Refer to Note 12 of the notes to our Consolidated Financial Statements set forth in Part II, Item 8. Financial Statements and Supplementary Data of this Annual Report, for further information regarding our leases.
Operating Results Overview - Year Ended December 31, 2020 Compared to Year Ended December 31, 2019
(1)Net loss ratio is calculated as losses and loss adjustment expenses ("LAE") divided by net premiums earned.
(2)Includes Property Claims Services ("PCS") weather events and other events impacting multiple insureds for which the Company's insurance carriers established catastrophe event codes, net of the benefit of claims handling services. These
The net expense ratio increased 4.6 percentage points to 40.5% in 2020, as compared to 35.9% in 2019 due primarily to higher excess of loss ceded reinsurance premiums in 2020.
Correspondingly, effective as of October 1, 2020, we believed there was an indication of impairment for our identifiable intangible assets, therefore we performed a discounted cash flow method to measure and record a non-cash impairment of $0.7 million, due primarily to a higher discount rate, which lowered the fair value below carrying value.
(1)Net loss ratio is calculated as losses and LAE divided by net premiums earned.
(3)Combined ratio is calculated as the sum of losses and LAE and all operating expenses less interest expense divided by net premiums earned.
Total revenue increased $18.9 million, or 4.8%, to $415.0 million for the year ended December 31, 2019, as compared to $396.1 million for the year ended December 31, 2018. The increase was primarily driven by higher net premiums growth from homeowners and higher net investment gains offset by lower net premiums earned in automobile and commercial general liability, all of which are discussed below.
Ceded premiums earned decreased $6.1 million, or 2.7%, to $218.7 million for the year ended December 31, 2019, as compared to $224.8 million for the year ended December 31, 2018. The decrease was primarily driven by lower ceded premiums in automobile as we have exited that line of business, partially offset by higher excess of loss reinsurance spend in homeowners.
Net realized and unrealized investment gains (losses) increased $11.2 million, to $7.1 million for the year ended December 31, 2019, as compared to $(4.1) million for the year ended December 31, 2018. We recognized $4.1 million and $(1.2) million in unrealized investment gains (losses) for equity securities during these respective periods. Our current year net realized gains and prior year net realized losses are primarily associated with our portfolio managers, under our control, moving out of positions due to both macro and micro conditions, a typical practice each and every quarter. Our prior year net realized losses are resulted from our decision to liquidate certain bond positions, including positions related to tax-free municipal securities during the first quarter of 2018.
Losses and LAE increased $44.7 million, or 19.6%, to $273.1 million for the year ended December 31, 2019, as compared to $228.4 million for the year ended December 31, 2018. The net loss ratio increased 10.8 percentage points, to 75.1% in 2019, as compared to 64.3% in 2018. The higher ratio was primarily the result of higher catastrophe net losses when comparing the periods, as 2019 included $52.7 million, net of reinsurance (of which $26.5 million was from FNIC's non-Florida losses that are subject to a 50% profit-sharing agreement), as compared to $31.5 million, net of reinsurance, from 2018 catastrophe events, which is discussed below.
Also contributing to the higher loss ratio was prior year net development of $11.0 million during 2019, as compared to prior year net redundancy of $2.7 million in 2018. Additionally, we increased the current accident year loss and LAE selection for our homeowners Florida line of business in response to higher severity trends from AOB and the overall litigation environment in Florida. The 2019 prior year net development was driven primarily by our exited non-core lines of business, personal automobile and commercial general liability. The 2018 prior year net redundancy was driven by a combination of favorable net redundancy from lower LAE expenses, primarily associated with Hurricane Irma, and ceded losses related to the retrospective reinsurance treaties, mostly offset by unfavorable net development from our exited non-core personal automobile line of business.
Commissions and other underwriting expenses decreased $13.9 million, or 11.5%, to $107.2 million for the year ended December 31, 2019, as compared to $121.1 million for the year ended December 31, 2018. The decrease is the result of lower profit share costs recorded within the other underwriting expenses account. As noted above, we have a 50% profit share agreement with our managing general underwriter on FNIC's non-Florida business, whereby we split 50% of the profits. Accordingly, in 2019, non-Florida incurred higher losses from severe weather events (as previously discussed in the Losses and Loss Adjustment Expenses section), resulting in a $13.3 million reduction.
Additionally, the lower automobile fees and lower homeowners Florida commissions are driven by the corresponding change in premiums earned across periods. The decline in salaries and wages is due in part to our continued focus on operational efficiencies. These items are partially offset by an increase in homeowners non-Florida commissions and fees as a result of higher premiums earned across periods.
Our primary sources of funds are gross written premiums, investment income, commission income and fee income. Our primary uses of funds are the payment of claims, catastrophe and other reinsurance premiums and operating expenses. As of December 31, 2020, the Company held $102.4 million in cash and cash equivalents and $491.4 million in investments. As of December 31, 2019, the Company held $133.4 million in cash and cash equivalents and $550.6 million in investments. Total shareholders’ equity decreased $90.5 million, to $158.2 million as of December 31, 2020, as compared to $248.7 million as of December 31, 2019, due primarily to our net loss in 2020 and repurchases of common stock executed early in 2020.
Among other things, the 2029 Notes contain customary covenants that limit the Company's ability to enter into certain operational and financial transactions, including, but not limited to incurring additional debt above certain thresholds. The Company's debt to capital ratio exceeds 35%; therefore, the Company is currently precluded from incurring additional debt (absent the consent of existing debt holders), repurchasing shares of our common stock or paying common stock dividends. No acceleration of the related debt is mandated due to the fact that catastrophic weather events drove the ratio over 35% rather than specific actions taken by the Company. The Company's actual debt to capital ratio as of December 31, 2020 was approximately 38.4%.
Historically, we have met our liquidity requirements primarily through cash generated from operations. During 2020, property and casualty businesses, including FNHC’s insurance carriers, have been impacted by catastrophes, hail, and wind-related severe weather events and private reinsurers have tightened coverage provisions and raised the cost of their coverages. As a result, sales of our portfolio of fixed income securities was a significant source of liquidity for the Company during 2020. Quota-share reinsurance treaties are another liquidity management tool, via the ceding commission the Company receives upon inception and the related reduction to statutory surplus requirements. New quota-share treaties entered or increased during 2020 were responsive to these purposes, as well as to reduce the Company's exposure to non-named storm catastrophes.
Based on RBC requirements, the extent of regulatory intervention and action increases as the ratio of an insurer’s statutory surplus to its ACL, as calculated under the NAIC’s requirements, decreases. The first action level, the Company Action Level, requires an insurer to submit a plan of corrective actions to the insurance regulators if statutory surplus falls below 200% of the ACL amount. The second action level, the Regulatory Action Level, requires an insurer to submit a plan containing corrective actions and permits the insurance regulators to perform an examination or other analysis and issue a corrective order if statutory surplus falls below 150% of the ACL amount. The third action level, ACL, allows the regulators to rehabilitate or liquidate an insurer in addition to the aforementioned actions if statutory surplus falls below the ACL amount. The fourth action level is the Mandatory Control Level, which requires the regulators to rehabilitate or liquidate the insurer if statutory surplus falls below 70% of the ACL amount. FNIC’s ratio of statutory surplus to its ACL was 303% and 324% as of December 31, 2020 and 2019, respectively. MNIC’s ratio of statutory surplus to its ACL was 736% and 1,129% as of December 31, 2020 and 2019, respectively. MIC’s ratio of statutory surplus to its ACL was 348% and 306% as of December 31, 2020 and 2019, respectively.
As of December 31, 2020, the Company has $59 million of liquidity in its holding company and non-regulated subsidiaries (collectively referred to “holding company liquidity”) that is available for general corporate purposes, including supporting the capital requirements of its insurance subsidiaries, which the RBC levels are above 300%.
We currently believe that existing cash and investment balances, when combined with anticipated cash flows, will be adequate to meet our expected liquidity needs in both the short-term and the reasonably foreseeable future. We currently believe the combined balances will be sufficient to meet our ongoing operating requirements and anticipated cash needs. Future growth strategies may require additional external financing and we may from time to time seek to obtain external financing. We cannot assure that additional sources of financing will be available to us on favorable terms, or at all, or that the terms of any such financing would not negatively impact our results of operations. Under the terms of our senior note indenture, we are currently precluded from incurring additional debt, repurchasing shares of our common stock or paying common stock dividends.
Net cash (used in) operating activities decreased to $(91.9) million for the year ended December 31, 2020 compared to net cash provided of $35.3 million for the year ended December 31, 2019. This decrease reflects higher expenses paid, including those related
The table sets forth a summary of long-term contractual obligations as of December 31, 2020, and includes amounts that represent estimates of gross undiscounted amounts payable over time, as follows:
Held-to-maturity debt securities are recorded at the amortized cost, reflecting the ability and intent to hold the securities to maturity. All other debt securities are classified as available-for-sale and recorded at fair value. Unrealized gains and losses during the year, net of the related tax effect applicable to available-for-sale are excluded from income and reflected in other comprehensive income (loss) as a separate component of shareholders’ equity until realized. Prior to January 1, 2020, if a decline in fair value was deemed to be other-than-temporary, the investment was written down to its fair value and the amount of the write-down is recorded as an other-than-temporary impairment ("OTTI") loss on the statement of operations. As the result of the adoption of Accounting Standards Update (“ASU”) 2016-13, Financial Instruments-Credit Losses (Topic 326): Measurement of Credit Losses on Financial Instrument ("ASU 2016-13") beginning on January 1, 2020, we instead record an allowance for credit loss. Refer to Note 7 of the notes to our Consolidated Financial Statements set forth in Part II, Item 8. Financial Statements and Supplementary Data of this Annual Report for additional information regarding allowances for credit loss. Any portion of the market decline related to debt securities that is believed to arise from factors other than credit is recorded as a component of other comprehensive income (loss) rather than against income. Equity investments (except those accounted for under the equity method of accounting or those that result in consolidation of the investee) are measured at fair value with changes in fair value recognized in net income (loss).
Refer to Note 5 of the notes to our Consolidated Financial Statements set forth in Part II, Item 8. Financial Statements and Supplementary Data of this Annual Report for additional information regarding investments.
Premium receivable balances are reported net of an allowance for estimated uncollectible premium amounts. Such allowance is based upon an ongoing review of amounts outstanding, length of collection periods, the creditworthiness of the insured and other relevant factors. Amounts deemed to be uncollectible are written off against the allowance. Refer to Note 7 of the notes to our Consolidated Financial Statements set forth in Part II, Item 8. Financial Statements and Supplementary Data of this Annual Report for additional information allowances for credit loss.
reduce commissions, brokerage and other underwriting expenses and ceded losses incurred reduce net losses and LAE incurred over the applicable periods of the various reinsurance contracts with third party reinsurers. If premiums or commissions are subject to adjustment (for example, retrospectively-rated or experience-rated), the estimated ultimate premium or commission is recognized over the period of the contract.
The acquisition costs are deferred and amortized over the period in which the related premiums written are earned, generally twelve months. Deferred acquisition cost balances are grouped consistent with the manner in which the insurance contracts are acquired, serviced and measured for profitability and is reviewed for recoverability based on the profitability of the underlying insurance contracts. Investment income is anticipated in assessing the recoverability of deferred acquisition costs. We assess the recoverability of deferred acquisition costs on an annual basis or more frequently if circumstances indicate impairment may have occurred.
The process of recording quarterly and annual liabilities for unpaid losses and LAE for short-tail lines is primarily focused on maintaining an appropriate reserve level for reported claims and IBNR. Specifically, we assess the reserve adequacy of IBNR in light of such factors as the current levels of reserves for reported claims and expectations with respect to reporting lags, catastrophe events, historical data, legal developments, and economic conditions, including the effects of inflation.
Standard actuarial methodologies employed to estimate ultimate losses incorporate the inherent lag from the time claims occur to when they are reported to an insurer and if applicable, to when an insurer reports the claims to a reinsurer. Certain actuarial methodologies may be more appropriate than others in instances where this lag may not be consistent from period to period. Consequently, additional actuarial judgment is employed in the selection of methodologies to best incorporate the potential impact of this situation.
Our insurance companies provide coverage on both a claims-made and occurrence basis. Claims-made policies generally require that claims occur and be reported during the coverage period of the policy. Occurrence policies allow claims which occur during a policy’s coverage period to be reported after the coverage period, and as a result, these claims can have a very long claim tail, occasionally extending for decades. Casualty claims can have a very long claim tail, in certain situations extending for many years. In addition, casualty claims are more susceptible to litigation and the legal environment and can be significantly affected by changing contract interpretations, all of which contribute to extending the claim tail. For long-tail casualty lines of business, estimating the ultimate liabilities for unpaid losses and LAE is a more complex process and depends on a number of factors, including the line and volume of the business involved. For these reasons, our insurance companies will generally use actuarial projections in setting reserves for all casualty lines of business.
We believe that the reserves for unpaid losses and LAE established by our insurance companies are adequate as of December 31, 2020; however, additional reserves, which could have a material impact upon our financial condition, results of operations and cash flows, may be necessary in the future.
•Expected loss ratios represent management’s expectation of losses, in relation to earned premium, at the time business is written, before any actual claims experience has emerged. This expectation is a significant determinant of the estimate of loss reserves for recently written business where there is little paid or incurred loss data to consider. Expected loss ratios are generally derived from historical loss ratios adjusted for the impact of rate changes, loss cost trends and known changes in the type of risks underwritten. For certain longer-tailed reinsurance business that are typically lower frequency, high severity classes, expected loss ratios are often used for the last several accident years or underwriting years, as appropriate.
Refer to Note 1 and Note 9 of the notes to our Consolidated Financial Statements set forth in Part II, Item 8. Financial Statements and Supplementary Data of this Annual Report, for additional information regarding our losses and LAE.
Income taxes are accounted for under the asset and liability method. Deferred tax assets and liabilities are recognized for the estimated future tax consequences attributable to differences between the financial statement carrying amounts of existing assets and liabilities and their respective tax bases, and operating loss, capital loss and tax-credit carryforwards. Deferred tax assets and liabilities are measured using enacted tax rates expected to apply to taxable income in the years in which those temporary differences are expected to be recovered or settled. The effect on deferred tax assets and liabilities of a change in tax rates is recognized in income or expense in the period that includes the enactment date. Refer to Note 11 of the notes to our Consolidated Financial Statements set forth in Part II, Item 8. Financial Statements and Supplementary Data of this Annual Report, for additional information regarding our income taxes.
For the years ended December 31, 2020 and 2019, we did not have any off balance sheet transactions.
We have audited the accompanying consolidated balance sheets of FedNat Holding Company and subsidiaries (the “Company”) as of December 31, 2020 and 2019, the related consolidated statements of operations, comprehensive income (loss), changes in shareholders' equity and cash flows for each of the three years in the period ended December 31, 2020, and the related notes and the financial statement schedules listed in the index at Item 15 (collectively referred to as the “consolidated financial statements”). In our opinion, the consolidated financial statements present fairly, in all material respects, the financial position of the Company at December 31, 2020 and 2019, and the results of its operations and its cash flows for each of the three years in the period ended December 31, 2020, in conformity with U.S. generally accepted accounting principles.
We also have audited, in accordance with the standards of the Public Company Accounting Oversight Board (United States) (PCAOB), the Company’s internal control over financial reporting as of December 31, 2020, based on criteria established in Internal Control-Integrated Framework issued by the Committee of Sponsoring Organizations of the Treadway Commission (2013 framework) and our report dated March 29, 2021 expressed an adverse opinion thereon.
At December 31, 2020, the Company’s reserve for losses and loss adjustment expense ("LAE") balance was $540.4 million of which a significant portion is incurred but not reported reserves (“IBNR”). The carrying amount represents management’s best estimate of the ultimate liability, which in turn is composed of the Company’s assessment of claims pending and the development of prior years’ loss liability, including liabilities based upon individual case estimates for reported losses and LAE and estimates of IBNR. As described in Note 9 of the consolidated financial statements, the establishment of loss reserves is an inherently uncertain process and there is significant uncertainty in determining management’s best estimate of the ultimate liability which is used to determine the IBNR reserves. In particular, the estimate is subject to a number of variables including loss frequency and severity, payment patterns, expected loss ratios and the weighting of the four actuarial methods used for each accident year and line of business.
At December 31, 2020, the Company’s reinsurance recoverable, net of allowance, was $413.0 million. As discussed in Note 6 to the consolidated financial statements, during 2020 the Company expanded its reinsurance program that provides quota share and excess of loss coverage for the risks inherent in the business written and the concentration of the Company’s exposure in certain geographies. Certain of these reinsurance arrangements are complex as they contain risk limiting provisions. To qualify as reinsurance for accounting purposes, a contract must embody substantive risk transfer, which is defined as the reasonable possibility that the reinsurer could experience a significant loss on the treaty.
We obtained an understanding, evaluated the design, and tested the operating effectiveness of the controls over the reinsurance process including, among others and controls related to assessing risk transfer.
Maison Insurance Company ("MIC"), an insurance subsidiary, is licensed as an admitted carrier to write homeowners property and casualty insurance as well as wind/hail-only exposures by the state's insurance departments in Louisiana, Texas and Florida.
The Company is a party to an insurance agency master agreement with Ivantage Select Agency, Inc. (“ISA”), an affiliate of Allstate Insurance Company (“Allstate”), pursuant to which the Company has been authorized by ISA to appoint Allstate agents to offer our FNIC homeowners insurance products to consumers in Florida. As a percentage of the total homeowners premiums we underwrote, 20.7%, 23.2% and 23.8%, were from Allstate’s network of Florida agents, for the years ended December 31, 2020, 2019 and 2018, respectively.
The Company is a party to a managing general underwriting agreement with SageSure Insurance Managers, LLC (“SageSure”) to facilitate growth in our FNIC homeowners business outside of Florida. As a percentage of the total homeowners premiums, 25.5%, 23.1% and 15.0% of the Company’s premiums were underwritten by SageSure, for the years ended December 31, 2020, 2019, and 2018, respectively. As part of our partnership with SageSure, previously we entered into a profit share agreement, whereby we shared 50% of net profits of this line of business through June 30, 2020, as calculated per the terms of the agreement, subject to certain limitations, which included limits on the net losses that SageSure could realize. The limit was based on the amount of inception to date profits within the profit share agreement. In addition, refer to Note 6 for information regarding a fully collateralized quota-share treaty on this book of business that became effective July 1, 2020.
The Company identifies a VIE as an entity that does not have sufficient equity to finance its own activities without additional financial support or where the equity investors lack certain characteristics of a controlling financial interest. The Company assesses its contractual, ownership or other interests in a VIE to determine if the Company’s interest participates in the variability the VIE was designed to absorb and pass onto variable interest holders. The Company performs an ongoing qualitative assessment of its variable interests in a VIE to determine whether the Company has a controlling financial interest and would therefore be considered the
We use the acquisition method of accounting for all business combination transactions, and accordingly, recognize the fair values of assets acquired, liabilities assumed and any non-controlling interests in our consolidated financial statements. The allocation of fair values may be subject to adjustment after the initial allocation for up to a one-year period as more information becomes available relative to the fair values as of the acquisition date. The consolidated financial statements include the results of operations of any acquired company since the acquisition date.
Fair value is the price that would be received to sell an asset or paid to transfer a liability between market participants in the principal market or in the most advantageous market when no principal market exists. Adjustments to transaction prices or quoted market prices may be required in illiquid or disorderly markets in order to estimate fair value. Alternative valuation techniques may be appropriate under the circumstances to determine the value that would be received to sell an asset or pay to transfer a liability in an orderly transaction. Market participants are assumed to be independent, knowledgeable, able and willing to transact an exchange and not acting under duress. Our nonperformance or credit risk is considered in determining the fair value of liabilities. Considerable judgment may be required in interpreting market data used to develop the estimates of fair value. Accordingly, estimates of fair value presented herein are not necessarily indicative of the amounts that could be realized in a current or future market exchange. Refer to Note 4 below for additional information regarding fair value.
Premium receivable balances, which include any outstanding receivable from the SageSure profit sharing agreement, are reported net of an allowance for estimated uncollectible premium amounts. Such allowance is based upon an ongoing review of amounts outstanding, length of collection periods, the creditworthiness of the insured and other relevant factors. Amounts deemed to be uncollectible are written off against the allowance. Refer to Note 7 below for additional information regarding allowances for credit loss.
Amounts recoverable from reinsurers are estimated in a manner consistent with the claim liability associated with the reinsured business and consistent with the terms of the underlying reinsurance contract. Reinsurance payable and funds withheld liabilities represents the unpaid reinsurance premiums or reinstatement premiums due to reinsurers, or in the case of certain reinsurance agreements amounts withheld as collateral by us.
The acquisition costs are deferred and amortized over the period in which the related premiums written are earned, generally twelve months for homeowners policies. Deferred acquisition cost balances are grouped consistent with the manner in which the insurance contracts are acquired, serviced and measured for profitability and is reviewed for recoverability based on the profitability of the underlying insurance contracts. Investment income is anticipated in assessing the recoverability of deferred acquisition costs. The Company assesses the recoverability of deferred acquisition costs on an annual basis or more frequently if circumstances indicate impairment may have occurred.
value recognized in net income. The Company adopted the guidance effective January 1, 2018, by reflecting a cumulative adjustment, which increased retained earnings (deficit) and decreased accumulated other comprehensive income (loss) by $1.0 million. This adjustment represented the level of net unrealized gains and losses associated with our equity investments with readily determinable market values as of January 1, 2018. The adoption also resulted in the recognition of $(1.2) million in our consolidated statements of operations and statements of comprehensive income (loss), which represented the change in net unrealized gains and losses on our equity securities for 2018. This new guidance increases our earnings volatility compared to the prior accounting rules.
In February 2018, the FASB issued ASU 2018-02, Income Statement-Reporting Comprehensive Income (Topic 220): Reclassification of Certain Tax Effects from Accumulated Other Comprehensive Income. The update allowed a reclassification from accumulated other comprehensive income (loss) to retained earnings (deficit) for stranded tax effects resulting from the Tax Cuts and Job Act of 2017 ("Tax Act"). Guidance had previously required the effect of a change in tax laws or rates on deferred tax balances to be reported in income from continuing operations in the accounting period that includes the period of enactment, even if the related income tax effects were originally charged or credited directly to accumulated other comprehensive income. The Company adopted the guidance effective January 1, 2018, by reflecting a cumulative effect adjustment to retained earnings (deficit) with an off-setting adjustment to accumulated other comprehensive income (loss) for less than $0.1 million.
In February 2016, the FASB issued ASU 2016-02, Leases (Topic 842). The update superseded the prior lease guidance in Topic 840, Leases and lessees were required to recognize for all leases, with the exception of short-term leases, a lease liability, which is a lessee’s obligation to make lease payments arising from a lease, measured on a discounted basis. Additionally, lessees are required to recognize a right-of-use asset, which is an asset that represents the lessee’s right to use, or control the use of, a specified asset for the lease term. The Company adopted the guidance effective January 1, 2019, by reflecting a $6.1 million right-of-use asset, after-tax, and $6.1 million lease liability, after-tax, on our consolidated balance sheets for our leases in existence as of that date. All of the Company's leases were classified as operating leases and we elected the practical expedient, therefore no adjustment to comparative prior periods presented have been made. The provisions of this ASU did not have an impact on our pattern of lease expense recognition on our consolidated statements of operations. Refer to Note 12 below for additional information regarding leases.
In June 2016, the FASB issued ASU 2016-13, which significantly changes the measurement of credit losses for most financial assets and certain other instruments that are not measured at fair value through net income. The update requires entities to record allowances for available-for-sale debt securities rather than reduce the carrying amount, as currently performed under the other-than-temporary impairment ("OTTI") model. The update also requires enhanced disclosures for financial assets measured at amortized cost and available-for-sale debt securities to help the financial statement users better understand significant judgments used in estimating credit losses, as well as the credit quality and underwriting standards of an entity’s portfolio. The Company adopted the guidance effective January 1, 2020, by reflecting a cumulative effect adjustment of less than $0.1 million, after-tax, which decreased retained earnings (deficit), held-to-maturity debt securities and reinsurance recoverable. Refer to Note 7 for additional information regarding allowances for credit loss.
In January 2017, the FASB issued ASU 2017-04, Simplifying the Test for Goodwill Impairment. ASU 2017-04 eliminated the requirement to perform Step 2 of the goodwill impairment test in favor of only applying a quantitative test (referred to in previous guidance as Step 1). As part of the quantitative test, the fair value of the reporting unit is compared with its carrying value, and an impairment charge is recognized when the carrying value exceeds the reporting unit’s fair value. An entity still has the option to first perform a qualitative assessment of an individual reporting unit to determine if the quantitative assessment is necessary. The Company adopted the guidance effective January 1, 2020. Refer to Note 8 for information regarding our goodwill impairment assessment.
The purchase price was $51.0 million, which includes $25.5 million in cash and shares of the Company’s common stock equal to $25.5 million, which amounted to 1,773,102 shares of the Company's common stock. The number of shares was determined by the closing price of 20 trading days immediately preceding the closing date, December 2, 2019. The resale of these shares was registered and are subject to a standstill agreement. We recognized the fair value of the shares as of the acquisition date, net of issuance costs, by increasing shareholders' equity by $24.4 million
In addition to the purchase price, PIH received five-year right of first refusal to provide reinsurance of up to 7.5% of any layer in FNHC’s catastrophe reinsurance program. PIH also agreed to a non-compete for five years following the closing with respect to residential property insurance in Alabama, Florida, Georgia, Louisiana, South Carolina and Texas.
Subsequent to the effective acquisition date, the revenues and net income of the business acquired were $4.4 million and $1.4 million, respectively, for the year ended December 31, 2019. We recognized $1.3 million of acquisition-related costs, pre-tax, for the twelve months ended December 31, 2019. These costs are included in the general and administrative expenses line item of the consolidated statement of operations. We also capitalized $0.5 million in application development costs to property and equipment included in the other asset line item on the consolidated balance sheet.
All the gross contractual amounts of acquired receivables have been fully collected.
The entire $8.7 million acquired VOBA balance was fully amortized as of December 31, 2020.
•Level 2 - Quoted market prices for similar assets or liabilities and valuations, using models or other valuation techniques using observable market data. Significant other observable that can be corroborated by observable market data; and
Held-to-maturity debt securities reported on the consolidated balance sheets at amortized cost and disclosed at fair value below (and in Note 5) and the level of fair value hierarchy of inputs used consisted of the following:
A summary of the significant valuation techniques and market inputs for each financial instrument carried at fair value includes the following:
We did not have securities trading in less liquid or illiquid markets with limited or no pricing information, therefore we did not use unobservable inputs to measure fair value as of December 31, 2020 and 2019. Additionally, we did not have any assets or liabilities measured at fair value on a nonrecurring basis as of December 31, 2020 and 2019, and we noted no significant changes in our valuation methodologies between those periods.
Net realized and unrealized gains (losses) recognized in earnings, by major investment category, consisted of the following:
Given the December 2, 2019 acquisition of the Maison Companies, the Company and PIH agreed to combine FNIC, MIC and MNIC under a single reinsurance program allowing the carriers to capitalize on efficiencies, spread of risk and scale.
The combined reinsurance treaties provide approximately $1.3 billion of single-event reinsurance coverage in excess of a $27 million retention for catastrophic losses on the first event (and $15 million on the second and third events), including hurricanes, and aggregate coverage of $1.9 billion, at an approximate total cost of $224.3 million.
As indicated above, FNIC, MIC and MNIC’s combined 2019-2020 reinsurance program is estimated to cost $224.3 million. This amount includes approximately $178.5 million for private reinsurance for the carriers’ exposure described above, including prepaid automatic premium reinstatement protection, along with approximately $45.8 million payable to the FHCF. The combination of private and FHCF reinsurance treaties affords FNIC, MIC and MNIC approximately $1.9 billion of aggregate coverage with a maximum single event coverage totaling approximately $1.3 billion, exclusive of retentions. Each carrier will pay directly its allocated portion of the aggregate reinsurance ceded premium cost. The allocation methodology by which FNIC, MIC and MNIC determines their share of the premium and distribution of reinsurance recoveries under the combined reinsurance tower is based on catastrophe loss modeling of the separate books of business. Each carrier shares the combined program cost in proportion to its contribution to the total expected loss in each reinsurance layer. Each carrier's reinsurance recoveries will be based on that carrier's contributing share of a given event's total loss. Both FNIC and MNIC maintained their FHCF participation at 75% for the 2019 hurricane season, and MIC increased its FHCF participation to 90%.
The insurance carriers’ cost and amounts of reinsurance are based on current analysis of exposure to catastrophic risk. The data is subjected to exposure level analysis at various dates through December 31, 2019. This analysis of the carriers’ exposure level in relation to the total exposures to the FHCF and excess of loss treaties may produce changes in retentions, limits and reinsurance premiums in total, and by carrier, as a result of increases or decreases in the carriers’ exposure levels.
The Company’s excess of loss catastrophe reinsurance program for 2020-2021 (the “Program”), which covers the Company and its wholly-owned insurance subsidiaries, FNIC, MIC and MNIC was renewed effective July 1, 2020. FNIC, MIC and MNIC are collectively referred to herein as the “carriers”. The Program provides up to approximately $1.3 billion of single-event reinsurance coverage in excess of up to a $31 million retention for catastrophic losses, including hurricanes, and aggregate coverage up to $1.9 billion, at an approximate total cost of $286.0 million, subject to adjustments based on actual exposure or premium of policies at different points in time in the coming months. The Company will retain 100% of the first $25 million retention on each event plus up to an additional $6 million in retention on the first event by retaining an approximate 9.1% co-participation of the next $70 million of limit after the first $25 million. More specifically, the Program includes up to approximately $1.3 billion in aggregate private reinsurance for coverage in all states in which the Company operates, of which up to approximately $650 million is limited to any one event, plus an additional $650 million of reinsurance provided by the Florida Hurricane Catastrophe Fund (“FHCF”), that responds on both a per occurrence and in the aggregate basis, and which coverage is exclusive to the state of Florida.
The private layers of the Program, covering both Florida and non-Florida exposures have prepaid automatic reinstatement protection, which affords the carriers additional coverage for subsequent events. The private reinsurance market continued to harden this year due to a number of factors, including issues unique to the U.S. coastal catastrophe reinsurance marketplace generally and the Florida market specifically. These factors resulted in more restrictive terms by some of our individual reinsurers. The change in terms from the prior year’s program includes some portion of the program having a single aggregate retention for our carriers taken as a whole, versus each carrier’s own individual retention, plus some portions of the program not “cascading”, which provides less broad coverage for multiple event scenarios generating gaps in coverage that need to be filled with additional post renewal reinsurance protection or be retained net by the Company. As of December 31, 2020, the overall reinsurance Program was placed with reinsurers with an A.M. Best Company or Standard & Poor’s rating of “A-” or better, or that have fully collateralized their maximum potential obligations in dedicated trusts. For the purpose of debt covenant compliance, if any reinsurer on the program is not collateralized or has a rating lower than “A-” by A.M. Best Company or Standard & Poor’s then the Company treats that reinsurer’s participation as if it was part of the Company’s net retention. Refer to "Part II, Item 1A., Risk Factors” for more information.
The total Program cost includes approximately $238.2 million for private reinsurance for the carriers’ exposure described above, including prepaid automatic reinstatement premium protection, along with approximately $47.8 million payable to the FHCF. The combination of private and FHCF reinsurance treaties will afford the carriers up to approximately $1.9 billion of aggregate coverage within Florida and $1.3 billion in states outside Florida with a maximum single event coverage totaling up to approximately $1.3 billion within Florida and approximately $650 million outside Florida, exclusive of retentions.
combined basis, which could be reduced further by an additional 28.5% placed on a parametric basis with an Excess and Surplus lines carrier that will provide coverage for the second and third Florida hurricane loss, if the first event loss criteria has been satisfied to the carriers after the inception of treaty. The amount of recovery with the parametric product is based on the magnitude of the hurricane and the proximity of the individual insured risk to the hurricane path. This coverage terminates on May 31, 2021.
On July 1, 2020, FNIC renewed the quota-share treaty on its Florida homeowners book of business, on an in-force, new and renewal basis, excluding named storms, which was set at a 10% cession and is subject to certain limitations. In addition, this quota-share allows FNIC the flexibility to prospectively increase or decrease the cession percentage up to three times during the term of the agreement.
Effective October 1, 2020, FNIC, with the agreement of Swiss Re, increased its cession percentage on this treaty from 10% to 20% on an in-force, new and renewal basis. This treaty excludes named storms and includes a cap on non-named storm catastrophe losses (as discussed above).
As a result of these three actions, the Company now has 40% quota-share coverage in place through June 30, 2021, at which point 20% of this coverage will be up for renewal. It is the Company’s current intent to seek such renewal.
Certain reinsurance agreements require FNIC to secure the credit, regulatory and business risk. Fully funded trust agreements securing these risks totaled less than $0.1 million as of December 31, 2020 and 2019.
Amounts recoverable from reinsurers are recognized in a manner consistent with the claims liabilities associated with the reinsurance placement and presented on the consolidated balance sheet as reinsurance recoverable. Reinsurance recoverable, net consisted of the following:
There is significant risk and judgment involved in determining estimates of our allowances for credit loss, which reduce the amortized cost of an asset to produce an estimate of the net amount that will be collected over the asset's contractual life. Longer time horizons generally present more uncertainty in expected cash flow. We evaluate the expected credit loss of assets on an individual basis, except in cases where assets collectively share similar risk characteristics where we pool them together. We evaluate and estimate our allowances for credit loss by considering reasonable, relevant and supportable available information.
Activity in the allowances for credit loss, by asset line item on the consolidated balance sheet, is summarized as follows:
(2)Reflected in commissions and other underwriting expenses on the consolidated statements of comprehensive income (loss).
Accrued investment income is included in other assets on the consolidated balance sheet. We immediately write-off accrued investment income if it becomes uncollectible, therefore we do not measure or record an allowance for credit losses.
Our investment policy is established by the Board of Directors’ Investment Committee and is reviewed on a regular basis. This policy currently limits investment in non-investment-grade debt securities (including high-yield bonds), and limits total investments in preferred stock, common stock and mortgage notes receivable. We also comply with applicable laws and regulations that further restrict the type, quality and concentration of our investments. We do not use any swaps, options, futures or forward contracts to hedge or enhance our investment portfolio.
Our investment portfolio has inherent risks because it contains volatility associated with market pricing and interest rate sensitive instruments, such as bonds, which may be adversely affected by changes in interest rates or credit worthiness. The effects of market volatility, declining economic conditions, such as a U.S. or global economic slowdown, whether due to COVID-19, or other factors, could adversely impact the credit quality of securities in our portfolio and may have unforeseen consequences on the liquidity and financial stability of the issuers of securities we hold.
•Are explicitly guaranteed by a sovereign entity that can print its own currency;
•The currency is routinely held by central banks, used in international commerce and commonly viewed as a reserve currency; and
For our debt securities, available-for-sale, the fact that a security’s fair value is below its amortized cost is not a decisive indicator of credit loss. In many cases, a security’s fair value may decline due to factors that are unrelated to the issuer’s ability to pay. For this reason, we consider the extent to which fair value is below amortized cost in determining whether a credit-related loss exists. The Company also considers the credit quality rating of the security, with a special emphasis on securities downgraded below investment grade. A comparison is made between the present value of expected future cash flows for a security and its amortized cost. If the present value of future expected cash flows is less than amortized cost, a credit loss is presumed to exist and an allowance for credit loss is established. Management may conclude that a qualitative analysis is sufficient to support its conclusion that the present value of the expected cash flows equals or exceeds a security’s amortized cost. As a result of this review, management concluded that there were no credit-related impairments of our available-for-sale securities as of January 1, 2020, and December 31, 2020. Management does not intend to sell available-for-sale securities in an unrealized loss position, and it is not “more likely than not” that the Company will be required to sell these securities before a recovery in their value to their amortized cost basis occurs.
The aging of our premiums receivable and associated allowance for credit loss as of December 31, 2020 was as follows:
(1)This intangible has an indefinite useful life. We recorded impairment of $0.7 million in the year ended December 31, 2020, due primarily to a higher discount rate, which lowered the fair value.
(2)Will become fully amortized during the year ended December 31, 2021.
(1)Reinsurance recoverable in this table includes only ceded loss and LAE reserves.
During the year ended December 31, 2020, the Company experienced $18.4 million of net unfavorable loss and LAE reserve development on prior accident years, primarily in its commercial general liability line of business as a result of higher than expected late reported claims across a number of accident years during 2020.
As previously disclosed, the Company entered into 30% and 10% retrospectively-rated Florida-only property quota-share treaties, which ended on July 1, 2016 and 2017, respectively. These agreements included a profit share (experience account) provision, under which the Company will receive ceded premium adjustments at the end of the treaty to the extent there is a positive balance in the experience account. This experience account is based on paid losses rather than incurred losses. Due to the retrospectively-rated nature of this treaty, when the experience account is positive we cede losses under these treaties as the claims are paid with an equal and offsetting adjustment to ceded premiums (in recognition of the related change to the experience account receivable), with no impact on net income. Conversely, when the experience account is negative, the Company cedes losses on an incurred basis with no offsetting adjustment to ceded premiums, which impacts net income. Loss development can be either favorable or unfavorable regardless of whether the experience account is in a positive or negative position.
Misuse of this legal construct has led to contractors over inflating costs of claims and/or submitting improper claims, causing insurance companies to have to either pay the overinflated claim, fight the claim in court, or both. In all cases, AOB claims cost the insurance company, on average, more than five times the cost to settle non-AOB claims, which has been a primary driver the increase to our overall loss and loss adjustment in comparison to historical severity averages.
The following tables provide incurred losses and allocated LAE ("ALAE") and cumulative paid losses and ALAE, net of reinsurance, for the prior 10 accident years, and the total of IBNR reserves plus expected development on reported claims and the cumulative number of reported claims (in thousands, except number of reported claims), as of the most recent reporting period, by the Company’s significant lines of business, which are homeowners, commercial general liability and automobile.
The following table provides supplementary information about the average annual percentage payout of incurred losses and ALAE, net of reinsurance, for homeowners policies, as of December 31, 2020:
The following table provides supplementary information about the average annual percentage payout of incurred losses and ALAE, net of reinsurance, for automobile policies, as of December 31, 2020:
Various actuarial methods are utilized to determine the reserves that are booked to our financial statements. Weightings of tests and methods at a detailed level may change from evaluation to evaluation based on a number of observations, measures and time elements. On an overall basis, changes to methods and/or assumptions underlying reserve estimations and selections as of December 31, 2020 and 2019, were not considered material, except for our commercial general liability line of business. For this line of business, we updated our actuarial assumptions to reflect the new, emerging trend relating to the increased level of new claims being reported related to construction defects, as the new development patterns are different than the historical patterns.
On March 5, 2019, the Company completed a private placement offering and issued $100.0 million in principal amount of Senior Unsecured Fixed Rate Notes due 2029 (the "Notes"), pursuant to an indenture dated as of March 5, 2029 (the "Indenture"). The Notes mature on March 15, 2029 and bear interest at a fixed rate of 7.5% per year, payable semi-annually in arrears, subject to increases in the interest rate payable in the event of a downgrade below "BBB-" in the credit rating assigned to the Notes. The Notes are not convertible or exchangeable for any equity securities, other securities or assets of the Company or any subsidiary. A portion of the cash from the offering was used to redeem all $45.0 million of the Company's Senior Unsecured Fixed Rate Notes Due 2022 and the Company's Senior Notes Due 2027. We recognized $3.6 million as interest expense in our consolidated statements of operations for the year ended 2019, for prepayment fees, including the write-off unamortized debt issuance costs on the repayment.
Our effective income tax rate is the ratio of income tax expense (benefit) over our income (loss) before income taxes. For the years ended December 31, 2020, 2019 and 2018, the effective income tax rate was 30.0%, (41.8)% and 27.2%, respectively. Differences in the effective tax and the statutory Federal income tax rate of 21% in 2020, 2019 and 2018, are driven by state income taxes and anticipated annual permanent differences, including estimates for tax-exempt interest, dividends received deduction, executive compensation as well as the NOL provision in the current year, as discussed above.
In the ordinary course of business, the Company is involved in various legal proceedings, specifically claims litigation. The Company’s insurance subsidiaries participate in most of these proceedings by either defending third-party claims brought against insureds or litigating first-party coverage claims. The Company accounts for such activity through the establishment of loss and LAE reserves. The Company’s management believes that the ultimate liability, if any, with respect to such ordinary-course claims litigation, after consideration of provisions made for potential losses and costs of defense, is immaterial to the Company’s consolidated financial statements. The Company is also occasionally involved in other legal and regulatory proceedings, some of which may assert claims for substantial amounts, making the Company party to individual actions in which extra contractual damages, punitive damages or penalties, such as claims alleging bad faith in the handling of insurance claims, are sought.
liabilities related to pending claims and litigation and may revise its previous estimates and make appropriate adjustment to the financial statements. Estimates that require judgment are subject to change and are based on management’s assessment, including the advice of legal counsel, the expected outcome of litigation and legal proceedings or other dispute resolution proceedings or the expected resolution of contingencies. The Company’s management believes that the Company’s accruals for probable and estimable losses are reasonable and that the amounts accrued do not have a material effect on the Company’s consolidated financial statements.
In connection with its automobile line of business, which is currently winding down, FNIC is also required to participate in an insurance apportionment plan under Florida law, which is referred to as a JUA Plan. The JUA Plan provides for the equitable apportionment of any profits realized, or losses and expenses incurred, among participating automobile insurers. In the event of an underwriting deficit incurred by the JUA Plan, which is not recovered through the policyholders in the JUA Plan, such deficit shall be recovered from the companies participating in the JUA Plan in the proportion that the net direct written premiums of each such member during the preceding calendar year bear to the aggregate net direct premiums written in this state by all members of the JUA Plan. There were no material assessments by the JUA Plan as of December 31, 2020. Future assessments by the JUA and the JUA Plan are indeterminable at this time.
Refer to Note 2 above for additional information regarding the implementation of new lease accounting rules on January 1, 2019.
December 31, 2019, the Company repurchased 237,647 shares of its common stock at a total cost of $3.9 million, which is an average price per share of $16.27. The unused portion of this authorization expired on December 31, 2019.
The intrinsic value of options exercised represents the difference between the stock option exercise price and the weighted-average closing stock price of FNHC common stock on the exercise dates, as reported on the NASDAQ Global Market.
The unamortized share-based compensation expense is $3.4 million as of December 31, 2020, which will be recognized over the remaining weighted average vesting period of approximately 1.96 years.
During the years ended December 31, 2020 and 2019, the Board of Directors granted 210,272 and 140,156 RSAs, respectively, vesting over three or five years, to the Company’s directors, executives and other key employees.
For the years ended December 31, 2020, 2019 and 2018, the Company made no additional profit-sharing contribution.
In April 2020, our Board of Directors declared a $0.09 per common share dividend, payable in June 2020, to shareholders of record on May 15, 2020, amounting to $1.3 million.
In July 2020, our Board of Directors declared a $0.09 per common share dividend, payable in September 2020, to shareholders of record on August 14, 2020, amounting to $1.2 million.
The Company’s insurance companies are subject to regulations and standards of the Florida Office of Insurance Regulation (the "Florida OIR") and Louisiana Department of Insurance (the "LDI"). These standards require that insurance companies prepare statutory-basis financial statements in accordance with the National Association of Insurance Commissioners (“NAIC”) Accounting Practices and Procedures Manual. The Company did not use any prescribed or permitted statutory accounting practices that differed from the NAIC’s statutory accounting practices as of December 31, 2020.
The Company’s insurance companies are required to report their risk-based capital (“RBC”) each December 31. Failure to maintain an adequate RBC could subject the Company to regulatory action and could restrict the payment of dividends. As of December 31, 2020, the RBC levels of the Company’s insurance companies did not subject them to any regulatory action.
With respect to the Company's Louisiana domiciled insurer, Louisiana law restricts a domestic insurer from declaring and paying any dividends to its stockholders unless its capital is fully paid in cash and is unimpaired and it has a surplus beyond its capital stock and the initial minimum surplus required and all other liabilities equal to fifteen percent of its capital stock, provided that this restriction shall not apply when an insurer's paid-in capital and surplus exceeds the minimum required by Louisiana law by one hundred percent or more. No extraordinary dividend or other extraordinary distribution to its shareholders may be made until 30 days after the commissioner of insurance has received notice of the declaration thereof and has not within that period disapproved the payment, or has approved the payment within the thirty-day period. An extraordinary dividend or distribution includes any dividend or distribution of cash or other property, whose fair market value together with that of other dividends or distributions made within the preceding twelve months exceeds the lesser of (a) 10% percent of the insurer's surplus as regards policyholders as of the 31st day of December next preceding; or (b) the net income, not including realized capital gains, for the twelve-month period ending the 31st day of December next preceding, but shall not include pro rata distributions of any class of the insurer's own securities. In determining whether a dividend or distribution is extraordinary, an insurer may carry forward net income from the previous two calendar years that has not already been paid out as dividends. This carryforward shall be computed by taking the net income from the second and third preceding calendar years, not including realized capital gains, less dividends paid in the second and immediate preceding calendar years.
Notwithstanding the foregoing, an insurer may declare an extraordinary dividend or distribution which is conditional upon regulatory approval. and the declaration shall confer no rights upon shareholders until either the payment is approved or has not been disapproved within the 30-day period referred to above. As noted above, authorization to issue dividends from the insurance companies is based on achieving certain financial results and regulatory approvals. Due to the financial results, we have neither applied for regulatory approval nor are we authorized to issue dividends from the insurance carriers at this time.
The Company applied for a "use and file" rate filing with the Florida OIR to implement a state-wide average increase of 7.0% for Florida homeowners multiple-peril insurance policies and 6.0% for dwelling fire insurance policies, which is expected to become effective for new and renewal policies in April 2021. The revised rates are not deemed approved or final until so affirmed by the Florida OIR, at their discretion.
On approximately February 13, 2021, Winter Storm Uri ("Uri") hit the Southern Plains causing heavy residential damage in Texas, primarily associated with freezing temperatures causing widespread instances of burst water pipes. The Company expects to incur claims in excess of its aggregate reinsurance retention, which is approximately $23 million for this event. In addition, the Company has a co-participation within its reinsurance tower which arose in early February 2021 when, in conjunction with year end 2020 financial reporting, we strengthened ultimate loss and LAE reserves for the five hurricane events that occurred in 2020. Due to this increase in hurricane reserves, the Company has a co-participation of approximately $18 million in excess of $61 million, which results from the portion of our reinsurance program that does not embody the cascading feature where unused limit drops down for subsequent events. Combined with the $23 million retention, the Company's total exposure to Uri including reinstatement premium is currently estimated to be $41 million, pre-tax, before anticipated quota share recoveries.
On March 15, 2021, the Company closed an underwritten public offering of 3,500,000 shares of its common stock at a price of $4.75 per share for gross proceeds of $16.6 million. The offering generates net proceeds to the Company of approximately $15.2 million, after deducting the underwriter’s discount and estimated offering expenses payable by the Company.