Allianz SE reported a net profit of €1.4bn for the first quarter of 2020, which was down 29 percent from its Q1 result in 2019. Revenues rose 5.7 percent, however, to €42.6bn thanks to growth in its life insurance and health businesses. But its operating profit dropped 22 percent thanks to losses in its natural-catastrophe business and coronavirus-related losses. The company called its performance “resilient” but warned it was still unable to predict what its end-of-year figures would look like. “The Board of Management does not assume that Allianz Group can achieve the target range for the operating profit for 2020 in the amount of 12 billion euros, plus or minus 500 million euros,” it wrote. “A new profit target for 2020 will be announced by the Board of Management upon completion of the revised planning once the impact of the Corona crisis can be better assessed.” The declining market has hurt Allianz’s investment margin and deferred acquisition costs. As a result, net income attributable to shareholders decreased 28.9 percent to €1.4bn mostly driven by the lower operating profit.
