisition and integration-related expenses     —       1,404       1,064       2,468   Add: Intangible amortization     —       11,647       —       11,647   Add: Equity-based compensation expense     697       774       3,121       4,592   Add: Severance and restructuring expense     1,291       —       419       1,710   Add: Other non-operating (income) losses     7,912       —       82       7,994   Adjusted net income (loss) before tax and NCI     2,210       30,978       (7,640 )     25,548   Income tax effects     (1,055 )     (2,229 )     1,055       (2,229 ) Adjusted net income (loss) before NCI     1,155       28,749       (6,585 )     23,319   Net (income) loss attributable to noncontrolling interest     —       (6,704 )     —       (6,704 ) Adjusted net income (loss) attributable to shareholders   $ 1,155     $ 22,045     $ (6,585 )   $ 16,615                     Net income (loss) margin     (30.4 )%     21.8 %     NM       (2.7 )% Adjusted EBITDA Margin     6.4 %     42.0 %     NM       26.6 % Adjusted EBITDA Margin to shareholders     6.4 %     32.3 %     NM       19.3 % Adjusted net income (loss) after NCI margin     4.6 %     28.1 %     NM       15.9 % Three Months Ended March 31, 2025   Specialty Property & Casualty Insurance   Insurance Distribution   Corporate & Other   Consolidated ($ in thousands)                 Gross premiums written   $ 86,915             $ 86,915   Net premiums written     18,004               18,004   Total revenues from Continuing Operations     21,171       40,998       587       62,756   Total expenses from Continuing Operations     19,668       43,241       14,954       77,863   Pretax income (loss)     1,503       (2,243 )     (14,367 )     (15,107 ) Provision (benefit) for income taxes     78       (500 )     (195 )     (617 ) Net income (loss) from Continuing Operations   $ 1,425     $ (1,743 )   $ (14,172 )   $ (14,490 )                   Adjustments to EBITDA                 Add: Interest expense   $ —     $ 5,454     $ —     $ 5,454   Add: Income tax expense     78       (500 )     (195 )     (617 ) Add: Depreciation     —       109       304       413   Add: Intangible amortization     —       8,763       —       8,763   EBITDA from Continuing Operations     1,503       12,083       (14,063 )     (477 ) EBITDA from Continuing Operations attributable to shareholders   $ 1,503     $ 7,083     $ (14,063 )   $ (5,477 )                   Adjustments to Adjusted EBITDA                 Add: Acquisition and integration-related expenses   $ —     $ —     $ 682     $ 682   Add: Equity-based compensation expense     86       —       1,574       1,660   Add: Severance and restructuring expense     —       29       1,819       1,848   Add: Other non-operating (income) losses     —       —       —       —   Adjusted EBITDA     1,589       12,112       (9,988 )     3,713   Adjusted EBITDA to attributable to shareholders   $ 1,589     $ 7,112     $ (9,988 )   $ (1,287 )                   Net income (loss) (Continuing Operations)   $ 1,425     $ (1,743 )   $ (14,172 )   $ (14,490 ) Adjustments:                 Add: Acquisition and integration-related expenses     —       —       682       682   Add: Intangible amortization     —       8,763       —       8,763   Add: Equity-based compensation expense     86       —       1,574       1,660   Add: Severance and restructuring expense     —       29       1,819       1,848   Add: Other non-operating (income) losses     —       —       —       —   Adjusted net income (loss) before tax and NCI     1,511       7,049       (10,097 )     (1,537 ) Income tax effects     —       —       —       —   Adjusted net income (loss) before NCI     1,511       7,049       (10,097 )     (1,537 ) Net (income) loss attributable to noncontrolling interest     —       (4,500 )     —       (4,500 ) Adjusted net income (loss) attributable to shareholders   $ 1,511     $ 2,549     $ (10,097 )   $ (6,037 )                   Net income (loss) margin     6.7 %     (4.3 )%     NM       (23.1 )% Adjusted EBITDA Margin     7.5 %     29.5 %     NM       5.9 % Adjusted EBITDA Margin to shareholders     7.5 %     17.3 %     NM       (2.1 )% Adjusted net income (loss) after NCI margin     7.1 %     6.2 %     NM       (9.6 )%                   Organic Growth     Three Months Ended March 31, ($ in thousands)     2026       2025     % Growth Total Insurance Distribution revenue (1) $ 78,526     $ 40,998     91.5 % Less: Acquired revenues   (21,121 )     —       Less: Profit commission and contingent commission income   (6,188 )     (4,691 )     Less: Impact of F.X. rates   (1,277 )     1,146       Less: Other conforming adjustments (2)   —       (2,233 )     Total Organic Revenue & Growth Percentage   49,940       35,220     41.8 % (1) Total Insurance Distribution revenue includes investment income
(2) Change in accounting in 1Q26 related to an MGA contracts on a net basis, normalizing the prior year for consistency. Total Specialty P&C Insurance Production Specialty P&C Insurance production includes gross premiums written by Octave's Specialty P&C Insurance segment and premiums placed by the Insurance Distribution segment.     Three Months Ended March 31, ($ in thousands)     2026     2025   % Change Specialty Property & Casualty Insurance Gross Premiums Written   $ 103,716   $ 86,915   19 % Insurance Distribution Premiums Placed     426,833     233,186   83 % Specialty P&C Insurance Production   $ 530,549   $ 320,101   66 % About Octave Octave Specialty Group, Inc. is a global specialty insurance firm that builds, buys, and scales niche insurance distribution and underwriting businesses. With a focus on operational excellence, disciplined growth, and innovation, Octave is creating a harmonized portfolio of companies that deliver exceptional performance and long-term value for shareholders. For more information, visit www.octavegroup.com. The Amended and Restated Certificate of Incorporation of Octave contains substantial restrictions on the ability to transfer Octave’s common stock. Subject to limited exceptions, any attempted transfer of common stock shall be prohibited and void to the extent that, as a result of such transfer (or any series of transfers of which such transfer is a part), any person or group of persons shall become a holder of 5% or more of Octave’s common stock or a holder of 5% or more of Octave’s common stock increases its ownership interest. Forward-Looking Statements This press release, and any related oral statements, contain statements that may constitute “forward-looking statements” within the meaning of the safe harbor provisions of the Private Securities Litigation Reform Act of 1995. Words such as “estimate,” “project,” “plan,” “believe,” “anticipate,” “intend,” “planned,” “potential” and similar expressions, or future or conditional verbs such as “will,” “should,” “would,” “could,” and “may,” or the negative of those expressions or verbs, identify forward-looking statements. We caution readers that these statements are not guarantees of future performance. Forward-looking statements are not historical facts, but instead represent only our beliefs regarding future events, which may by their nature be inherently uncertain and some of which may be outside our control. These statements may relate to plans and objectives with respect to the future, among other things, which may change. We are alerting you to the possibility that our actual results may differ, possibly materially, from the expected objectives or anticipated results that may be suggested, expressed or implied by these forward-looking statements. Important factors that could cause our results to differ, possibly materially, from those indicated in the forward-looking statements include, among others, those discussed under “Risk Factors.” in our most recent SEC filed quarterly or annual report. Any or all of management’s forward-looking statements, whether contained herein or in other publications, may prove to be incorrect and are based on management’s current belief or opinions. Octave Specialty Group’s (“OSG”) and its subsidiaries’ (collectively, “Octave” or the “Company”) actual results may differ materially from those expressed in, or implied by, these forward-looking statements, and there are no guarantees about the performance of Octave’s securities. Among events, risks, uncertainties or factors that could cause actual results to differ materially are: (1) the high degree of volatility in the price of OSG’s common stock; (2) uncertainty concerning the Company’s ability to achieve value for holders of its securities from the specialty property and casualty insurance business, the insurance distribution business, or related businesses; (3) greater than expected underwriting losses in the Company’s specialty property and casualty insurance business resulting in inadequacy of loss and loss expense reserves and the possibility that changes in reserves may result in further volatility of earnings or financial results; (4) credit risk throughout Octave’s business, including but not limited to issuers of securities in our investment portfolios, and exposures to reinsurers; (5) the Company’s level of indebtedness, including its ability to generate sufficient cash to service obligations, refinance existing debt, or obtain additional financing on acceptable terms, and the resulting impact on financial condition and operating flexibility; (6) dependence on third parties, including specialty insurance program partners, reinsurers, distribution relationships, and other service providers, and the risk of failures or disruptions in their performance; (7) inability to obtain reinsurance coverage on economic terms; (8) loss of key relationships for the production of business in our specialty property and casualty and insurance distribution businesses or the inability to secure such additional relationships to produce expected results; (9) the impact of catastrophic public health events, environmental or natural events, or political events, including as a result of global or regional conflicts; (10) restrictive covenants in agreements and instruments that impair Octave’s ability to pursue or achieve its business strategies; (11) regulatory risks, including disagreements with insurance regulators, changes in laws or regulations, and the Company’s ability to adapt to an evolving regulatory environment; (12) risks related to changes in the composition, valuation, or performance of the Company’s investment portfolio, including interest rate and foreign currency exchange rate fluctuations; (13) events or circumstances that result in the impairment of our intangible assets and/or goodwill that were recorded in connection with Octave’s acquisitions; (14) the risk of litigation, regulatory inquiries, investigations, claims or proceedings, and the risk of adverse outcomes in connection therewith; (15) system security risks, data protection breaches and cyberattacks; (16) our inability to attract and retain qualified executives, senior managers and other employees, or the loss of such personnel; (17) greater competition for our specialty property and casualty insurance business and/or our insurance distribution business; (18) loss or lowering of the AM Best rating for our property and casualty insurance company subsidiaries; (19) disintermediation within the insurance industry or greater competition from technology-based insurance solutions or non-traditional insurance markets; (20) changes in law or in the functioning of the healthcare market that impair the business model of our accident and health managing general agents; (21) failure to successfully execute business expansion initiatives, integrate acquired businesses, or realize anticipated benefits from such efforts and significant obligations under put rights granted in completed acquisitions; and (22) other risks and uncertainties that have not been identified at this time. Source: Octave Specialty Group, Inc. View source version on businesswire.com: https://www.businesswire.com/news/home/20260506096134/en/ Karen Beyer
Managing Director, Investor Relations
(212) 208-3222
ir@octavegroup.com Original: Octave Specialty Group Reports First Quarter 2026 Results
👍️0
US Market News US Market News 3 months ago
Octave Specialty Group to Release First Quarter 2026 Results on May 6, 2026April 9, 2026 4:19 PM
Business Wire
Conference Call Scheduled for May 7, 2026


Octave Specialty Group, Inc. (NYSE: OSG), a global specialty insurance firm, will release first quarter 2026 results on May 6, 2026, following the close of the market.


Conference Call


On May 7, 2026, at 8:30am (ET), Claude LeBlanc, President and Chief Executive Officer, and David Trick, Executive Vice President and Chief Financial Officer, will discuss first quarter 2026 results during a live conference call. A live audio webcast of the call will be available through the Investor Relations section of Octave’s website, www.octavegroup.com. Participants may also listen via telephone by dialing (877) 407-9716 (Domestic) or (201) 493-6779 (International).


The webcast will be archived on Octave’s website. A replay of the call will be available through May 21, 2026, and can be accessed by dialing (844) 512-2921 (Domestic) or (412) 317-6671 (International), using ID# 13759400.


About Octave


Octave Specialty Group, Inc. is a global specialty insurance firm that builds, buys, and scales niche insurance distribution and underwriting businesses. With a focus on operational excellence, disciplined growth, and innovation, Octave is creating a harmonized portfolio of companies that deliver exceptional performance and long-term value for shareholders. For more information, visit www.octavegroup.com.


The Amended and Restated Certificate of Incorporation of Octave contains substantial restrictions on the ability to transfer Octave’s common stock. Subject to limited exceptions, any attempted transfer of common stock shall be prohibited and void to the extent that, as a result of such transfer (or any series of transfers of which such transfer is a part), any person or group of persons shall become a holder of 5% or more of Octave’s common stock or a holder of 5% or more of Octave’s common stock increases its ownership interest.

View source version on businesswire.com: https://www.businesswire.com/news/home/20260409264292/en/
Investors:

Karen Beyer

Managing Director, Investor Relations

kbeyer@octavegroup.com


Media:

Kate Smith

Director, Corporate Communications

ksmith@octavegroup.com


Original: Octave Specialty Group to Release First Quarter 2026 Results on May 6, 2026
👍️0
US Market News US Market News 4 months ago
Octave Specialty Group Reports Fourth Quarter 2025 ResultsFebruary 23, 2026 4:05 PM
Business Wire

Total P&C premium production increased 15% for the quarter to $303 million



Insurance Distribution Segment


Commission Income grew to $37 million, an increase of 13%



Organic revenue growth equaled 8.1%



Net loss to Shareholders of $(1) million for the quarter, an improvement of 76%



Adjusted EBITDA to Shareholders of $7 million for the quarter, up 33%






Specialty P&C Insurance ("Everspan")


Gross and net premiums written of $80 million and $23 million were up 34% and 978%, respectively



Combined ratio fell below 100%



Net income to Shareholders was $1 million, down 37%



Adjusted EBITDA to Shareholders of $1.5 million, down 46%






Octave Specialty Group, Inc. (NYSE: OSG) ("Octave" or "OSG"), a global specialty insurance firm, today reported its results for the Fourth Quarter 2025.


Claude LeBlanc, President and Chief Executive Officer, stated, "The fourth quarter of 2025 marked the end of a transformational year and the beginning of what we believe is a new era for our company. Following the sale of our legacy financial guarantee business in the third quarter, the acquisition of ArmadaCare in the fourth quarter, and our rebranding as Octave Specialty Group, we emerged as a pure-play specialty P&C company. In the fourth quarter, our insurance distribution business delivered organic growth of over 8%, finishing the year at just over 14%, as we continued to execute on our strategy to build a high-growth, specialty insurance distribution platform that delivers significant long-term value to our shareholders. ArmadaCare, a leading specialty A&H and workplace benefit MGA platform that we recently acquired, materially advances our strategic position by further diversifying our specialty business model in uncorrelated, high-growth segments of the market. During the fourth quarter, we also launched 1889 Specialty, a management liability and professional lines MGA focused on the SME market and backed by A+ capacity. We expect these investments, our expanded and further diversified portfolio of MGA/Us, and our recent corporate cost reduction actions to substantially advance our long-term growth strategy."


LeBlanc continued, “This is truly an exciting time for us. We believe our partnership structure and unique MGA incubator model, which includes aligned capacity and shared technology and business services, continue to distinguish us in the marketplace. As we enter 2026, we expect strong organic growth, bolstered by continued momentum across our core business, including the stable of strong start-ups launched in 2024 and 2025, which are positioned to deliver strong top- and bottom-line growth as these businesses continue to scale."




Octave's Fourth Quarter 2025 Summary Results








 






 






Three Months Ended December 31,






 






Year Ended December 31,








(in thousands, except per share data)1






 






2025






 






2024






 






% Change






 






2025






 






2024






 






% Change








Total revenues from continuing operations






 






 






66,903






 






 






 






65,222






 






 






3






%






 






 






251,222






 






 






 






235,815






 






 






7






%








Total expenses from continuing operations






 






 






97,757






 






 






 






86,322






 






 






13






%






 






 






352,236






 






 






 






295,660






 






 






19






%








Pretax income (loss) from continuing operations






 






 






(30,854






)






 






 






(21,100






)






 






46






%






 






 






(101,014






)






 






 






(59,845






)






 






69






%








Provision (benefit) for income taxes from continuing operations






 






 






(1,181






)






 






 






(157






)






 






NM






 






 






 






(5,211






)






 






 






(924






)






 






NM






 








Net income (loss) from continuing operations






 






 






(29,673






)






 






 






(20,943






)






 






42






%






 






 






(95,803






)






 






 






(58,921






)






 






63






%








Net income (loss) from continuing operations attributable to Octave shareholders, net of tax






 






 






(29,982






)






 






 






(22,163






)






 






35






%






 






 






(98,404






)






 






 






(59,282






)






 






66






%








Net income (loss) from discontinued operations






 






 













 






 






 






(526,102






)






 






NM






 






 






 






(163,288






)






 






 






(497,167






)






 






(67






)%








Net income (loss) attributable to Octave shareholders






 






 






(29,982






)






 






 






(548,264






)






 






NM






 






 






 






(261,692






)






 






 






(556,448






)






 






(53






)%








Net income (loss) from continuing operations attributable to stockholders per diluted share 3






 






$






(0.84






)






 






$






(0.56






)






 






50






%






 






$






(2.47






)






 






$






(1.37






)






 






80






%








Net income (loss) attributable to stockholders per diluted share 3






 






$






(0.84






)






 






$






(11.49






)






 






(93






)%






 






$






(5.93






)






 






$






(11.96






)






 






(50






)%








Non-GAAP






 






 






 






 






 






 






 






 






 






 






 






 








EBITDA to shareholders 2






 






 






(19,509






)






 






 






(10,387






)






 






88






%






 






 






(54,929






)






 






 






(36,966






)






 






49






%








Adjusted EBITDA to shareholders2






 






 






1,351






 






 






 






520






 






 






NM






 






 






 






(7,471






)






 






 






2,195






 






 






NM






 








Adjusted net income (loss) attributable to shareholders






 






 






(1,097






)






 






 






(5,676






)






 






(81






)%






 






 






(27,731






)






 






 






(8,606






)






 






NM






 








Per Share






 






 






 






 






 






 






 






 






 






 






 






 








Adjusted net income (loss) to shareholders per diluted share 2






 






$






(0.02






)






 






$






(0.12






)






 






(83






)%






 






$






(0.58






)






 






$






(0.18






)






 






NM






 








Adjusted EBITDA to shareholders per diluted share2






 






$






0.03






 






 






$






0.01






 






 






NM






 






 






$






(0.16






)






 






$






0.05






 






 






NM






 








 






 






 






 






 






 






 






 






 






 






 






 






 








Weighted-average diluted shares outstanding






 






 






45,146






 






 






 






48,129






 






 






(6






)%






 






 






47,181






 






 






 






46,970






 






 






0.4






%









(1)






 






Some financial data in this press release may not add up due to rounding








(2)






 






See Non-GAAP Financial Data section of this press release for further information








(3)






 






Per diluted share includes the impact of adjusting redeemable noncontrolling interests to current redemption value







Fourth Quarter 2025 Summary*


Total revenue from continuing operations for the fourth quarter of 2025 was $67 million, an increase of 3% compared to the $65 million in the same prior-year period. The growth in total revenue was driven by the Insurance Distribution (ID) Segment and Corporate operations, which more than offset a decline in revenue in the Specialty Property and Casualty Segment. Organic growth in our Insurance Distribution Segment was 8.1% during the fourth quarter 2025.


Net loss from continuing operations to Octave shareholders for the fourth quarter of 2025 increased by $(8) million to $(30) million compared to $(22) million in the same prior-year period. The higher net loss was primarily attributed to costs associated with the acquisition of ArmadaCare, expenses associated with the exit from the financial guarantee business, and related expense reduction initiatives, and the impairment of a minority investment from a legacy strategy. Significantly lower interest expense and the impact of the ArmadaCare acquisition helped to partially offset these transactional and transitional expenses.


Adjusted EBITDA from continuing operations to Octave shareholders for the fourth quarter of 2025 was $1.4 million compared to $0.5 million in the same prior-year period, driven by a $1.7 million increase in ID Adjusted EBITDA partially offset by a $1.2 million decline in Adjusted EBITDA at Everspan, associated primarily with Everspan's decline in revenue. Adjusted EBITDA also benefited from a $0.4 million improvement at Corporate related to the initial benefits of our corporate expense reduction initiatives.


* For definitions of each non-GAAP measure referred to above, as well as reconciliation of such non-GAAP measures to their most directly comparable GAAP measures, see "Non-GAAP Financial Measures" below.


Earnings Call and Webcast


On February 24, 2026, at 8:30am ET, Claude LeBlanc, President and Chief Executive Officer, and David Trick, Executive Vice President and Chief Financial Officer, will discuss Octave's fourth quarter 2025 results during a conference call. A live audio webcast of the call will be available through the Investor Relations section of Octave’s website, https://octavegroup.com/investor-relations/events-and-presentations/. Participants may also listen via telephone by dialing (877) 407-9716 or (201) 493-6779 .


The webcast will be archived on Octave's website. A replay of the call will be available through March 10, 2026, and can be accessed by dialing (Domestic) (844) 512-2921 or (International) (412) 317-6671; and using ID#13757987 .


Additional information is included in an operating supplement and presentations on Octave's website at www.octavegroup.com.


Results of Operations by Segment


Insurance Distribution Segment




 






 






Three Months Ended December 31,






 






Year Ended December 31,








($ in thousands)






 






2025






 






2024






 






% Change






 






2025






 






2024






 






% Change








Premiums placed






 






$






223,286






 






 






$






204,909






 






 






9






%






 






$






951,781






 






 






$






493,372






 






 






93






%








Total revenues






 






$






46,466






 






 






$






44,070






 






 






5






%






 






$






163,726






 






 






$






99,236






 






 






65






%








Pretax income (loss)






 






$






(2,295






)






 






$






(4,958






)






 






(54






)%






 






$






(20,456






)






 






$






(7,809






)






 






162






%








Pretax income (loss) to shareholders






 






$






(2,604






)






 






$






(6,178






)






 






(58






)%






 






$






(23,057






)






 






$






(8,172






)






 






182






%








Net income (loss)






 






$






(1,114






)







$






(4,786






)






 






(77






)%






 






$






(15,353






)






 






$






(6,881






)






 






123






%








Net income (loss) to shareholders






 






$






(1,423






)






 






$






(6,006






)






 






(76






)%






 






$






(17,954






)






 






$






(7,244






)






 






148






%








EBITDA






 






$






10,280






 






 






$






9,827






 






 






5






%






 






$






36,918






 






 






$






19,653






 






 






88






%








EBITDA to shareholders1






 






$






6,905






 






 






$






5,286






 






 






31






%






 






$






22,411






 






 






$






13,205






 






 






70






%








Adjusted EBITDA






 






$






10,481






 






 






$






9,827






 






 






7






%






 






$






37,041






 






 






$






19,894






 






 






86






%








Adjusted EBITDA to shareholders1






 






$






7,030






 






 






$






5,286






 






 






33






%






 






$






22,542






 






 






$






13,446






 






 






68






%








Pretax income margin to shareholders2






 






 






(5.6






)%






 






 






(14.0






)%






 






840 bps






 






 






(14.1






)%






 






 






(8.2






)%






 






(590) bps








Adjusted EBITDA margin to shareholders1,3,5






 






 






15.1






%






 






 






12.0






%






 






310 bps






 






 






13.8






%






 






 






13.5






%






 






30 bps








Organic Growth4






 






 






8.1






%






 






 






(3.2






)%






 






 






 






 






14.2






%






 






 






5.4






%






 






 









(1)






 






After the impact of noncontrolling interests








(2)






 






Represents Pretax income divided by total revenues








(3)






 






See Non-GAAP Financial Data section of this press release for further information








(4)







Organic revenue growth includes a $1.2m reduction to 4Q24 revenue to adjust for a revenue recognition accounting policy adjustment made in 4Q24 to recognize revenues that otherwise should have been recorded in 3Q24.








(5)







Represents Adjusted EBITDA to shareholders divided by total revenues







Specialty Property & Casualty Insurance Segment




 






 






Three Months Ended December 31,






 






Year Ended December 31,








($ in thousands)






 






2025






 






2024






 






% Change






 






2025






 






2024






 






% Change








Gross premium written






 






$






80,102






 






 






$






59,987






 






 






34






%






 






$






360,449






 






 






$






382,771






 






 






(6






)%








Net premiums written






 






$






22,910






 






 






$






(2,608






)






 






978






%






 






$






73,898






 






 






$






88,682






 






 






(17






)%








Net premiums earned






 






$






18,324






 






 






$






18,931






 






 






(3






)%






 






$






67,232






 






 






$






99,005






 






 






(32






)%








Total revenue






 






$






23,068






 






 






$






24,818






 






 






(7






)%






 






$






88,403






 






 






$






126,320






 






 






(30






)%








Net income (loss)






 






$






1,158






 






 






$






1,836






 






 






(37






)%






 






$






2,956






 






 






$






10,469






 






 






(72






)%








Adjusted EBITDA to shareholders(1)






 






$






1,460






 






 






$






2,698






 






 






(46






)%






 






$






3,777






 






 






$






5,136






 






 






(26






)%








Loss Ratio






 






 






61.8






%






 






 






51.9






%






 






990 bps






 






 






70.2






%






 






 






73.4






%






 






(320) bps








Expense Ratio






 






 






37.6






%






 






 






44.6






%






 






(700) bps






 






 






35.0






%






 






 






28.2






%






 






680 bps








Combined Ratio






 






 






99.4






%






 






 






96.5






%






 






290 bps






 






 






105.2






%






 






 






101.6






%






 






360 bps









(1)






 






After the impact of noncontrolling interests. See Non-GAAP Financial Data section of this press release for further information







OSG Corporate (holding company only)


OSG on a standalone basis, excluding its ownership interests in its Specialty P&C Insurance and Insurance Distribution subsidiaries, had net assets of $76 million as of December 31, 2025. Assets included cash and liquid securities of $49 million and other investments of $25 million.


Consolidated Octave Financial Group, Inc. Stockholders' Equity and NCI Impact to EPS


Stockholders’ equity attributable to common shareholders at December 31, 2025, was $715,790, or $15.90 per share compared to $783,323 or $16.77 per share as of September 30, 2025. The decline was primarily a result of the net loss from continuing operations attributable to common shareholders of $(30) million, the cost of shares repurchased of $(27) million and change in redeemable noncontrolling interest of $(8) million.


Share Repurchase


Subsequent to September 30, 2025, OSG repurchased in the open market over 3.1 million shares of its outstanding common stock through a 10B5-1 program. These repurchases represented 6.7% of shares outstanding and 6.5% of basic weighted shares outstanding as last reported.


Calculation of Earnings Per Share


Diluted net income per share is computed by dividing net income attributable to shareholders, including adjustments to the redemption value of redeemable noncontrolling interests, by the basic weighted-average shares outstanding plus all potentially dilutive common shares outstanding during the period. The following table provides a reconciliation of net income attributable to shareholders to the numerator in the diluted earnings per share calculation, together with the resulting earnings per share amounts:




 






Three Months Ended December 31,






 






Year Ended December 31,








(in thousands, except per share data)






 






2025






 






 






 






2024






 






 






 






2025






 






 






 






2024






 








Net income (loss) from continuing operations attributable to shareholders






$






(29,982






)






 






$






(22,163






)






 






$






(98,404






)






 






$






(59,282






)








Adjustment for Redeemable NCI






 






(8,017






)






 






 






(4,917






)






 






$






(18,175






)






 






$






(5,222






)








Numerator of diluted EPS






$






(37,999






)






 






$






(27,080






)






 






$






(116,579






)






 






$






(64,504






)








Per Share — Diluted






$






(0.84






)






 






$






(0.56






)






 






$






(2.47






)






 






$






(1.37






)








 






 






 






 






 






 






 






 








Net income (loss) attributable to Octave shareholders






$






(29,982






)






 






$






(548,264






)






 






$






(261,692






)






 






$






(556,448






)








Adjustment for Redeemable NCI






 






(8,017






)






 






 






(4,917






)






 






 






(18,175






)






 






 






(5,222






)








Numerator of diluted EPS






$






(37,999






)






 






$






(553,181






)






 






$






(279,867






)






 






$






(561,670






)








Per Share — Diluted






$






(0.84






)






 






$






(11.49






)






 






$






(5.93






)






 






$






(11.96






)








 






 






 






 






 






 






 






 








WASO-Diluted






 






45,146






 






 






 






48,129






 






 






 






47,181






 






 






 






46,970






 







OCTAVE SPECIALTY GROUP, INC. AND SUBSIDIARIES


Consolidated Statements of Income (Loss) (Unaudited)




 






 






Three Months Ended December 31,






 






Year Ended December 31,








($ in thousands, except share data)






 






 






2025






 






 






 






2024






 






 






 






2025






 






 






 






2024






 








Revenues:






 






 






 






 






 






 






 






 








Commissions






 






$






40,229






 






 






$






38,009






 






 






$






143,381






 






 






$






92,023






 








Servicing and other fees






 






 






6,128






 






 






 






4,087






 






 






 






20,419






 






 






 






6,353






 








Net premiums earned






 






 






18,324






 






 






 






18,931






 






 






 






67,232






 






 






 






99,005






 








Program fees






 






 






3,583






 






 






 






3,989






 






 






 






14,322






 






 






 






13,506






 








Investment income






 






 






2,557






 






 






 






3,557






 






 






 






10,647






 






 






 






14,448






 








Other






 






 






(3,918






)






 






 






(3,351






)






 






 






(4,780






)






 






 






10,480






 








Total revenues






 






 






66,903






 






 






 






65,222






 






 






 






251,222






 






 






 






235,815






 








Expenses:






 






 






 






 






 






 






 






 








Commissions






 






 






8,102






 






 






 






13,667






 






 






 






37,037






 






 






 






40,876






 








Losses and loss adjustment expenses






 






 






11,333






 






 






 






9,826






 






 






 






47,193






 






 






 






72,626






 








Policy acquisition costs






 






 






4,759






 






 






 






7,850






 






 






 






15,790






 






 






 






23,666






 








General and administrative






 






 






58,843






 






 






 






39,730






 






 






 






191,624






 






 






 






129,166






 








Intangible amortization and depreciation






 






 






13,289






 






 






 






9,615






 






 






 






41,952






 






 






 






19,947






 








Interest






 






 






1,431






 






 






 






5,634






 






 






 






18,640






 






 






 






9,379






 








Total expenses






 






 






97,757






 






 






 






86,322






 






 






 






352,236






 






 






 






295,660






 








Pretax income (loss) from continuing operations






 






 






(30,854






)






 






 






(21,100






)






 






 






(101,014






)






 






 






(59,845






)








Provision (benefit) for income taxes from continuing operations






 






 






(1,181






)






 






 






(157






)






 






 






(5,211






)






 






 






(924






)








Net income (loss) from continuing operations






 






 






(29,673






)






 






 






(20,943






)






 






 






(95,803






)






 






 






(58,921






)








Net income (loss) from discontinued operations






 






 













 






 






 






(526,102






)






 






 






(163,288






)






 






 






(497,167






)








Net income (loss)






 






 






(29,673






)






 






 






(547,045






)






 






 






(259,091






)






 






 






(556,087






)








Net (gain) loss attributable to noncontrolling interest






 






 






(309






)






 






 






(1,220






)






 






 






(2,601






)






 






 






(361






)








Net income (loss) attributable to shareholders






 






$






(29,982






)






 






$






(548,264






)






 






$






(261,692






)






 






$






(556,448






)








 






 






 






 






 






 






 






 






 








Net income (loss) from continuing operations attributable to stockholders






 






$






(29,982






)






 






$






(22,163






)






 






$






(98,404






)






 






$






(59,282






)








Net income (loss) from discontinued operations attributable to stockholders






 






 













 






 






 






(526,102






)






 






 






(163,288






)






 






 






(497,166






)








Net income (loss) attributable to shareholders






 






$






(29,982






)






 






$






(548,264






)






 






$






(261,692






)






 






$






(556,448






)








 






 






 






 






 






 






 






 






 








Net income (loss) from continuing operations per share attributable to stockholders






 






 






 






 






 






 






 






 








Basic






 






$






(0.84






)






 






$






(0.56






)






 






$






(2.47






)






 






$






(1.37






)








Diluted






 






$






(0.84






)






 






$






(0.56






)






 






$






(2.47






)






 






$






(1.37






)








 






 






 






 






 






 






 






 






 








Net income (loss) per share attributable to stockholders






 






 






 






 






 






 






 






 








Basic






 






$






(0.84






)






 






$






(11.49






)






 






$






(5.93






)






 






$






(11.96






)








Diluted






 






$






(0.84






)






 






$






(11.49






)






 






$






(5.93






)






 






$






(11.96






)








 






 






 






 






 






 






 






 






 








Weighted average number of common shares outstanding:






 






 






 






 






 






 






 






 








Basic






 






 






45,146,058






 






 






 






48,128,820






 






 






 






47,181,227






 






 






 






46,969,708






 








Diluted






 






 






45,146,058






 






 






 






48,128,820






 






 






 






47,181,227






 






 






 






46,969,708






 







OCTAVE SPECIALTY GROUP, INC. AND SUBSIDIARIES


Consolidated Balance Sheets (Unaudited)




($ in thousands, except share data)






 






December 31,

2025






 






September 30,

2025 (1)








Assets:






 






 






 






 








Investments:






 






 






 






 








Fixed maturity securities, at fair value (amortized cost: $123,415 and $132,617)






 






$






122,295






 






 






$






131,101






 








Short-term investments, at fair value (amortized cost: $146,433 and $295,815)






 






 






146,442






 






 






 






295,825






 








Other investments (includes $7,454 and $7,684 at fair value)






 






 






24,971






 






 






 






28,302






 








Total investments (net of allowance for credit losses of $0 and $0)






 






 






293,708






 






 






 






455,228






 








Cash and cash equivalents (including $40,754 and $17,669 of restricted cash)






 






 






68,440






 






 






 






51,767






 








Premium receivables (net of allowance for credit losses of $500 and $142)






 






 






75,085






 






 






 






74,760






 








Commission and fees receivable






 






 






86,549






 






 






 






75,480






 








Reinsurance recoverable on paid and unpaid losses (net of allowance for credit losses of $450 and $338)






 






 






436,092






 






 






 






440,462






 








Deferred ceded premium






 






 






146,365






 






 






 






160,906






 








Policy acquisition costs






 






 






9,732






 






 






 






9,284






 








Intangible assets, less accumulated amortization






 






 






474,998






 






 






 






339,197






 








Goodwill






 






 






540,345






 






 






 






445,382






 








Other assets






 






 






92,003






 






 






 






95,424






 








Total assets






 






$






2,223,317






 






 






$






2,147,890






 








Liabilities and Stockholders’ Equity:






 






 






 






 








Liabilities:






 






 






 






 








Unearned premiums






 






$






187,178






 






 






$






197,133






 








Loss and loss adjustment expense reserves






 






 






459,990






 






 






 






437,539






 








Ceded premiums payable






 






 






80,561






 






 






 






87,635






 








Deferred program fees and reinsurance commissions






 






 






6,978






 






 






 






7,754






 








Deferred taxes






 






 






65,217






 






 






 






68,865






 








Long-term debt






 






 






117,558






 






 






 













 








Accrued interest payable






 






 






1,343






 






 






 













 








Commission payable






 






 






115,555






 






 






 






109,317






 








Other liabilities






 






 






102,771






 






 






 






92,226






 








Total liabilities






 






 






1,137,151






 






 






 






1,000,469






 








 






 






 






 






 








Redeemable noncontrolling interest






 






 






252,981






 






 






 






248,308






 








Stockholders’ equity:






 






 






 






 








Preferred stock, par value $0.01 per share; 20,000,000 shares authorized shares; issued and outstanding shares—none






 






 













 






 






 













 








Common stock, par value $0.01 per share; 130,000,000 shares authorized; issued shares: 48,876,882 and 48,875,167






 






 






489






 






 






 






489






 








Additional paid-in capital






 






 






369,860






 






 






 






367,077






 








Accumulated other comprehensive income (loss)






 






 






8,483






 






 






 






7,426






 








Retained earnings






 






 






370,431






 






 






 






436,026






 








Treasury stock, shares at cost: 3,871,598 and 2,368,194






 






 






(33,473






)






 






 






(27,695






)








Total Octave Specialty Group, Inc. stockholders’ equity






 






 






715,790






 






 






 






783,323






 








Nonredeemable noncontrolling interest






 






 






117,395






 






 






 






115,790






 








Total stockholders’ equity






 






 






833,185






 






 






 






899,113






 








Total liabilities, redeemable noncontrolling interest and stockholders’ equity






 






$






2,223,317






 






 






$






2,147,890






 









(1)






 






The September 30, 2025 Consolidated Balance Sheet reflects a correction to redeemable noncontrolling interest and total stockholders' equity $60.1 million







Non-GAAP Financial Data


In addition to reporting the Company’s quarterly financial results in accordance with GAAP, the Company is reporting non-GAAP financial measures: EBITDA, Adjusted EBITDA and Adjusted EBITDA Margin, Organic Revenue Growth Rate (Insurance Distribution segment only), Adjusted Net Income and Adjusted Net Income Margin. These amounts are derived from our consolidated financial information, but are not presented in our consolidated financial results.


We present non-GAAP supplemental financial information because we believe such information is of interest to the investment community, and that it provides greater transparency and enhanced visibility into the underlying drivers and performance of our businesses on a basis that may not be otherwise apparent on a GAAP basis. We view these non-GAAP financial measures as important indicators when assessing and evaluating our performance on a segmented and consolidated basis and they are presented to improve the comparability of our results between periods by eliminating the impact of the items that may not be representative of our core operating performance. These non-GAAP financial measures are not substitutes for the Company’s GAAP reporting, should not be viewed in isolation and may differ from similar reporting provided by other companies, which may define non-GAAP measures differently


The following paragraphs define each non-GAAP financial measure. A tabular reconciliation of the non-GAAP financial measure and the most comparable GAAP financial measure is also presented below.


Non-GAAP Financial Measures


Organic Revenue Growth & Rate (Insurance Distribution Only.) — Organic revenue is based on commissions and fees for the relevant period by excluding (i) the first twelve months of commissions and fees generated from acquisitions, (ii) commissions and fees from divestitures and (iii) and other items such as contingent commissions and the impact of changes in foreign exchange rates.


Organic Revenue Growth is the change in organic revenue period-to-period, with prior period results adjusted to (i) include commissions and fees that were excluded from organic revenue in the prior period and reached the twelve-month owned mark in the current period, and (ii) exclude commissions and fees related to divestitures from organic revenue.


Total Specialty P&C Insurance Production Specialty P&C Insurance production, which includes gross premiums written by Octave's Specialty P&C Insurance segment and premiums placed by the Insurance Distribution segment. Specialty P&C Insurance revenues are dependent on gross premiums written, as specialty program insurance companies earn premiums based on the portion of gross premiums written retained (i.e. net premiums written) and fees on gross premiums written that are ceded to reinsurers. Insurance Distribution revenues are dependent on premium volume, as Managing General Agents/Underwriters and brokers receive commissions based on the amount of premiums placed (i.e. gross premiums written on behalf of insurance carriers) with insurance carriers.


EBITDA — EBITDA is net income (loss) from continuing operations before interest expense, income taxes, depreciation and amortization of intangible assets.


EBITDA Margin — EBITDA divided by total revenues.


Adjusted EBITDA and Adjusted EBITDA Margin — We define Adjusted EBITDA as net income (loss) from continuing operations before interest expense, income taxes, depreciation, amortization of intangible assets, change in fair value of contingent consideration and certain items of income and expense, including share-based compensation expense, acquisition and integration-related expenses, severance, and other exceptional or non-recurring items, including those related to raising capital. We believe that Adjusted EBITDA is an appropriate measure of operating performance because it eliminates the impact of income and expenses that may obfuscate business performance, and that the presentation of this measure enhances an investor's understanding of our financial performance.


Adjusted Net Income and Adjusted Net Income Margin — We define Adjusted Net Income as net income (loss) from continuing operations attributable to Octave adjusted for amortization of intangible assets, change in fair value of contingent consideration and certain items of income and expense, including share-based compensation expense, acquisition and integration -related expenses, severance and non-recurring income and loss items that, in the opinion of management, significantly affect the period-over-period assessment of operating results, and the related tax effect of those adjustments. Per share amounts exclude any impact of revaluing non-controlling interests as otherwise reported under GAAP earnings per share. We believe that Adjusted Net Income is an appropriate measure of operating performance because it eliminates the impact of income and expenses that may obfuscate business performance.


Results of Operations by Segment (Continued)




Three Months Ended December 31, 2025






 






Specialty Property & Casualty Insurance






 






Insurance Distribution






 






Corporate & Other






 






Consolidated








($ in thousands)






 






 






 






 






 






 






 






 








Gross premiums written






 






$






80,102






 






 






 






 






 






 






$






80,102






 








Net premiums written






 






 






22,910






 






 






 






 






 






 






 






22,910






 








Total revenues from Continuing Operations






 






 






23,068






 






 






 






46,466






 






 






 






(2,631






)






 






 






66,903






 








Total expenses from Continuing Operations






 






 






21,814






 






 






 






48,761






 






 






 






27,181






 






 






 






97,757






 








Pretax income (loss)






 






 






1,254






 






 






 






(2,295






)






 






 






(29,812






)






 






 






(30,854






)








Provision (benefit) for income taxes






 






 






96






 






 






 






(1,181






)






 






 






(96






)






 






 






(1,181






)








Net income (loss) from Continuing Operations






 






$






1,158






 






 






$






(1,114






)






 






$






(29,716






)






 






$






(29,673






)








 






 






 






 






 






 






 






 






 








Adjustments to EBITDA






 






 






 






 






 






 






 






 








Add: Interest expense






 






 






 






$






1,431






 






 






 






 






$






1,431






 








Add: Income tax expense






 






 






96






 






 






 






(1,181






)






 






 






(96






)






 






 






(1,181






)








Add: Depreciation






 






 













 






 






 






347






 






 






 






2,145






 






 






 






2,492






 








Add: Intangible amortization






 






 






 






 






10,797






 






 






 






 






 






10,797






 








EBITDA from Continuing Operations






 






$






1,254






 






 






$






10,280






 






 






$






(27,667






)






 






$






(16,134






)








EBITDA from Continuing Operations attributable to




Octave shareholders






 






$






1,254






 






 






$






6,905






 






 






$






(27,667






)






 






$






(19,509






)








 






 






 






 






 






 






 






 






 








Adjustments to Adjusted EBITDA






 






 






 






 






 






 






 






 








Add: Acquisition and integration related expenses






 






$













 






 






$













 






 






$






7,796






 






 






$






7,796






 








Add: Equity-based compensation expense






 






 






206






 






 






 






201






 






 






 






2,072






 






 






 






2,479






 








Add: Severance and restructuring expense






 






 













 






 






 













 






 






 






7,561






 






 






 






7,561






 








Add: Other non-operating (income) losses






 






 













 






 






 













 






 






 






3,100






 






 






 






3,100






 








Adjusted EBITDA from Continuing Operations






 






 






1,460






 






 






 






10,481






 






 






 






(7,138






)






 






 






4,802






 








Adjusted EBITDA from Continuing Operations attributable to




Octave shareholders






 






$






1,460






 






 






$






7,030






 






 






$






(7,138






)






 






$






1,351






 








 






 






 






 






 






 






 






 






 








Net income (loss) (Continuing Operations)






 






$






1,158






 






 






$






(1,114






)






 






$






(29,716






)






 






$






(29,673






)








Adjustments:






 






 






 






 






 






 






 






 








Add: Acquisition and integration related expenses






 






 













 






 






 













 






 






 






7,796






 






 






 






7,796






 








Add: Intangible amortization






 






 













 






 






 






10,797






 






 






 













 






 






 






10,797






 








Add: Equity-based compensation expense






 






 






206






 






 






 






201






 






 






 






2,072






 






 






 






2,479






 








Add: Severance and restructuring expense






 






 













 






 






 













 






 






 






9,453






 






 






 






9,453






 








Add: Other non-operating (income) losses






 






 













 






 






 













 






 






 






3,100






 






 






 






3,100






 








Adjusted net income (loss) before tax and NCI






 






 






1,364






 






 






 






9,884






 






 






 






(7,295






)






 






 






3,952






 








Income tax effects






 






 






(43






)






 






 






(2,050






)






 






 






43






 






 






 






(2,050






)








Adjusted net income (loss) before NCI






 






 






1,321






 






 






 






7,834






 






 






 






(7,252






)






 






 






1,902






 








Net (income) loss attributable to noncontrolling interest






 






 













 






 






 






(2,999






)






 






 













 






 






 






(2,999






)








Adjusted net income (loss) attributable to shareholders






 






$






1,321






 






 






$






4,835






 






 






$






(7,252






)






 






$






(1,097






)








 






 






 






 






 






 






 






 






 








Net income (loss) margin






 






 






5.0






%






 






 






(2.4






)%






 






 






NM






 






 






 






(44.4






)%








Adjusted EBITDA Margin






 






 






6.3






%






 






 






22.6






%






 






 






NM






 






 






 






7.2






%








Adjusted EBITDA Margin to Octave shareholders






 






 






6.3






%






 






 






15.1






%






 






 






NM






 






 






 






2.0






%








Adjusted Net income (loss) after NCI margin






 






 






5.7






%






 






 






10.4






%






 






 






NM






 






 






 






(1.6






)%









Three Months Ended December 31, 2024






 






Specialty Property & Casualty Insurance






 






Insurance Distribution






 






Corporate & Other






 






Consolidated








($ in thousands)






 






 






 






 






 






 






 






 








Gross premiums written






 






$






59,987






 






 






 






 






 






 






$






59,987






 








Net premiums written






 






 






(2,608






)






 






 






 






 






 






 






(2,608






)








Total revenues from Continuing Operations






 






 






24,818






 






 






 






44,070






 






 






 






(3,666






)






 






 






65,222






 








Total expenses from Continuing Operations






 






 






22,252






 






 






 






49,028






 






 






 






15,042






 






 






 






86,322






 








Pretax income (loss)






 






 






2,566






 






 






 






(4,958






)






 






 






(18,708






)






 






 






(21,100






)








Provision (benefit) for income taxes






 






 






730






 






 






 






(172






)






 






 






(715






)






 






 






(157






)








Net income (loss) from Continuing Operations






 






$






1,836






 






 






$






(4,786






)






 






$






(17,993






)






 






$






(20,943






)








 






 






 






 






 






 






 






 






 








Adjustments to EBITDA






 






 






 






 






 






 






 






 








Add: Interest expense






 






 






 






$






5,639






 






 






 






 






$






5,639






 








Add: Income tax expense






 






 






730






 






 






 






(172






)






 






 






(715






)






 






 






(157






)








Add: Depreciation






 






 






 






 






245






 






 






 






469






 






 






 






714






 








Add: Intangible amortization






 






 






 






 






8,901






 






 






 






 






 






8,901






 








EBITDA from Continuing Operations






 






$






2,566






 






 






$






9,827






 






 






$






(18,239






)






 






$






(5,846






)








EBITDA from Continuing Operations attributable to




Octave shareholders






 






$






2,566






 






 






$






5,286






 






 






$






(18,239






)






 






$






(10,387






)








 






 






 






 






 






 






 






 






 








Adjustments to Adjusted EBITDA






 






 






 






 






 






 






 






 








Add: Acquisition and integration related expenses






 






 













 






 






$













 






 






$






1,561






 






 






 






1,561






 








Add: Equity-based compensation expense






 






 






132






 






 






 













 






 






 






2,689






 






 






 






2,821






 








Add: Severance and restructuring expense






 






 













 






 






 













 






 






 






362






 






 






 






362






 








Add: Other non-operating (income) losses






 






 













 






 






 













 






 






 






6,163






 






 






 






6,163






 








Adjusted EBITDA from Continuing Operations






 






 






2,698






 






 






 






9,827






 






 






 






(7,464






)






 






 






5,061






 








Adjusted EBITDA from Continuing Operations attributable to




Octave shareholders






 






$






2,698






 






 






$






5,286






 






 






$






(7,464






)






 






$






520






 








 






 






 






 






 






 






 






 






 








Net income (loss) (Continuing Operations)






 






$






1,836






 






 






$






(4,786






)






 






$






(17,993






)






 






$






(20,943






)








Adjustments:






 






 






 






 






 






 






 






 








Add: Acquisition and integration related expenses






 






 













 






 






 













 






 






 






1,561






 






 






 






1,561






 








Add: Intangible amortization






 






 













 






 






 






8,901






 






 






 













 






 






 






8,901






 








Add: Equity-based compensation expense






 






 






132






 






 






 













 






 






 






2,689






 






 






 






2,821






 








Add: Severance and restructuring expense






 






 













 






 






 













 






 






 






362






 






 






 






362






 








Add: Other non-operating (income) losses






 






 













 






 






 













 






 






 






6,163






 






 






 






6,163






 








Adjusted net income (loss) before tax and NCI






 






 






1,968






 






 






 






4,115






 






 






 






(7,218






)






 






 






(1,135






)








Income tax effects






 






 













 






 






 













 






 






 













 






 






 













 








Adjusted net income (loss) before NCI






 






 






1,968






 






 






 






4,115






 






 






 






(7,218






)






 






 






(1,135






)








Net (income) loss attributable to noncontrolling interest






 






 













 






 






 






(4,541






)






 






 













 






 






 






(4,541






)








Adjusted net income (loss) attributable to shareholders






 






$






1,968






 






 






$






(426






)






 






$






(7,218






)






 






$






(5,676






)








 






 






 






 






 






 






 






 






 








Net income (loss) margin






 






 






7.4






%






 






 






(10.9






)%






 






 






NM






 






 






 






(32.1






)%








Adjusted EBITDA Margin






 






 






10.9






%






 






 






22.3






%






 






 






NM






 






 






 






7.8






%








Adjusted EBITDA Margin to Octave shareholders






 






 






10.9






%






 






 






12.0






%






 






 






NM






 






 






 






0.8






%








Adjusted Net income (loss) after NCI margin






 






 






7.9






%






 






 






(1.0






)%






 






 






NM






 






 






 






(8.7






)%







Results of Operations by Segment (Continued)




Year Ended December 31, 2025






 






Specialty Property & Casualty Insurance






 






Insurance Distribution






 






Corporate & Other






 






Consolidated








($ in thousands)






 






 






 






 






 






 






 






 








Gross premiums written






 






$






360,449






 






 






 






 






 






 






$






360,449






 








Net premiums written






 






 






73,898






 






 






 






 






 






 






 






73,898






 








Total revenues from Continuing Operations






 






 






88,403






 






 






 






163,726






 






 






 






(907






)






 






 






251,222






 








Total expenses from Continuing Operations






 






 






85,073






 






 






 






184,182






 






 






 






82,981






 






 






 






352,236






 








Pretax income (loss)






 






 






3,330






 






 






 






(20,456






)






 






 






(83,888






)






 






 






(101,014






)








Provision (benefit) for income taxes






 






 






374






 






 






 






(5,103






)






 






 






(482






)






 






 






(5,211






)








Net income (loss) from Continuing Operations






 






$






2,956






 






 






$






(15,353






)






 






$






(83,406






)






 






$






(95,803






)








 






 






 






 






 






 






 






 






 








Adjustments to EBITDA






 






 






 






 






 






 






 






 








Add: Interest expense






 






$













 






 






$






18,640






 






 






$













 






 






$






18,640






 








Add: Income tax expense






 






 






374






 






 






 






(5,103






)






 






 






(482






)






 






 






(5,211






)








Add: Depreciation






 






 













 






 






 






690






 






 






 






3,218






 






 






 






3,908






 








Add: Intangible amortization






 






 













 






 






 






38,044






 






 






 













 






 






 






38,044






 








EBITDA from Continuing Operations






 






$






3,330






 






 






$






36,918






 






 






$






(80,670






)






 






$






(40,422






)








EBITDA from Continuing Operations attributable to




Octave shareholders






 






$






3,330






 






 






$






22,411






 






 






$






(80,670






)






 






$






(54,929






)








 






 






 






 






 






 






 






 






 








Adjustments to Adjusted EBITDA






 






 






 






 






 






 






 






 








Add: Acquisition and integration related expenses






 






$













 






 






$






375






 






 






$






9,106






 






 






$






9,481






 








Add: Equity-based compensation expense






 






 






447






 






 






 






368






 






 






 






11,494






 






 






 






12,309






 








Add: Severance and restructuring expense






 






 













 






 






 






60






 






 






 






21,173






 






 






 






21,233






 








Add: Other non-operating (income) losses






 






 













 






 






 






(591






)






 






 






5,108






 






 






 






4,517






 








Adjusted EBITDA from Continuing Operations






 






 






3,777






 






 






 






37,041






 






 






 






(33,789






)






 






 






7,028






 








Adjusted EBITDA from Continuing Operations attributable to




Octave shareholders






 






$






3,777






 






 






$






22,542






 






 






$






(33,789






)






 






$






(7,471






)








 






 






 






 






 






 






 






 






 








Net income (loss) (Continuing Operations)






 






$






2,955






 






 






$






(15,353






)






 






$






(83,404






)






 






$






(95,800






)








Adjustments:






 






 






 






 






 






 






 






 








Add: Acquisition and integration related expenses






 






 













 






 






 






375






 






 






 






9,106






 






 






 






9,481






 








Add: Intangible amortization






 






 













 






 






 






38,044






 






 






 













 






 






 






38,044






 








Add: Equity-based compensation expense






 






 






447






 






 






 






368






 






 






 






11,494






 






 






 






12,309






 








Add: Severance and restructuring expense






 






 













 






 






 






60






 






 






 






23,065






 






 






 






23,125






 








Add: Other non-operating (income) losses






 






 













 






 






 






(591






)






 






 






5,108






 






 






 






4,517






 








Adjusted net income (loss) before tax and NCI






 






 






3,403






 






 






 






22,903






 






 






 






(34,633






)






 






 






(8,328






)








Income tax effects






 






 






(58






)






 






 






(6,009






)






 






 






58






 






 






 






(6,009






)








Adjusted net income (loss) before NCI






 






 






3,345






 






 






 






16,894






 






 






 






(34,575






)






 






 






(14,337






)








Net (income) loss attributable to noncontrolling interest






 






 













 






 






 






(13,394






)






 






 













 






 






 






(13,394






)








Adjusted net income (loss) attributable to shareholders






 






$






3,345






 






 






$






3,500






 






 






$






(34,575






)






 






$






(27,731






)








 






 






 






 






 






 






 






 






 








Net income (loss) margin






 






 






3.3






%






 






 






(9.4






)%






 






 






NM






 






 






 






(38.1






)%








Adjusted EBITDA Margin






 






 






4.3






%






 






 






22.6






%






 






 






NM






 






 






 






2.8






%








Adjusted EBITDA Margin to Octave shareholders






 






 






4.3






%






 






 






13.8






%






 






 






NM






 






 






 






(3.0






)%








Adjusted Net income (loss) after NCI margin






 






 






3.8






%






 






 






2.1






%






 






 






NM






 






 






 






(11.0






)%









Year Ended December 31, 2024






 






Specialty Property & Casualty Insurance






 






Insurance Distribution






 






Corporate & Other






 






Consolidated








($ in thousands)






 






 






 






 






 






 






 






 








Gross premiums written






 






$






382,771






 






 






 






 






 






 






$






382,771






 








Net premiums written






 






 






88,682






 






 






 






 






 






 






 






88,682






 








Total revenues from Continuing Operations






 






 






126,320






 






 






 






99,236






 






 






 






10,259






 






 






 






235,815






 








Total expenses from Continuing Operations






 






 






114,098






 






 






 






107,045






 






 






 






74,516






 






 






 






295,660






 








Pretax income (loss)






 






 






12,222






 






 






 






(7,809






)






 






 






(64,257






)






 






 






(59,845






)








Provision (benefit) for income taxes






 






 






1,753






 






 






 






(928






)






 






 






(1,748






)






 






 






(924






)








Net income (loss) from Continuing Operations






 






$






10,469






 






 






$






(6,881






)






 






$






(62,509






)






 






$






(58,921






)








 






 






 






 






 






 






 






 






 








Adjustments to EBITDA






 






 






 






 






 






 






 






 








Add: Interest expense






 






$













 






 






$






9,379






 






 






$













 






 






$






9,379






 








Add: Income tax expense






 






 






1,753






 






 






 






(928






)






 






 






(1,748






)






 






 






(924






)








Add: Depreciation






 






 













 






 






 






481






 






 






 






1,864






 






 






 






2,345






 








Add: Intangible amortization






 






 













 






 






 






17,602






 






 






 













 






 






 






17,602






 








EBITDA from Continuing Operations






 






$






12,222






 






 






$






19,653






 






 






$






(62,393






)






 






$






(30,518






)








EBITDA from Continuing Operations attributable to




Octave shareholders






 






$






12,222






 






 






$






13,205






 






 






$






(62,393






)






 






$






(36,966






)








 






 






 






 






 






 






 






 






 








Adjustments to Adjusted EBITDA






 






 






 






 






 






 






 






 








Add: Acquisition and integration related expenses






 






$













 






 






$













 






 






$






27,388






 






 






$






27,388






 








Add: Equity-based compensation expense






 






 






414






 






 






 













 






 






 






8,941






 






 






 






9,355






 








Add: Severance and restructuring expense






 






 













 






 






 






248






 






 






 






7,352






 






 






 






7,600






 








Add: Other non-operating (income) losses






 






 






(7,500






)






 






 













 






 






 






2,318






 






 






 






(5,182






)








Adjusted EBITDA from Continuing Operations






 






 






5,136






 






 






 






19,901






 






 






 






(16,394






)






 






 






8,643






 








Adjusted EBITDA from Continuing Operations attributable to




Octave shareholders






 






$






5,136






 






 






$






13,453






 






 






$






(16,394






)






 






$






2,195






 








 






 






 






 






 






 






 






 






 








Net income (loss) (Continuing Operations)






 






$






10,466






 






 






$






(6,769






)






 






$






(62,508






)






 






$






(58,812






)








Adjustments:






 






 






 






 






 






 






 






 








Add: Acquisition and integration related expenses






 






 













 






 






 













 






 






 






27,388






 






 






 






27,388






 








Add: Intangible amortization






 






 













 






 






 






17,602






 






 






 













 






 






 






17,602






 








Add: Equity-based compensation expense






 






 






414






 






 






 













 






 






 






8,941






 






 






 






9,355






 








Add: Severance and restructuring expense






 






 













 






 






 






248






 






 






 






7,352






 






 






 






7,600






 








Add: Other non-operating (income) losses






 






 






(7,500






)






 






 













 






 






 






2,318






 






 






 






(5,182






)








Adjusted net income (loss) before tax and NCI






 






 






3,383






 






 






 






10,969






 






 






 






(16,510






)






 






 






(2,158






)








Income tax effects






 






 













 






 






 













 






 






 













 






 






 













 








Adjusted net income (loss) before NCI






 






 






3,383






 






 






 






10,969






 






 






 






(16,510






)






 






 






(2,158






)








Net (income) loss attributable to noncontrolling interest






 






 













 






 






 






(6,448






)






 






 













 






 






 






(6,448






)








Adjusted net income (loss) attributable to shareholders






 






$






3,383






 






 






$






4,521






 






 






$






(16,510






)






 






$






(8,606






)








 






 






 






 






 






 






 






 






 








Net income (loss) margin






 






 






8.3






%






 






 






(6.9






)%






 






 






NM






 






 






 






(25.0






)%








Adjusted EBITDA Margin






 






 






4.1






%






 






 






20.1






%






 






 






NM






 






 






 






3.7






%








Adjusted EBITDA Margin to Octave shareholders






 






 






4.1






%






 






 






13.6






%






 






 






NM






 






 






 






0.9






%








Adjusted Net income (loss) after NCI margin






 






 






2.7






%






 






 






4.6






%






 






 






NM






 






 






 






(3.6






)%







Organic Growth




 






 






Three Months Ended December 31,






 






Year Ended December 31,








($ in thousands)






 






 






2025






 






 






 






2024






 






 






% Growth






 






 






2025






 






 






 






2024






 






 






% Growth








Total Insurance Distribution revenue (1)






 






$






46,594






 






 






$






44,096






 






 






5.7






%






 






$






163,855






 






 






$






99,236






 






 






65.1






%








Less: Acquired revenues (2)






 






 






(4,998






)






 






 






(1,200






)






 






 






 






 






(50,102






)






 






 






(1,200






)






 






 








Less: Profit commission and contingent commission income






 






 






(3,003






)






 






 






(5,449






)






 






 






 






 






(11,898






)






 






 






(6,400






)






 






 








Total Organic Revenue & Growth Percentage






 






 






38,523






 






 






 






35,628






 






 






8.1






%






 






 






104,427






 






 






 






91,453






 






 






14.2






%









(1)






 






Total Insurance Distribution revenue includes investment income








(2)






 






Organic revenue growth includes a $1.2m reduction to 4Q24 revenue to adjust for a revenue recognition accounting policy adjustment made in 4Q24 to recognize revenues that otherwise should have been recorded in 3Q24.







Total Specialty P&C Insurance Production


Specialty P&C Insurance production includes gross premiums written by Octave's Specialty P&C Insurance segment and premiums placed by the Insurance Distribution segment.




 






 






Three Months Ended December 31,






 






Year Ended December 31,








($ in thousands)






 






 






2025






 






 






2024






 






% Change






 






 






2025






 






 






2024






 






% Change








Specialty Property & Casualty Insurance Gross Premiums Written






 






$






80,102






 






$






59,987






 






34






%






 






$






360,449






 






$






382,771






 






(6






)%








Insurance Distribution Premiums Placed






 






 






223,286






 






 






204,909






 






9






%






 






 






951,781






 






 






493,372






 






93






%








Specialty P&C Insurance Production






 






$






303,388






 






$






264,896






 






15






%






 






$






1,312,230






 






$






876,143






 






50






%







About Octave


Octave Specialty Group, Inc. is a global specialty insurance firm that builds, buys, and scales niche insurance distribution and underwriting businesses. With a focus on operational excellence, disciplined growth, and innovation, Octave is creating a harmonized portfolio of companies that deliver exceptional performance and long-term value for shareholders. For more information, visit www.octavegroup.com.


The Amended and Restated Certificate of Incorporation of Octave contains substantial restrictions on the ability to transfer Octave’s common stock. Subject to limited exceptions, any attempted transfer of common stock shall be prohibited and void to the extent that, as a result of such transfer (or any series of transfers of which such transfer is a part), any person or group of persons shall become a holder of 5% or more of Octave’s common stock or a holder of 5% or more of Octave’s common stock increases its ownership interest.


Forward-Looking Statements


This press release, and any related oral statements, contain statements that may constitute “forward-looking statements” within the meaning of the safe harbor provisions of the Private Securities Litigation Reform Act of 1995. Words such as “estimate,” “project,” “plan,” “believe,” “anticipate,” “intend,” “planned,” “potential” and similar expressions, or future or conditional verbs such as “will,” “should,” “would,” “could,” and “may,” or the negative of those expressions or verbs, identify forward-looking statements. We caution readers that these statements are not guarantees of future performance. Forward-looking statements are not historical facts, but instead represent only our beliefs regarding future events, which may by their nature be inherently uncertain and some of which may be outside our control. These statements may relate to plans and objectives with respect to the future, among other things which may change. We are alerting you to the possibility that our actual results may differ, possibly materially, from the expected objectives or anticipated results that may be suggested, expressed or implied by these forward-looking statements. Important factors that could cause our results to differ, possibly materially, from those indicated in the forward-looking statements include, among others, those discussed under “Risk Factors” in our most recent SEC filed quarterly or annual report.


Any or all of management’s forward-looking statements, whether contained herein or in other publications may prove to be incorrect and are based on management’s current belief or opinions. Octave Specialty Group’s (“OSG”) and its subsidiaries’ (collectively, “Octave” or the “Company”) actual results may differ materially from those expressed in, or implied by, these forward-looking statements,, and there are no guarantees about the performance of Octave’s securities. Among events, risks, uncertainties or factors that could cause actual results to differ materially are: (1) the high degree of volatility in the price of OSG’s common stock; (2) uncertainty concerning the Company’s ability to achieve value for holders of its securities from the specialty property and casualty insurance business, the insurance distribution business, or related businesses; (3) greater than expected underwriting losses in the Company’s specialty property and casualty insurance business resulting in inadequacy of loss and loss expense reserves and the possibility that changes in reserves may result in further volatility of earnings or financial results; (4) credit risk throughout Octave’s business, including but not limited to issuers of securities in our investment portfolios, and exposures to reinsurers; (5) the Company’s level of indebtedness, including its ability to generate sufficient cash to service obligations, refinance existing debt, or obtain additional financing on acceptable terms, and the resulting impact on financial condition and operating flexibility; (6) dependence on third parties, including specialty insurance program partners, reinsurers, distribution relationships, and other service providers, and the risk of failures or disruptions in their performance; (7) inability to obtain reinsurance coverage on economic terms; (8) loss of key relationships for production of business in specialty property and casualty and insurance distribution businesses or the inability to secure such additional relationships to produce expected results; (9) the impact of catastrophic public health, environmental or natural events, or political events, including as a result of global or regional conflicts; (10) restrictive covenants in agreements and instruments that impair Octave’s ability to pursue or achieve its business strategies; (11) regulatory risks, including disagreements with insurance regulators, changes in laws or regulations, and the Company’s ability to adapt to an evolving regulatory environment; (12) risks related to changes in the composition, valuation, or performance of the Company’s investment portfolio, including interest rate and foreign currency exchange rate fluctuations; (13) events or circumstances that result in the impairment of our intangible assets and/or goodwill that was recorded in connection with Octave’s acquisitions; (14) the risk of litigation, regulatory inquiries, investigations, claims or proceedings, and the risk of adverse outcomes in connection therewith; (15) system security risks, data protection breaches and cyber attacks; (16) our inability to attract and retain qualified executives, senior managers and other employees, or the loss of such personnel; (17) greater competition for our specialty property and casualty insurance business and/or our insurance distribution business; (18) loss or lowering of the AM Best rating for our property and casualty insurance company subsidiaries; (19) disintermediation within the insurance industry or greater competition from technology-based insurance solutions or non-traditional insurance markets; (20) changes in law or in the functioning of the healthcare market that impair the business model of our accident and health managing general agents; (21) failure to successfully execute business expansion initiatives, integrate acquired businesses, or realize anticipated benefits from such efforts and significant obligations under put rights granted in completed acquisitions; and (22) other risks and uncertainties that have not been identified at this time.


Source: Octave Specialty Group, Inc.

View source version on businesswire.com: https://www.businesswire.com/news/home/20260223895676/en/
Karen Beyer

Managing Director, Investor Relations

(212) 208-3222

ir@octavegroup.com


Original: Octave Specialty Group Reports Fourth Quarter 2025 Results
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US Market News US Market News 4 months ago
Everspan Group Announces Strategic Leadership ChangesFebruary 10, 2026 4:30 PM
Business Wire
Darwin Lucas appointed President and Nicole Crowley promoted to General Counsel


Everspan Group (“Everspan”), a specialty property and casualty insurance platform and wholly owned subsidiary of Octave Specialty Group, Inc. (NYSE: OSG), today announced two leadership changes to support its next phase of growth. Effective immediately, Darwin Lucas will become President, succeeding Steve Dresner, and Nicole Crowley has been promoted to General Counsel. Lucas has served as Chief Underwriting and Reinsurance Officer since 2023, a role he will continue to hold.

This press release features multimedia. View the full release here: https://www.businesswire.com/news/home/20260210484478/en/Everspan Group President Darwin Lucas
As President, Lucas will oversee Everspan’s operations and strategic execution, working closely with the leadership team to expand the platform’s underwriting capabilities and market presence. He brings extensive experience across specialty insurance, reinsurance portfolio management, and has played a key role in Everspan’s growth.


“Darwin’s experience, operational expertise, and strong understanding of the specialty insurance market position him well to lead Everspan into its next chapter of growth,” said Claude LeBlanc, President and Chief Executive Officer of Octave Specialty Group. “Steve has been an exceptional leader for Everspan, and we are thankful for his contributions to the company.”


“I’m honored to step into the role of President at such an exciting time for Everspan,” said Lucas. “We have a strong foundation, a talented team, and a clear opportunity ahead. I’m grateful for Steve’s leadership, and I look forward to working with the team as we focus on serving our partners and policyholders.”


Dresner added, “I am incredibly proud of the company we’ve built, and I wish the Everspan team continued success.”


In connection with this announcement, Nicole Crowley, who has been serving as Assistant General Counsel, has been promoted to General Counsel. Nicole brings over a decade of insurance law experience. Prior to joining Everspan in 2024, Nicole was products counsel for Coaction Global.


About Everspan Group:

Everspan Group is a specialty property and casualty insurance platform that operates nationwide on an admitted and non-admitted basis. The companies that comprise the Everspan Group are wholly owned subsidiaries of Octave Specialty Group, Inc. (NYSE: OSG), a global specialty insurance firm. For more information, please refer to www.everspangroup.com.


Source: Everspan Group

View source version on businesswire.com: https://www.businesswire.com/news/home/20260210484478/en/
Investors:

Karen Beyer

Managing Director, Investor Relations

kbeyer@octavegroup.com


Media:

Kate Smith

Director, Corporate Communications

ksmith@octavegroup.com


Original: Everspan Group Announces Strategic Leadership Changes
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tw0122 tw0122 7 months ago
9.05
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makinezmoney makinezmoney 1 year ago
$AMBC: HEaaddddsssssssss up here.... now $7.25

Something is going on.

Watch it go here

Looks like it wants to


GO $AMBC
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Enterprising Investor Enterprising Investor 3 years ago
Ambac Reports Fourth Quarter 2022 Results

- Net income of $175 million ($3.86 per diluted share) and adjusted earnings of $190 million ($4.18 per diluted share)

- Reduced debt and accrued interest by $1.8 billion

- $121 million net gain related to RMBS representation and warranty litigation settlements

- Specialty P&C Insurance premium production of $90 million, up 172% from fourth quarter of 2021

- Book Value ($27.85 per share) and Adjusted Book Value ($28.29 per share) up 24% and 22%, respectively, from the prior quarter

NEW YORK--(BUSINESS WIRE)--Ambac Financial Group, Inc. (NYSE: AMBC) ("Ambac" or "AFG"), a financial services holding company, today reported net income attributable to common stockholders of $175 million or $3.86(1) per diluted share and adjusted earnings(2) of $190 million or $4.18(1) per diluted share for the quarter ended December 31, 2022. This compares to a net loss attributable to common stockholders of $22 million or $0.42 per diluted share and an adjusted loss of $10 million or $0.16 per diluted share in the fourth quarter of 2021. Book value per share increased $5.42 to $27.85 and adjusted book value per share(2) increased $5.16 to $28.29 from September 30, 2022, to December 31, 2022.

For the quarter ended December 31, 2022, a $78 million net gain [$126 million litigation recovery(1) plus a $5 million gain on Sitka notes owned in the investment portfolio less $53 million of debt call premium and accelerated unamortized discount] was recorded related to the previously announced $1.84 billion RMBS representation and warranty litigation settlement with Bank of America. In addition, on December 29, 2022, Ambac agreed to a $140 million RMBS representation and warranty litigation settlement with Nomura resulting in an additional fourth quarter 2022 gain of $43 million. The Nomura settlement proceeds along with $6 million of cash on hand was used to repay the remaining outstanding balance of the Tier 2 Notes effective January 15, 2023.

Claude LeBlanc, President and Chief Executive Officer, stated, “Ambac ended 2022 in a substantially improved financial and strategic position relative to the start of the year. During the fourth quarter we took additional steps and materially improved our financial position with the settlement of our last remaining legacy RMBS litigations for approximately $2 billion. We also resolved HTA, our final remaining Puerto Rico exposure, and significantly reduced our financial leverage by redeeming and repurchasing $1.8 billion of debt and accrued interest. These accomplishments helped deliver a 24% growth in our book value in the quarter."

LeBlanc continued, "Our Specialty P&C businesses continued the positive momentum through year-end as premium production in the quarter grew 172% to $90 million and for the year increased by 116% to $282 million. With the success in stabilizing our legacy business, together with the continued material progress and growth of our Specialty P&C businesses, we are now very well positioned to progress our strategic priorities for 2023 and beyond."

(1) The settlement payment from Bank of America included recoveries from litigations for alleged breaches of contractual obligations and fraud by the BOA Parties. The settlement payment was allocated to each of the litigations based on previously developed internal valuations of each individual litigation. The portion of the settlement payment allocated to fraud litigation recoveries has been recorded as a litigation recovery in the fourth quarter of 2022.

Results of Operations by Segment

Ambac is reporting three reportable segments: Legacy Financial Guarantee Insurance, Specialty Property & Casualty Insurance, and Insurance Distribution.

For the fourth quarter 2022, there were several notable items in the Legacy Financial Guarantee segment which collectively accounted for the majority of the $178 million of pre-tax income including: a $126 million litigation recovery related to settling the Bank of America RMBS representation and warranty litigation, a $42 million benefit from settling the Nomura RMBS representation and warranty litigation, $24 million of net gains on extinguishment of debt ($77 million of gains from surplus note repurchases partially off-set by $53 million of call premium and accelerated discount amortization on the Sitka Notes), partially offset by $20 million of litigation defense expenses and accruals included within general and administrative expenses.

Ambac is reporting three reportable segments: Legacy Financial Guarantee Insurance, Specialty Property & Casualty Insurance, and Insurance Distribution.

For the fourth quarter 2022, there were several notable items in the Legacy Financial Guarantee segment which collectively accounted for the majority of the $178 million of pre-tax income including: a $126 million litigation recovery related to settling the Bank of America RMBS representation and warranty litigation, a $42 million benefit from settling the Nomura RMBS representation and warranty litigation, $24 million of net gains on extinguishment of debt ($77 million of gains from surplus note repurchases partially off-set by $53 million of call premium and accelerated discount amortization on the Sitka Notes), partially offset by $20 million of litigation defense expenses and accruals included within general and administrative expenses.

Specialty P&C Insurance production, which includes gross premiums written by Ambac's Specialty P&C Insurance segment and premiums placed by the Insurance Distribution segment, totaled $90 million in the fourth quarter of 2022, an increase of 172% from the fourth quarter of 2021. For the full year premiums placed grew 116% to $282 million over the prior year. Specialty P&C Insurance revenues are dependent on gross premiums written as specialty program insurance companies earn premiums based on the portion of gross premiums written retained (i.e. net premiums written) and fees on gross premiums written that are ceded to reinsurers. Insurance Distribution revenues are dependent on premium volume as Managing General Agents/Underwriters and brokers receive commissions based on the amount of premiums placed (i.e. gross premiums written on behalf of insurance carriers) with insurance carriers.

Net Premiums Earned

During the fourth quarter of 2022, net premiums earned of $17 million increased $6.5 million or 61% compared to the fourth quarter of 2021. Specialty Property & Casualty Insurance segment net premiums earned accounted for $5 million of the increase. Legacy Financial Guarantee Insurance segment net premiums earned accounted for the remainder of the increase as the acceleration of Puerto Rico HTA premiums more than off-set the decline in net premiums earned from run-off of the insured portfolio.

Net Investment Income

Net investment income for the fourth quarter of 2022 was $23 million compared to net investment income of $27 million for the fourth quarter of 2021.

The decrease in net investment income in the fourth quarter of 2022 compared to the fourth quarter of 2021 was attributable to a $11 million decline in net gains on fund investments because of weakened market conditions, somewhat off-set by higher income from the available-for-sale fixed maturity portfolio.

Losses and Loss Expenses (Benefit)

Losses and loss expenses (benefit) ("Incurred Losses") for the fourth quarter of 2022 were a benefit of $55.1 million, compared to a benefit of $15.2 million for the fourth quarter of 2021, as outlined in the following table.

The fourth quarter of 2022 structured finance benefit of $58 million was driven primarily by the $43 million benefit resulting from the Nomura settlement and collateral improvements.

Net Gains (Losses) on Derivative Contracts

Net gains on derivative contracts of $5 million for the fourth quarter of 2022, compared to $3 million of gains for the fourth quarter of 2021. Results in both period were primarily driven by increases in interest rates. The interest rate derivatives portfolio is positioned to benefit from rising interest rates as a partial economic hedge against interest rate exposure in AAC's insured and investment portfolios.

Gross Commission Income

Gross commission income generated by the Insurance Distribution segment grew 38% in the fourth quarter 2022 to $8.8 million from $6.4 million in the fourth quarter of 2021. The growth in gross commissions was driven largely by the inclusion of AllTrans and Capacity Marine which were acquired effective November 1, 2022, and organic growth at Xchange.

General and Administrative Expenses

General and administrative expenses for the fourth quarter 2022 were $51 million compared to $29 million in the fourth quarter of 2021. Specialty P&C Insurance operating expenses increased as a result of higher headcount and other costs associated with growth in the business. General and administrative expenses in the Insurance Distribution segment grew marginally due to the acquisitions of All Trans and Capacity Marine. Legacy Financial Guarantee Insurance operating expenses were higher due to litigation defense costs which more than offset a broader reduction of expenses.

AFG (holding company only) Assets

AFG on a standalone basis, excluding its ownership interests in its Specialty P&C Insurance, Insurance Distribution, and Legacy Financial Guarantee businesses, had net assets of $223 million as of December 31, 2022. Assets included cash and liquid securities of $178 million and other investments of $28 million. During the fourth quarter AFG sold its AAC Surplus Notes back to AAC, increasing liquidity by $95 million.

Capital Activity

Effective October 29, 2022, AAC redeemed in full the outstanding balance of $1.2 billion of the Sitka Notes as well as $213 million (including $1.4 million of accrued interest from September 30, 2022 to October 29, 2022) of Tier 2 Notes. In January 2023, AAC repaid the remaining $146 million of outstanding Tier 2 Notes.

AAC repurchased Surplus Notes from third parties during the fourth quarter of 2022 with par and accrued interest outstanding of $364 million, generating a $77 million gain on retirement of debt. This gain is recorded within Net realized gains on extinguishment of debt in Ambac's consolidated statement of operations and is partially offset by the $53 million call premium and accelerated discount amortization triggered by the redemption of the Sitka Notes.

AAC repurchased $23 million (liquidation value) of its outstanding AMPS during the fourth quarter of 2022 for $8 million which generated a $1.1 million gain.

Effective November 7, 2022, Ambac acquired controlling interests All Trans Risk Solutions, LLC and Capacity Marine Corporation, which on a combined basis will add approximately $60 million of premiums placed annually to Ambac's Insurance Distribution segment.

Consolidated Ambac Financial Group, Inc. Stockholders' Equity

Stockholders’ equity at December 31, 2022, was $1,252 million, or $27.85 per share compared to $1,009 million or $22.43 per share as of September 30, 2022. The increase was primarily due to net income attributable to common shareholders of $175 million, net unrealized investment gains of $11 million and foreign exchange translation gains of $51 million.

Legacy Financial Guarantee Insurance Insured Portfolio

Legacy Financial Guarantee Insurance insured net par outstanding declined 6.0% during the quarter ended December 31, 2022, to $22.6 billion from $24.1 billion at September 30, 2022.

Adversely Classified and Watch List Credits decreased in the fourth quarter of 2022 by $0.4 billion or 4.7% to $7.8 billion at December 31, 2022, from $8.2 billion at September 30, 2022.

The decrease in net par outstanding and Adversely Classified and Watch List Credits is largely due to de-risking activity, partially offset by the impact of foreign exchange rates. Excluding the impact of foreign exchange rates Adversely Classified and Watch List Credits decreased 6.4% from September 30, 2022.

Non-GAAP Financial Data

In addition to reporting Ambac’s quarterly financial results in accordance with GAAP, the Company currently reports three non-GAAP financial measures: EBITDA, adjusted earnings and adjusted book value. The most directly comparable GAAP measures are pre-tax net income for EBITDA, net income attributable to common stockholders for adjusted earnings and Total Ambac Financial Group, Inc. stockholders’ equity for adjusted book value. A non-GAAP financial measure is a numerical measure of financial performance or financial position that excludes (or includes) amounts that are included in (or excluded from) the most directly comparable measure calculated and presented in accordance with GAAP. We present such non-GAAP supplemental financial information because we believe such information is of interest to the investment community that provides greater transparency and enhanced visibility into the underlying drivers of our businesses on a basis that may not be otherwise apparent on a GAAP basis. We view these non-GAAP financial measures as important indicators when assessing and evaluating our performance on a segmented and consolidated basis. These non-GAAP financial measures are not substitutes for the Company’s GAAP reporting, should not be viewed in isolation and may differ from similar reporting provided by other companies, which may define non-GAAP measures differently.

Ambac has a significant U.S. tax net operating loss (“NOL”) that is offset by a full valuation allowance in the GAAP consolidated financial statements. As a result of this and other considerations, we utilized a 0% effective tax rate for non-GAAP adjustments for both Adjusted Earnings and Adjusted Book Value; which is subject to change.

The following paragraphs define each non-GAAP financial measure. A reconciliation of the non-GAAP financial measure and the most directly comparable GAAP financial measure is also presented below.

EBITDA. EBITDA is defined as net income before interest expense, income taxes, depreciation and amortization of intangible assets. EBITDA is also adjusted for noncontrolling interests in subsidiaries where Ambac does not own 100%.

Adjusted Earnings (Loss). Adjusted earnings (loss) is defined as net income (loss) attributable to common stockholders, as reported under GAAP, adjusted on an after-tax basis for the following:

Insurance intangible amortization: Elimination of the amortization of the financial guarantee insurance intangible asset that arose as a result of Ambac’s emergence from bankruptcy and the implementation of Fresh Start reporting. This adjustment ensures that all financial guarantee contracts are accounted for consistent with the provisions of the Financial Services – Insurance Topic of the ASC.
Foreign exchange (gains) losses: Elimination of the foreign exchange gains (losses) on the re-measurement of assets, liabilities and transactions in non-functional currencies. This adjustment eliminates the foreign exchange gains (losses) on all assets, liabilities and transactions in non-functional currencies, which enables users of our financial statements to better view the results without the impact of fluctuations in foreign currency exchange rates and facilitates period-to-period comparisons of Ambac's operating performance.
Adjusted earnings were $190 million, or $4.18 per diluted share, for the fourth quarter 2022 as compared to adjusted earnings of $10 million, or $0.16 per diluted share, for the fourth quarter of 2021.
Per Diluted share includes the impact of adjusting the Insurance Distribution segment related noncontrolling interest to current redemption value
Adjusted Book Value. Adjusted book value is defined as Total Ambac Financial Group, Inc. stockholders’ equity as reported under GAAP, adjusted for after-tax impact of the following:

Insurance intangible asset: Elimination of the financial guarantee insurance intangible asset that arose as a result of Ambac’s emergence from bankruptcy and the implementation of Fresh Start reporting. This adjustment ensures that all financial guarantee contracts are accounted for within adjusted book value consistent with the provisions of the Financial Services—Insurance Topic of the ASC.
Net unearned premiums and fees in excess of expected losses: Addition of the value of the unearned premium revenue ("UPR") on financial guarantee contracts, in excess of expected losses, net of reinsurance. This non-GAAP adjustment presents the economics of UPR and expected losses for financial guarantee contracts on a consistent basis. In accordance with GAAP, stockholders’ equity reflects a reduction for expected losses only to the extent they exceed UPR. However, when expected losses are less than UPR for a financial guarantee contract, neither expected losses nor UPR have an impact on stockholders’ equity. This non-GAAP adjustment adds UPR in excess of expected losses, net of reinsurance, to stockholders’ equity for financial guarantee contracts where expected losses are less than UPR. This adjustment is only made for financial guarantee contracts since such premiums are non-refundable.
Net unrealized investment (gains) losses in Accumulated Other Comprehensive Income: Elimination of the unrealized gains and losses on the Company’s investments that are recorded as a component of accumulated other comprehensive income (“AOCI”). The AOCI component of the fair value adjustment on the investment portfolio may differ from realized gains and losses ultimately recognized by the Company based on the Company’s investment strategy. This adjustment only allows for such gains and losses in adjusted book value when realized.
Adjusted book value was $1,272 million, or $28.29 per share, at December 31, 2022, as compared to $1,040 million, or $23.13 per share, at September 30, 2022.

Earnings Call and Webcast

On March 1, 2023 at 8:30am ET, Claude LeBlanc, President and Chief Executive Officer, and David Trick, Executive Vice President and Chief Financial Officer, will discuss Ambac's fourth quarter 2022 results during a conference call. A live audio webcast of the call will be available through the Investor Relations section of Ambac’s website, https://ambac.com/investor-relations/events-and-presentations/events/. Participants may also listen via telephone by dialing (877) 407-9716 (Domestic) or (201) 493-6779 (International).

The webcast will be archived on Ambac's website. A replay of the call will be available through March 15, 2023, and can be accessed by dialing (Domestic) (844) 512-2921 or (International) (412) 317-6671; and using ID#13732815

Additional information is included in an operating supplement and presentations at Ambac's website at www.ambac.com.

About Ambac

Ambac Financial Group, Inc. (“Ambac” or “AFG”) is a financial services holding company headquartered in New York City. Ambac’s core business is a growing specialty P&C distribution and underwriting platform. Ambac also has a legacy financial guaranty business in run off. Ambac’s common stock trades on the New York Stock Exchange under the symbol “AMBC”. Ambac is committed to providing timely and accurate information to the investing public, consistent with our legal and regulatory obligations. To that end, we use our website to convey information about our businesses, including the anticipated release of quarterly financial results, quarterly financial, statistical and business-related information. For more information, please go to www.ambac.com.

The Amended and Restated Certificate of Incorporation of Ambac contains substantial restrictions on the ability to transfer Ambac’s common stock. Subject to limited exceptions, any attempted transfer of common stock shall be prohibited and void to the extent that, as a result of such transfer (or any series of transfers of which such transfer is a part), any person or group of persons shall become a holder of 5% or more of Ambac’s common stock or a holder of 5% or more of Ambac’s common stock increases its ownership interest.

https://www.businesswire.com/news/home/20230228006242/en/
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Enterprising Investor Enterprising Investor 3 years ago
Ambac Settles RMBS Litigation Against Nomura (1/03/23)

NEW YORK--(BUSINESS WIRE)--Ambac Financial Group (NYSE: AMBC), a financial services holding company whose subsidiaries include Ambac Assurance Corporation (“AAC”), today announced that on December 29, 2022, AAC entered into a Settlement Agreement and Release (the “Settlement Agreement”) with Nomura Credit & Capital, Inc. (“Nomura”) to settle its RMBS litigation (1) against Nomura. As a result, Nomura has agreed to pay AAC $140 million.

This settlement materially exceeds the amount of subrogation recovery recorded on Ambac’s 3Q 2022 consolidated GAAP financial statements attributable to the Nomura (1) litigation. Accordingly, Ambac estimates that it will record a gain with respect to the settlement of approximately $43 million. This gain will be recognized in Ambac’s fourth quarter financial results.

Funds are expected to be received within 10 business days from the execution date of the Settlement Agreement. AAC will use all proceeds, plus cash on hand, to repay the entire outstanding balance of Tier 2 Notes.

Claude LeBlanc, Ambac President and Chief Executive Officer, stated, “Ambac is very pleased to have reached this settlement with Nomura, which, in addition to the previously announced Bank of America settlement, successfully brings closure to all of Ambac’s legacy RMBS representation and warranty litigation.”

(1) Includes the following pending litigation: Ambac Assurance Corporation and The Segregated Account of Ambac Assurance Corporation v. Nomura Credit & Capital, Inc. and Nomura Holding America Inc. (Supreme Court of the State of New York, County of New York, Case No. 651359/2013, filed on April 15, 2013).

About Ambac

Ambac Financial Group, Inc. (“Ambac” or “AFG”) is a financial services holding company headquartered in New York City. Ambac’s core business is a growing specialty P&C distribution and underwriting platform. Ambac also has a legacy financial guaranty business in runoff. Ambac’s common stock trades on the New York Stock Exchange under the symbol “AMBC”. Ambac is committed to providing timely and accurate information to the investing public, consistent with our legal and regulatory obligations. For additional information please go to www.ambac.com.

The Amended and Restated Certificate of Incorporation of Ambac contains substantial restrictions on the ability to transfer Ambac’s common stock. Subject to limited exceptions, any attempted transfer of common stock shall be prohibited and void to the extent that, as a result of such transfer (or any series of transfers of which such transfer is a part), any person or group of persons shall become a holder of 5% or more of Ambac’s common stock or a holder of 5% or more of Ambac’s common stock increases its ownership interest.

https://www.businesswire.com/news/home/20230103005141/en/Ambac-Settles-RMBS-Litigation-Against-Nomura
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Enterprising Investor Enterprising Investor 3 years ago
Ambac Releases Statement Regarding Speculative Acquisition Report (12/08/22)

NEW YORK,--(BUSINESS WIRE)--Ambac Financial Group, Inc. (NYSE: AMBC) (“Ambac”), a financial services holding company, released the following statement:

Ambac has become aware of a media report indicating it is in discussions to acquire a financial guarantee company. This report is inaccurate. Ambac is not engaged in an acquisition process with any financial guarantee business.

Management is regularly evaluating the market for opportunities to create value for shareholders and will update investors as appropriate.

About Ambac

Ambac Financial Group, Inc. (“Ambac” or “AFG”) is a financial services holding company headquartered in New York City. Ambac’s core business is a growing specialty P&C distribution and underwriting platform. Ambac also has a legacy financial guaranty business in runoff. Ambac’s common stock trades on the New York Stock Exchange under the symbol “AMBC”. Ambac is committed to providing timely and accurate information to the investing public, consistent with our legal and regulatory obligations. To that end, we use our website to convey information about our businesses, including the anticipated release of quarterly financial results, quarterly financial, statistical and business-related information. For more information, please go to www.ambac.com.

https://www.businesswire.com/news/home/20221208006048/en/Ambac-Releases-Statement-Regarding-Speculative-Acquisition-Report
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Enterprising Investor Enterprising Investor 4 years ago
Ambac Settles RMBS Litigations Against Bank of America (10/07/22)

NEW YORK--(BUSINESS WIRE)--Ambac Financial Group (NYSE: AMBC), a financial services holding company whose subsidiaries include Ambac Assurance Corporation (“AAC”), today announced that AAC entered into an agreement to settle all of its claims1 against Bank of America and related entities for $1.84 billion.

This settlement materially exceeds the amount of subrogation recovery recorded on Ambac’s 2Q 2022 financial statements. As a result, Ambac estimates that it will record a gain with respect to the settlement of approximately $390 million, net of reinsurance and discount accretion and call premiums on AAC’s secured debt. A portion of this gain will be recognized in Ambac’s third quarter financial results and the remaining portion will be recognized in Ambac’s fourth quarter financial results.

In accordance with its contractual obligations, AAC will repay all outstanding Sitka Notes of approximately $1.21 billion (including the associated call premium) as well as approximately $213 million of Tier 2 Notes. Funds are expected to be received within 10 days following the satisfaction of certain conditions, including dismissal of the pending RMBS litigations.1 Complete third quarter financial results will depend on numerous other factors that will be included in Ambac's third quarter 2022 Form 10-Q.

For the period ending June 30, 2022, Ambac recorded a gross subrogation recovery on its balance sheet of $1.48 billion related to RMBS representation and warranty litigation, of which, $1.38 billion related to Bank of America litigation.1 The balance of the gross subrogation recovery relates to AAC’s case against Nomura Credit & Capital, Inc. and Nomura Holding America Inc.

Claude LeBlanc, President and Chief Executive Officer, stated, “Ambac is very pleased to have reached this settlement with Bank of America, which materially advances our strategic priority to progress AAC to a stable runoff and further maximizes optionality for our legacy financial guaranty business.”

1Includes the following pending litigations: Ambac Assurance Corporation and the Segregated Account of Ambac Assurance Corporation v. Countrywide Home Loans, Inc., Countrywide Securities Corp., Countrywide Financial Corp., and Bank of America Corp. (Supreme Court of the State of New York, County of New York, Case No. 653979/2014, filed on December 30, 2014). Ambac Assurance Corporation and The Segregated Account of Ambac Assurance Corporation v. Countrywide Securities Corp., Countrywide Financial Corp. (a.k.a. Bank of America Home Loans) and Bank of America Corp. (Supreme Court of the State of New York, County of New York, Case No. 651612/2010, filed on September 28, 2010), and Ambac Assurance Corporation and The Segregated Account of Ambac Assurance Corporation v. First Franklin Financial Corporation, Bank of America, N.A., Merrill Lynch, Pierce, Fenner & Smith Inc., Merrill Lynch Mortgage Lending, Inc., and Merrill Lynch Mortgage Investors, Inc. (Supreme Court of the State of New York, County of New York, Case No. 651217/2012, filed April 16, 2012).

About Ambac

Ambac Financial Group, Inc. (“Ambac” or “AFG”) is a financial services holding company headquartered in New York City. Ambac’s core business is a growing specialty P&C distribution and underwriting platform. Ambac also has a legacy financial guaranty business in runoff. Ambac’s common stock trades on the New York Stock Exchange under the symbol “AMBC”. Ambac is committed to providing timely and accurate information to the investing public, consistent with our legal and regulatory obligations. To that end, we use our website to convey information about our businesses, including the anticipated release of quarterly financial results, quarterly financial, statistical and business-related information. For more information, please go to www.ambac.com.

The Amended and Restated Certificate of Incorporation of Ambac contains substantial restrictions on the ability to transfer Ambac’s common stock. Subject to limited exceptions, any attempted transfer of common stock shall be prohibited and void to the extent that, as a result of such transfer (or any series of transfers of which such transfer is a part), any person or group of persons shall become a holder of 5% or more of Ambac’s common stock or a holder of 5% or more of Ambac’s common stock increases its ownership interest.

https://www.businesswire.com/news/home/20221007005088/en/Ambac-Settles-RMBS-Litigations-Against-Bank-of-America
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Enterprising Investor Enterprising Investor 4 years ago
Ambac Defeats Summary Judgment Motion and Obtains Trial Date in Fraud Case Against Countrywide and Bank of America (8/31/22)

NEW YORK--(BUSINESS WIRE)--Ambac Financial Group (NYSE: AMBC), a financial services holding company whose subsidiaries include Ambac Assurance Corporation (“Ambac”), announced that on August 29, 2022, the Supreme Court of the State of New York issued a decision denying Countrywide’s motion for summary judgment in the case entitled Ambac Assurance Corporation and the Segregated Account of Ambac Assurance Corporation v. Countrywide Home Loans, Inc., Countrywide Securities Corp., Countrywide Financial Corp., and Bank of America Corp. (Supreme Court of the State of New York, County of New York, Case No. 653979/2014, filed on December 30, 2014).

Ambac is pleased with the Court’s decision to allow its fraud case against Countrywide and Bank of America to go forward to trial in front of a jury. Trial is scheduled to commence in January 2024, although the Court indicated that it may reschedule the trial for an earlier time if its calendar permits. Through this case, Ambac seeks to prove that Countrywide made false and intentionally misleading representations to Ambac about, among other things, its mortgage origination practices and the purported quality of its mortgage loans. Ambac seeks to recover hundreds of millions of dollars in losses, as well as punitive damages.

In addition to this case, Ambac continues to pursue additional claims against Bank of America and related entities in the cases entitled Ambac Assurance Corporation and The Segregated Account of Ambac Assurance Corporation v. Countrywide Securities Corp., Countrywide Financial Corp. (a.k.a. Bank of America Home Loans) and Bank of America Corp. (Supreme Court of the State of New York, County of New York, Case No. 651612/2010, filed on September 28, 2010), in which trial will begin on September 7, 2022, and Ambac Assurance Corporation and The Segregated Account of Ambac Assurance Corporation v. First Franklin Financial Corporation, Bank of America, N.A., Merrill Lynch, Pierce, Fenner & Smith Inc., Merrill Lynch Mortgage Lending, Inc., and Merrill Lynch Mortgage Investors, Inc. (Supreme Court of the State of New York, County of New York, Case No. 651217/2012, filed April 16, 2012).

The August 29, 2022, decision will not impact the estimated subrogation recoveries on Ambac’s balance sheet, which relate only to contract-based litigation claims and not to fraud claims.

About Ambac

Ambac Financial Group, Inc. (“Ambac” or “AFG”) is a financial services holding company headquartered in New York City. Ambac’s core business is a growing specialty P&C distribution and underwriting platform. Ambac also has a legacy financial guaranty business in run off. Ambac’s common stock trades on the New York Stock Exchange under the symbol “AMBC”. Ambac is committed to providing timely and accurate information to the investing public, consistent with our legal and regulatory obligations. To that end, we use our website to convey information about our businesses, including the anticipated release of quarterly financial results, quarterly financial, statistical and business-related information. For more information, please go to www.ambac.com.

The Amended and Restated Certificate of Incorporation of Ambac contains substantial restrictions on the ability to transfer Ambac’s common stock. Subject to limited exceptions, any attempted transfer of common stock shall be prohibited and void to the extent that, as a result of such transfer (or any series of transfers of which such transfer is a part), any person or group of persons shall become a holder of 5% or more of Ambac’s common stock or a holder of 5% or more of Ambac’s common stock increases its ownership interest.

https://www.businesswire.com/news/home/20220831005280/en/
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Enterprising Investor Enterprising Investor 4 years ago
And today was a very nice day for l-o-n-g t-e-r-m holders.
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freddie me freddie me 4 years ago
AMBAC in the saddle again!
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Enterprising Investor Enterprising Investor 4 years ago
Capital Activity

On March 29, 2022, the Board of Directors authorized a $20 million share repurchase program. During the second quarter 2022 the Company repurchased 1.6 million shares for $14.2 million at an average purchase price of $8.86. On May 5, 2022, the Board of Directors authorized an additional $15 million share repurchase bringing the total unused authorized amount to $20.8 million.

During the second quarter 2022, AAC purchased Surplus Notes amounting to $65.0 million of current par value or $115.1 million of principal and accrued interest outstanding, generating a $57.0 million gain on the retirement of debt. AAC also purchased $76.4 million par of Sitka Notes which are held as an asset on AAC's balance sheet.
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Enterprising Investor Enterprising Investor 4 years ago
Ambac Reports Second Quarter 2022 Results (8/08/22)

https://www.businesswire.com/news/home/20220808005758/en/Ambac-Reports-Second-Quarter-2022-Results
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Enterprising Investor Enterprising Investor 4 years ago
Ambac Reports First Quarter 2022 Results (5/10/22)

https://www.businesswire.com/news/home/20220510006115/en/Ambac-Reports-First-Quarter-2022-Results
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Enterprising Investor Enterprising Investor 4 years ago
Xchange Benefits Acquires the Employer Stop Loss Renewal Rights of Employer Benefit Underwriters, Inc. (5/02/22)

ARMONK, N.Y.--(BUSINESS WIRE)--Xchange Benefits, LLC, a property and casualty managing general underwriter specializing in accident and health insurance, announced that it has purchased the renewal rights of Employer Benefit Underwriters, Inc.’s employer stop loss portfolio, effective immediately. Founded in 1996 in Daytona Beach, Fla., Employer Benefit Underwriters, Inc. (“EBU”) has been a managing general underwriter of employer stop loss business under the leadership of Howard Huneke.

This acquisition enables Xchange Benefits, a subsidiary of Ambac Financial Group, Inc. (NYSE: AMBC), to expand its nationwide footprint through the addition of new producer relationships that have been solidified over the years by EBU. Employer Stop Loss remains a growing market segment, and Xchange will continue to proactively pursue opportunities in this sector.

“Howard Huneke and the EBU team have built a fabulous business over many years which we are excited about integrating into our Xchange Platform. We very much look forward to welcoming EBU’s partners and clients into the Xchange family,” said Peter McGuire, President, Chief Executive Officer and Chairman of Xchange Benefits. “Xchange prides itself on industry leading service and underwriting creativity, and we are eager to show our capabilities to EBU’s family of clients and partners.”

“We are extremely happy to welcome the EBU team to the Xchange Benefits family and we also look forward to providing the same exceptional service that our Xchange Benefits clients have enjoyed over the years to all of EBU’s producers,” said James Denison, Chief Underwriting Officer and Executive Vice President of Xchange Benefits.

McGuire added, “I am happy that we will be able to continue to be the beneficiaries of Howard’s vast industry experience and am delighted that Howard has agreed to remain as an advisor to Xchange Benefits.”

Huneke said, “The EBU team is excited to join the Xchange family, bringing their years of experience, while looking forward to learning and growing as part of Xchange Benefits.”

About Xchange Benefits

Founded in 2010, Xchange Benefits, LLC is a diverse group of business units focused on the global insurance and reinsurance industry. Led by a team who have industry leading experience, Xchange Benefits underwrites, consults, creates products, creates retail distribution, structures risk, transacts reinsurance, advises on capital deployment and most importantly, listens to their clients. Xchange Benefits have a corporate office in Armonk, New York and an office in Indianapolis, Indiana.

https://www.businesswire.com/news/home/20220502005186/en/
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Enterprising Investor Enterprising Investor 4 years ago
Ambac Authorizes Share Repurchase Program (3/30/22)

NEW YORK--(BUSINESS WIRE)--Ambac Financial Group, Inc. (NYSE: AMBC) (“Ambac” or “AFG”), a financial services holding company, announces that its Board of Directors has approved a share repurchase program, under which Ambac may opportunistically repurchase up to $20 million of the Company’s common shares at management’s discretion over the period ending on March 31, 2024.

Under the share repurchase program, shares may be repurchased from time to time in the open market or negotiated transactions at prevailing market rates, or by other means in accordance with federal securities laws. There is no guarantee as to the exact number or value of shares that will be repurchased by the company, and the company may discontinue repurchases at any time that management determines additional repurchases are not warranted. The timing and amount of share repurchases under the share repurchase program will depend on several factors, including the company's stock price performance, ongoing capital planning considerations, general market conditions and applicable legal requirements.

About Ambac

Ambac Financial Group, Inc. (“Ambac” or “AFG”) is a financial services holding company headquartered in New York City. Ambac’s core business is a growing specialty P&C distribution and underwriting platform. Ambac also has a legacy financial guaranty business that is in run off. Ambac’s common stock trades on the New York Stock Exchange under the symbol “AMBC”. Ambac is committed to providing timely and accurate information to the investing public, consistent with our legal and regulatory obligations. To that end, we use our website to convey information about our businesses, including the anticipated release of quarterly financial results, quarterly financial, statistical and business-related information. For more information, please go to www.ambac.com.

The Amended and Restated Certificate of Incorporation of Ambac contains substantial restrictions on the ability to transfer Ambac’s common stock. Subject to limited exceptions, any attempted transfer of common stock shall be prohibited and void to the extent that, as a result of such transfer (or any series of transfers of which such transfer is a part), any person or group of persons shall become a holder of 5% or more of Ambac’s common stock or a holder of 5% or more of Ambac’s common stock increases its ownership interest.

https://www.businesswire.com/news/home/20220330005330/en/Ambac-Authorizes-Share-Repurchase-Program
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Enterprising Investor Enterprising Investor 4 years ago
Ambac Assurance Corporation Reports Preliminary First Quarter 2022 Impact of Recent Material Developments (3/30/22)

NEW YORK--(BUSINESS WIRE)--Ambac Financial Group, Inc. (NYSE: AMBC) (“Ambac” or “AFG”), a financial services holding company, announces that its subsidiary, Ambac Assurance Corporation (“AAC”), has provided updates regarding the implementation of the restructuring of a significant portion of its Puerto Rico exposure and the estimated impact of recent litigation developments on its representation and warranty (“R&W”) subrogation recoverable. These developments relate solely to AAC, Ambac’s legacy financial guaranty business. Both developments are expected to have a material effect on Ambac’s consolidated financial results for the first quarter of 2022.

Puerto Rico Update

Estimated Gain of $210 to $250 million

AAC has successfully implemented the restructuring of a significant portion of its remaining Puerto Rico exposures, following the occurrence of the effective dates for the Plan of Adjustment related to AAC-insured Puerto Rico General Obligation bonds (“GO”) and Public Buildings Authority (“PBA”) bonds, and Qualifying Modifications for AAC-insured Puerto Rico Infrastructure Authority (“PRIFA”) and Convention Center District Authority (“CCDA”) bonds, all effective March 15, 2022. This follows the court approvals of restructurings for the GO bonds issued by the Commonwealth of Puerto Rico and bonds issued by PBA, PRIFA and CCDA. The execution of these transactions has reduced AAC’s insured principal and interest exposure to Puerto Rico by approximately 25% or $450 million. AAC expects that its insured Puerto Rico Highways and Transportation Authority (“PRHTA”) bonds will be restructured as part of the PRHTA Title III bankruptcy process in the second half of 2022, on terms consistent with the Plan Support Agreement executed last year. As a result of these successful restructurings and based on observable market values for subrogation received as of the date of the restructuring as well as expected risk mitigation activities, Ambac is expected to record a gain in the range of $210 to $250 million as part of its first quarter 2022 consolidated financial results.

R&W Update

Estimated reduction to AAC’s R&W subrogation recoveries of $175 million to $205 million

Based on AAC’s initial evaluation of the court’s decision in the case entitled U.S. Bank National Association v. DLJ Mortgage Capital, Inc. relating to Home Equity Asset Trust 2007-1, a residential mortgage-backed securities trust (“HEAT”), management believes that the estimated reduction to AAC’s estimated R&W subrogation recoveries is in the range of $175 to $205 million. This estimate excludes the impact of changes in discount rates and underlying insured RMBS transaction performance, which will be evaluated in conjunction with loss reserves for the first quarter. Previously, Ambac recorded in its consolidated balance sheet estimated R&W subrogation recoveries of $1.7 billion as of December 31, 2021, under US GAAP accounting principles.

Estimated subrogation recoveries do not represent AAC’s view of the ultimate recovery from its RMBS litigations. In particular, the reported subrogation recoverable does not include: a) pre-judgement interest associated with such claims, which given the passage of time, represents a material incremental value above the subrogation recoverable and b) potential material recoveries attributed solely to fraudulent inducement claims in AAC’s litigations.

AAC’s ultimate recoveries in its RMBS litigations may be materially higher or lower than its estimated subrogation recoveries based on a number of factors, including those described in Ambac’s Form 10-K for the fiscal year ended December 31, 2021. See “More on Estimated Subrogation Recoveries” below for further information.

In addition to the Puerto Rico gains and R&W adjustment, Ambac’s first quarter 2022 consolidated financial results will be impacted by other events and conditions that occurred or existed during the quarter including, but not limited to: rising interest rates; volatility in the equity and debt markets; as well as changes to loss and loss expense reserves. Each of the estimated ranges contained in this release are subject to change. Complete first quarter 2022 consolidated financial results will be filed in Ambac's first quarter 2022 Form 10-Q and discussed during its earnings call which the company will announce at a later date.

About Ambac

Ambac Financial Group, Inc. (“Ambac” or “AFG”) is a financial services holding company headquartered in New York City. Ambac’s core business is a growing specialty P&C distribution and underwriting platform. Ambac also has a legacy financial guaranty business that is in run off. Ambac’s common stock trades on the New York Stock Exchange under the symbol “AMBC”. Ambac is committed to providing timely and accurate information to the investing public, consistent with our legal and regulatory obligations. To that end, we use our website to convey information about our businesses, including the anticipated release of quarterly financial results, quarterly financial, statistical and business-related information. For more information, please go to www.ambac.com.

The Amended and Restated Certificate of Incorporation of Ambac contains substantial restrictions on the ability to transfer Ambac’s common stock. Subject to limited exceptions, any attempted transfer of common stock shall be prohibited and void to the extent that, as a result of such transfer (or any series of transfers of which such transfer is a part), any person or group of persons shall become a holder of 5% or more of Ambac’s common stock or a holder of 5% or more of Ambac’s common stock increases its ownership interest.

More on Estimated Subrogation Recoveries

The subrogation recoveries range disclosed in this press release is an estimate, and is based solely on information available to Ambac as of the date hereof. The estimate is inherently uncertain and subject to change due to a variety of risks and uncertainties, which are described in the risk factors section of the company’s latest 10-K, particularly the risk factor captioned, “Our inability to realize the expected recoveries included in our financial statements could adversely impact our liquidity, financial condition and results of operations and the value of our securities, including the Sitka Senior Secured Notes and Tier 2 Notes.”

https://www.businesswire.com/news/home/20220330005324/en/Ambac-Assurance-Corporation-Reports-Preliminary-First-Quarter-2022-Impact-of-Recent-Material-Developments
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Enterprising Investor Enterprising Investor 4 years ago
AAC Releases Statement Regarding RMBS Litigation (3/18/22)

NEW YORK--(BUSINESS WIRE)--Ambac Financial Group, Inc. (NYSE: AMBC) ("Ambac" or "AFG"), a financial services holding company, announces that its legacy financial guaranty insurance subsidiary Ambac Assurance Corporation (“AAC”), released the following statement:

On March 17, 2022, the New York Court of Appeals issued a decision in the case entitled U.S. Bank National Association v. DLJ Mortgage Capital, Inc. relating to Home Equity Asset Trust 2007-1, a residential mortgage-backed securities trust (“HEAT”). While AAC does not insure the HEAT securities and is not a party to the HEAT litigation, the decision is relevant to AAC's breach-of-contract cases relating to its insured RMBS transactions, as previously disclosed in Part I, Item 1A Risk Factors in Ambac’s most recently filed Form 10-K.

The HEAT decision may affect one of the bases upon which AAC seeks recovery with respect to a significant portion of breaching loans in AAC's RMBS cases. However, AAC believes there remain other potential alternative paths to recovery for such breaching loans.

AAC’s management and legal advisors are evaluating the decision and its implications for AAC’s RMBS litigations and plan to issue additional disclosure following such evaluation. Management presently expects the HEAT decision to result in a downward adjustment, which could be material, to AAC’s estimated subrogation recoveries, recorded as of December 31, 2021. However, reported estimated subrogation recoveries do not represent AAC’s view of the ultimate recovery from its RMBS litigations.

As a reminder, AAC records, as a component of its loss reserves, estimated subrogation recoveries related to securitized loans in RMBS transactions with respect to which it is pursuing claims for breaches of representations and warranties. Importantly, AAC does not include potential material recoveries attributed solely to fraudulent inducement claims in our litigations in our estimate of subrogation recoveries. Nor does AAC include potential material recoveries attributable to pre-judgment interest in the estimate of subrogation recoveries.

AAC’s ultimate recoveries in its RMBS litigations may be materially higher or lower than its recorded estimated subrogation recoveries based on a number of factors, including those described in Ambac’s Form 10-K for the fiscal year ended December 31, 2021.

About Ambac

Ambac Financial Group, Inc. (“Ambac” or “AFG”) is a financial services holding company headquartered in New York City. Ambac’s core business is a growing specialty P&C distribution and underwriting platform with a legacy financial guaranty business in run off. Ambac’s common stock trades on the New York Stock Exchange under the symbol “AMBC”. Ambac is committed to providing timely and accurate information to the investing public, consistent with our legal and regulatory obligations. To that end, we use our website to convey information about our businesses, including the anticipated release of quarterly financial results, quarterly financial, statistical and business-related information. For more information, please go to www.ambac.com.

The Amended and Restated Certificate of Incorporation of Ambac contains substantial restrictions on the ability to transfer Ambac’s common stock. Subject to limited exceptions, any attempted transfer of common stock shall be prohibited and void to the extent that, as a result of such transfer (or any series of transfers of which such transfer is a part), any person or group of persons shall become a holder of 5% or more of Ambac’s common stock or a holder of 5% or more of Ambac’s common stock increases its ownership interest.

https://www.businesswire.com/news/home/20220317006037/en/AAC-Releases-Statement-Regarding-RMBS-Litigation
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Enterprising Investor Enterprising Investor 4 years ago
AMBC.WS represents the right to purchase one share of AFG common stock.

The warrants are exercisable for cash at any time on or prior to April 30, 2023 at an exercise price of $16.67 per share. The warrants also have a cashless exercise provision.
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Enterprising Investor Enterprising Investor 4 years ago
Everspan Group Acquires Three Admitted Insurance Carriers (1/03/22)

Everspan completes its first year of operations with an established framework for its specialty property and casualty platform

NEW YORK--(BUSINESS WIRE)--Ambac Financial Group, Inc. (NYSE: AMBC) (“Ambac”), a financial services holding company, today announced that its subsidiary, Everspan Insurance Company (together with certain affiliates, “Everspan Group”), has completed the acquisitions of 21st Century Indemnity Insurance Company, 21st Century Pacific Insurance Company and 21st Century Auto Insurance Company of New Jersey.

The acquisition of these carriers, in addition to the recently completed acquisition of Providence Washington Insurance Company in October 2021, materially broadens and enhances Everspan Group’s (rated A- by AM Best) distribution capabilities and provides greater optionality for its program partners. The acquired companies will be renamed during the course of 2022. Legacy liabilities of the three newly acquired carriers will remain with the seller, a national insurance group.

“The expansion of Everspan’s carrier base will provide greater capabilities to launch new admitted programs, develop innovative products and provide us with enhanced flexibility to foster strategic relationships with prospective program partners,” stated Claude LeBlanc, Chief Executive Officer of Ambac and Everspan Group.

About Ambac

Ambac Financial Group, Inc. (“Ambac” or “AFG”), headquartered in New York City, is a financial services holding company. Ambac's subsidiaries include: Ambac Assurance Corporation and Ambac Assurance UK Limited, financial guarantee insurance companies currently in runoff; Everspan Indemnity Insurance Company and Everspan Insurance Company, specialty property & casualty program insurers; and Xchange Benefits, LLC and Xchange Affinity Underwriting Agency, LLC, property & casualty Managing General Underwriters. Ambac’s common stock trades on the New York Stock Exchange under the symbol “AMBC”. The Amended and Restated Certificate of Incorporation of Ambac contains substantial restrictions on the ability to transfer Ambac’s common stock. Subject to limited exceptions, any attempted transfer of common stock shall be prohibited and void to the extent that, as a result of such transfer (or any series of transfers of which such transfer is a part), any person or group of persons shall become a holder of 5% or more of Ambac’s common stock or a holder of 5% or more of Ambac’s common stock increases its ownership interest. Ambac is committed to providing timely and accurate information to the investing public, consistent with our legal and regulatory obligations. To that end, we use our website to convey information about our businesses, including the anticipated release of quarterly financial results, quarterly financial, statistical and business-related information. For more information, please go to www.ambac.com.

About Everspan Group

Everspan Group is a specialty property and casualty insurance platform comprised of Everspan Insurance Company and Providence Washington Insurance Company, admitted insurers, and Everspan Indemnity Insurance Company, a surplus lines insurer. Everspan Group operates nationwide on an admitted and non-admitted basis. The companies which comprise the Everspan Group are wholly-owned subsidiaries of Ambac Financial Group, Inc. (NYSE:AMBC), a financial services holding company. For more information please refer to www.everspangroup.com.

https://www.businesswire.com/news/home/20220103005229/en/
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Enterprising Investor Enterprising Investor 4 years ago
Best Warrants For 2022: 1847 Goedeker And Ambac (12/20/21)

https://seekingalpha.com/article/4475460-2022-best-ideas-goedeker-ambac-warrants
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Enterprising Investor Enterprising Investor 4 years ago
Ambac Assurance Corporation and The Segregated Account of Ambac Assurance Corporation v. Countrywide Home Loans, Inc., Countrywide Securities Corp., Countrywide Financial Corp. (n.k.a. Bank of America Home Loans) and Bank of America Corp. Case no. Case No. 651612/2010, Supreme Court of the State of New York, County of New York (11/23/21)

Trial begins 9/07/22.

https://www.sec.gov/ix?doc=/Archives/edgar/data/0000874501/000087450121000170/ambc-20211123.htm
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TheFinalCD TheFinalCD 6 years ago
why?
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Elfa1014 Elfa1014 6 years ago
Minor setback I think
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Enterprising Investor Enterprising Investor 7 years ago
Ambac Announces Closing of Ballantyne Restructuring Following Irish and U.S. Court Approvals (6/18/19)

NEW YORK, June 18, 2019 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) -- Ambac Financial Group, Inc. (Nasdaq: AMBC) ("Ambac"), a holding company whose subsidiaries, including Ambac Assurance Corporation (“AAC”) and Ambac Assurance UK Limited (“Ambac UK”), provide financial guarantees, announced today the closing of a restructuring transaction proposed by Ballantyne Re plc ("Ballantyne") in relation to its obligations following approval from the Irish High Court and the Bankruptcy Court of the Southern District of New York. This restructuring eliminates Ambac’s $900 million of insured Ballantyne net par exposure.

The key features of the restructuring are as follows:

- The novation of the indemnity reinsurance agreement between Ballantyne and Security Life of Denver Insurance Company dated November 19, 2008 (as amended) to Swiss Re Life and Health America Inc.;

- The disbursement of the assets from Ballantyne's reinsurance trust account to effectuate the novation and make payment to the holders of the affected Ballantyne notes in full and final satisfaction of their claims against Ballantyne; and

- The commutation of the obligations of Ambac UK in respect of Ballantyne’s Ambac UK guaranteed notes

Following implementation of the restructuring, Ballantyne is expected to be wound-up by way of a solvent liquidation.

Claude LeBlanc, President and Chief Executive Officer of Ambac commented, “The closing of the Ballantyne restructuring, Ambac UK’s largest Adversely Classified Credit, advances our de-risking strategy, improves the quality of our Book Value, materially increases our Adjusted Book Value and significantly strengthens Ambac UK’s regulatory capital position.” Mr. LeBlanc continued, “We believe the Ballantyne restructuring furthers our strategy of stabilizing our insurance platform.”

The impact of the transaction will be included in Ambac’s second quarter 2019 financial results. The transaction is expected to result in a Net Loss per diluted share attributable to common stockholders of between $1.65 and $1.90 and a decrease in Ambac’s GAAP Book Value per share of between $2.75 and $3.00, primarily due to the accelerated amortization of Ambac’s insurance intangible asset, partially offset by the reversal of loss and loss expense reserves. Conversely, the consummation of the transaction is expected to result in Adjusted Earnings per diluted share attributable to common stockholders of between $2.65 and $2.90 and an increase in Adjusted Book Value per share of between $2.90 and $3.10, as a result of the reversal of loss and loss expense reserves and the recognition of a gain on Ballantyne notes held in the investment portfolio. Ambac will provide further details of the transaction in its second quarter 2019 earnings press release and Form 10-Q filed with the SEC.

About Ambac

Ambac Financial Group, Inc. (“Ambac” or “AFG”), headquartered in New York City, is a holding company whose subsidiaries, including its principal operating subsidiaries, Ambac Assurance Corporation (“Ambac Assurance” or “AAC”), Everspan Financial Guarantee Corp. and Ambac Assurance UK Limited (“Ambac UK”), provide financial guarantees of obligations in both the public and private sectors globally. AAC is a guarantor of public finance and structured finance obligations. Ambac’s common stock trades on the NASDAQ Global Select Market under the symbol “AMBC”. The Amended and Restated Certificate of Incorporation of Ambac contains substantial restrictions on the ability to transfer Ambac’s common stock. Subject to limited exceptions, any attempted transfer of common stock shall be prohibited and void to the extent that, as a result of such transfer (or any series of transfers of which such transfer is a part), any person or group of persons shall become a holder of 5% or more of Ambac’s common stock or a holder of 5% or more of Ambac’s common stock increases its ownership interest. Ambac is committed to providing timely and accurate information to the investing public, consistent with our legal and regulatory obligations. To that end, we use our website to convey information about our businesses, including the anticipated release of quarterly financial results, quarterly financial, statistical and business-related information, and the posting of updates to the status of certain residential mortgage backed securities litigations. For more information, please go to www.ambac.com.

http://www.globenewswire.com/news-release/2019/06/18/1870377/0/en/Ambac-Announces-Closing-of-Ballantyne-Restructuring-Following-Irish-and-U-S-Court-Approvals.html
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snowball12 snowball12 8 years ago
Smart money shorting this stock market, big time. Especially the bond insurers. IMO.
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barnovage barnovage 8 years ago
Bishop files amicus breif.

https://drive.google.com/file/d/1c4O0D8IbPaIjcavLhr2wfvtSL-xyKM13/view

"Representative Bishop requests that all parties and the Court respect the letter and intent of PROMESA."
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freddie me freddie me 8 years ago
$30 p/t. "hearing date of June 6, 2018 has been set for oral arguments on our appeal in our Countrywide case as a progressive step towards final resolution of our Bank of America Countrywide dispute. We remain committed to fully protecting our rights and are prepared to progress this case all the way through trial, if necessary."

I own the warrants

Short noballs, make money

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snowball12 snowball12 8 years ago
Short bond insurers, make money. IMO.
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snowball12 snowball12 9 years ago
Bond insurers a safe short bet. IMO.
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Enterprising Investor Enterprising Investor 10 years ago
Upside in Puerto Rico Municipal Bonds (11/26/16)

Puerto Rico’s new governor is intent on restructuring the island’s debt.

The recent election of a new governor in Puerto Rico, and the formation of a powerful federal financial control board this summer, have resulted in some optimism about a bondholder-friendly restructuring of much of the island’s $70 billion of debt.

The situation is still unsettled, but the new governor, Ricardo Rosselló, is viewed on Wall Street as a serious leader who wants to put the island on a stronger financial footing, bolster a weak economy, and work out a reasonable agreement with bondholders. Rosselló contrasts with the more combative outgoing governor, Alejandro García Padilla, who clashed with bondholder groups and then opted to default on $1 billion of debt-service payments on July 1.

Rosselló’s election came after midyear, when President Barack Obama signed the Puerto Rico Oversight, Management, and Economic Stability Act, which created a seven-member control board with broad fiscal and debt-restructuring authority.

The benchmark Puerto Rico 8% general-obligation bond due in 2035 rallied after the Rosselló win, to about 72 cents on the dollar from 69 cents, but has since slipped back to about 69 cents. The market for Puerto Rico’s senior sales-tax revenue bonds, known by their Spanish acronym Cofina, has been stronger, with long-term senior debt trading up to the low $70s from the high $60s in the summer, as Puerto Rico has continued to make payments to that debt.

Barron’s was among the first to warn about Puerto Rico’s growing financial troubles in a cover story more than three years ago (“Troubling Winds,” Aug. 26, 2013).

http://www.barrons.com/articles/SB50001424052748704719204579022892632785548

Key future developments will be a new fiscal proposal from the incoming governor and recommendations from a task force about steps the U.S. government can take to ease Puerto Rico’s financial burden.

Things should heat up in early 2017 because a stay on bondholder lawsuits ends in February—with a potential extension to around May 1. This means that a bond restructuring plan probably needs to be in place by then. There is apt to be considerable wrangling among different bondholder groups, and there is overall risk given Puerto Rico’s fiscal, economic, and pension problems.

Against that backdrop, the general-obligation bonds, trading at less than 70 cents on the dollar, look like the best way to bet on a bondholder-friendly deal that could give GO holders a package worth 85 cents to 90 cents on the dollar.

—Andrew Bary

http://www.barrons.com/articles/upside-in-puerto-rico-municipal-bonds-1480137155
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Cubanwinner Cubanwinner 10 years ago
I remember my first winning play was AMBC in 2010 when was announced BK i bought at 0.65 sold at $6 1 year after....them BOOM 34$ im watching now but nothing interesting at the moment.
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JefftDecker JefftDecker 10 years ago
Ambac: Undervalued Special Situation


Gator Capital Management thinks AMBAC is severely undervalued and
believes it is worth up to $44.00/share, I have a .pdf file with
all the current analysis.....

R5
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JefftDecker JefftDecker 10 years ago
AMBC- adjusted book value/share at june 30,2016


$29.94

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Enterprising Investor Enterprising Investor 10 years ago
Puerto Rico Halts Toll-Road Revenue Transfer to Save Cash (5/18/16)

By Brian Chappatta and Alexander Lopez

Governor will suspend transfer of toll revenue to bondholders

Highways bonds trade at cents on the dollar as default looms

Puerto Rico Governor Alejandro Garcia Padilla declared a state of emergency for the island’s Highways and Transportation Authority, suspending the transfer of toll-road revenue to bondholders and imposing a stay on legal claims.

While the order doesn’t establish a moratorium on bond payments, it halts a revenue stream to investors that wasn’t subject to the “clawback” initiated last year on fuel taxes to pay holders of commonwealth guaranteed obligations. Standard & Poor’s said in a report last month Puerto Rico will make its July 1 debt service payments of $220.7 million on highway securities by tapping reserve funds. It might not have enough stored away to pay in January, the ratings company said at the time.

The highways agency joins the island’s Government Development Bank in a state of emergency as commonwealth officials seek to preserve cash. The authority needs $25 million to continue operations on a monthly basis and $150 million to pay suppliers, according to a statement released Wednesday.

The move comes as a bill to assist Puerto Rico in restructuring its $70 billion of debt stalls in Washington, leading the commonwealth to take alternative measures. Ambac Financial Group Inc., which insures highways debt, sued the agency earlier this month over a concession agreement that could divert and extract $115 million from the authority.

S&P said last month that toll revenue pledged to investors could cover about 21 percent of what’s owed on senior- and junior-lien highway bonds. The suspension of the funds won’t affect those clawed back under the governor’s executive order.

Puerto Rico has $5.4 billion in highway bonds. Those without insurance trade at lower prices than most other commonwealth securities. Uninsured debt maturing July 2033 last traded on May 12 at an average 16.8 cents on the dollar, data compiled by Bloomberg show.

“If there’s no replenishment into the reserves, it’s just a matter of time when the bonds will default,” David Hitchcock, an analyst covering Puerto Rico at S&P, said in a telephone interview.

http://www.bloomberg.com/news/articles/2016-05-18/puerto-rico-halts-toll-revenue-transfer-from-bonds-to-save-cash
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Enterprising Investor Enterprising Investor 10 years ago
Puerto Rican Debt Crisis Is Coming to a Head (5/07/16)

Congress is under pressure to create a financial control board that could restructure the island’s $72 billion of debt and maybe impose a settlement on bondholders.

As Congress weighs legislation to permit Puerto Rico to restructure its $72 billion of debt, the commonwealth’s bonds are languishing at or near record lows. Investors fear an unfavorable deal could be forced on them by an as-yet-to-be-created financial control board.

Puerto Rico’s benchmark 8% general-obligation bonds, due in 2035, traded Friday around 64, down from 73 at the start of the year and 93 when the $3.5 billion issue was sold in March 2014. Other GO debt changes hands in the mid-50s. Puerto Rico’s long-term senior Cofina bonds, backed by sales-tax revenue, trade around 57, and junior Cofina debt, near 40. The GOs and GO-supported debt total about $17 billion (face value), and a similar amount of Cofina debt is outstanding.

The U.S. House of Representatives soon is expected to resume work on legislation to let Puerto Rico restructure its debt and create a financial control board. The board could oversee the island’s finances and possibly force a restructuring deal on recalcitrant bondholders.

Congress is likely to enact legislation before midyear, when Puerto Rico faces $2 billion of bond interest and principal payments. Puerto Rico now lacks access to the bankruptcy code’s Chapter 9, which lets local governments, but not states, restructure debt. Barron’s was among the first to call attention to Puerto Rico’s financial plight in an Aug. 24, 2013, cover story.

Puerto Rico’s Government Development Bank, which plays a key role in the island’s finances, defaulted on $3.9 billion of debt last week, while working out a deal with about 25% of creditors that would pay them around 47 cents on the dollar.

“Most everyone agrees that Congress needs to act to create an oversight board that gives Puerto Rico the regulatory and legal framework to restructure its debts and put the economy on a more sustainable path,” says John Loffredo, co-head of investor MacKay Municipal Managers. Without a powerful board, it will be tough to achieve a comprehensive restructuring.

GO holders say their claims are protected by the Puerto Rican constitution, while senior Cofina holders take comfort from that debt’s dedicated revenue stream.

Muni-bond managers Franklin Templeton and Oppenheimer, the largest holders of junior Cofina debt, are resisting any deal that would impose a harsh settlement on them. For risk-takers, the best Puerto Rican bet probably is the GO bonds, because they have protection from the Puerto Rican constitution. While it’s unlikely that they’d pay 100% in a restructuring, they may get more than the current market price.

One sizable Puerto Rico bondholder fears a powerful control board would impose an onerous settlement on investors. Puerto Rico’s government wants maximum debt relief. In such situations, political forces can trump financial interests.

Among the things to watch is whether any restructuring involves creating a Puerto Rican “super-bond,” backed by a dedicated revenue stream, and whether Puerto Rico’s pension plan, which has $43 billion in unfunded liabilities, is untouched or minimally affected. Pensions were favored over bondholders in the Detroit and General Motors (ticker: GM) bankruptcies.

Cofina bonds could be dicey because the agency was created to enable Puerto Rico to get around legal restrictions on GO issuance. In Detroit’s bankruptcy, similarly structured debt was treated harshly.

Puerto Rico Gov. Alejandro Padilla has denounced “vulture investors,” including some hedge funds, for trying to profit at the expense of ordinary Puerto Ricans. However, the hedge funds, big buyers of Puerto Rico’s $3.5 billion GO issue in 2014, now have paper losses of 30%.

Puerto Rico debt insured by the likes of Assured Guaranty is holding up well, as investors anticipate that the insurers will make good on their guarantees.

The only certainty: There will be plenty of drama in coming months as Puerto Rico moves to a likely restructuring of its onerous obligations.

-- Andrew Bary

http://www.barrons.com/articles/puerto-rican-debt-crisis-is-coming-to-a-head-1462593795?tesla=y&mod=BOL_archive_twm_dept
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Enterprising Investor Enterprising Investor 10 years ago
Puerto Rico Bonds Snapped Up by Insurers as Crisis Nears Climax (3/10/16)

National and Ambac boost their holdings of island securities

Insurers use investment portfolios to buy distressed debt

By Michelle Kaske

The companies with the most at stake in Puerto Rico’s debt crisis have become buyers of the island’s bonds.

MBIA Inc.’s National Public Finance Guarantee Corp. and Ambac Financial Group, which together insure about $19 billion of the U.S. territory’s principal and interest against default, have used millions from their investment portfolios to buy Puerto Rico securities they guarantee. Some of the bonds trade for as little as pennies on the dollar because no payments come due until decades from now, when the commonwealth’s current bout of fiscal turmoil will be a distant memory.

“As the bonds are insured by National, we are very familiar with the credit profile of the bonds and the purchase price made it an attractive investment, especially for insured debt,” Chris Young, National’s chief financial officer, said in an e-mail.

The investments reduce the payouts the insurers could face if the island defaults and signal a bet that at least some bondholders will fare better-than-expected when Puerto Rico restructures its $70 billion of debt. Governor Alejandro Garcia Padilla wants owners of tax-backed securities to accept almost $23 billion less than they’re owed, with the prospect of recovering their losses if the island’s economy breaks out of its years-long recession.

It’s not the first time the insurers have bet that prices of bonds they stand behind have fallen too far. During last decade’s housing crisis, MBIA bought residential mortgage-backed securities that it was left covering after a default. The strategy reduced the outflow of claims payments and allowed the company to sell at a profit when prices recovered.

“It’s the normal course of business for them,” said Edwin Groshans, an analyst who tracks the insurers at Height Securities, a Washington-based broker dealer. “They’ve been insuring bonds for decades, so they have a very long track record of what a loss content is in certain scenarios.”

National boosted the amount of Puerto Rico securities it holds in its $4 billion bond portfolio to $585.6 million at the end of 2015 from $1.8 million the year before, according to its annual statement to state regulators on Feb. 29. Ambac, which has $2.6 billion of fixed-income investments, increased its commonwealth holdings to $87.4 million from $1 million a year earlier, the company’s disclosures show. The amounts reflect par value of the bonds once they mature rather than what the companies actually paid.

The jumps largely resulted from purchases of debt repaid with a dedicated share of Puerto Rico’s sales taxes. National spent about $100 million in August scooping up discounted senior sales-tax bonds worth $585 million that don’t begin paying interest or principal until 2040. Ambac in October and December paid about $10 million for $86 million of variable-rate highway bonds maturing in 2027 and 2028 and senior sales-tax debt that defers all payments until 2054.

“As part of our disciplined asset liability management program, we invest strategically and opportunistically in select Ambac insured bonds,” Abbe Goldstein, a spokeswoman for Ambac, said in an e-mail.

Who Loses?

Since the purchases, Puerto Rico has proposed foisting deep losses on owners of the sale-tax-backed securities, known by the Spanish acronym Cofina. Under the restructuring plan released on Feb. 1, those bondholders would recover about 49 percent of what they’re owed, compared with 72 percent on general obligations, which have the first claim on the government’s funds. Officials are working on a revised proposal after bondholders weighed in on the initial offer.

The specter of widespread defaults by the island has taken a toll on the insurers’ shares, causing MBIA to tumble 46 percent in the two years through December, while Ambac lost 43 percent. They’ve since recovered some as Puerto Rico moves closer toward completing a deal with creditors to cut its power company’s debt: MBIA has risen 41 percent this year to $9.14, and Ambac climbing 16 percent to $16.29, as of 10:02 a.m. in New York. Ambac and MBIA’s National insured about $10 billion and $9 billion of Puerto Rico principal and interest payments, respectively, at the end of 2015.

The insurance company’s recent investments have yielded mixed results. Ambac’s senior sales-tax bonds maturing in 2054, which it bought in October for 6.4 cents on the dollar, last traded Monday for 7.8 cents. National’s largest commonwealth bond purchase, acquired for 19.8 cents in August, last traded Feb. 18 at 19.6 cents.

The decisions may still pay off. Along with reducing how much they’d have to cover if Puerto Rico defaults, the companies may receive more than they paid for the securities under a restructuring, according to Groshans, the Height Securities analyst.

“The first benefit is not having to make the insurance payment on that bond,” Groshans said. “The second benefit is if they’re right, then the amount that they’ll recapture via the restructuring proceeding should generate cash for them to make other payments.”

Young, National’s chief financial officer, declined to comment on whether the increase in Puerto Rico holdings was part of a strategy to reduce claims payments.

“It was an attractive investment for our investment portfolio,” he said.

http://www.bloomberg.com/news/articles/2016-03-10/puerto-rico-bonds-snapped-up-by-insurers-as-crisis-nears-climax
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snowball12 snowball12 11 years ago
Short AMBC and all bond insurers. IMO.
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RickNagra RickNagra 12 years ago
Ruthless company to say the least.

Screwed every investor during the BK process unnecessarily. Never gave them the time of day. Do NOT invest in this company. NEVER NEVER. They do NOT deserve your hard earned money.
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andy e andy e 13 years ago
LMFAO...you me and a couple of million others!! those fucks should be hung by the neck..till dead!
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lipton_tea lipton_tea 13 years ago
Woo-hoo I'm a billion-air!!

Oh, wait... My shares are no longer 'good'.
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bud_fox bud_fox 13 years ago
What did I miss? Can somebody bring me up to speed. I followed this a long time and think it was down to .50 cents or $1.00 a year or 2 back. How did it get to this level? Did they split or what? Thanks.
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dave_s dave_s 13 years ago
It is hard to assign a value IMO. I am not clear if the spike in the stock is due to the hope for a big settlement with Goldman, BAC, JPM , etc. or just the equity freed up in the bankruptcy process.
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joezapp joezapp 13 years ago
Let's Discuss the Value of AMBC at Present

Now that we've opened a new chapter in Ambac Financial investing...the new stock is up 33% in a week. I have no idea if $24 is a fair value for this stock. I've tried to research this and haven't found anything that can give me a good determination. Any have ideas? Is this undervalued based of the future prospects?
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dave_s dave_s 13 years ago
So the new AMBC should have a pristine balance sheet and is probably a buy at this point.
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Aserot Aserot 13 years ago
http://www.bloomberg.com/quote/AMBC:US
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lucky, mydog lucky, mydog 13 years ago
The number of common s'holder lawsuits will be HERCULEAN/

I don't think you understand bankruptcy court.
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kenbkb kenbkb 13 years ago
The number of common s'holder lawsuits will be HERCULEAN/EPIC/GINORMOUS. Any investment in any monoline in any WAY, SHAPE OR FORM is doomed.
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