Oct 22, 2026 earnings call — Specialty growth, reserve development and title efficiency
Old Republic reported consolidated pretax operating income of $227 million and a consolidated combined ratio of 96.1%.
Revenue $2.5B (est $2.5B) · EPS $0.73 (est $0.79)
Key quotes
"For specialty, competition remains active across much of the marketplace, although conditions do vary by line of coverage and legal system abuse continues to put pressure on severity loss trends on our liability lines of coverage."
"Overall, the consolidated combined ratio in the quarter benefited 1.1 points from favorable development compared to 2.5 points of benefit last year."
"A key part of that effort is our partnership with Qualia and the continued rollout of our new operating system."
Analyst Q&A 3
Auto warranty and ECM growth
Q (Charles Peters · Raymond James): He asked whether ECM and the auto warranty business will keep lifting revenue in the next quarters or were they one-time. He also asked for detail on the surprise credit loss and how the expense ratio should look going forward.
A: Management said the lift will continue: auto warranty growth will stay robust and ECM will keep contributing to top line and bottom line. They said the ECM acquisition removed a quota share constraint, which will add to net results, and they will keep providing supplemental with/without views. On the credit loss, they said it was one unique program and they booked a conservative, final loss; excluding the auto warranty write-up the expense ratio is below 30% year-to-date and around 30% for the quarter, and they are working to keep it below 30%.
"The growth within the auto warranty business is going to continue at a robust pace." — Craig Smiddy (CEO)
Profitability in soft insurance market
Q (Jon Paul Newsome · Piper Sandler): He asked whether ECM and the mortgage business affected the combined ratio and bottom line. He also asked, big-picture, how profitability will evolve over the next few years in a soft pricing market and whether the combined ratio might rise above the target range.
A: Management said ECM is producing combined ratios in line with their targets and has had good weather results this year. They reiterated their philosophy to target a combined ratio between 90% and 95%, will work to stay at or below that range, and said the wildcard is top-line pressure: if premium falls, the expense ratio could push the combined ratio up. They emphasized focusing on rate-adequate pricing, selling their specialized value, and that start-ups now raise the combined ratio but should improve as premium grows.
"Our overall philosophy is to, again, be between that 90% and 95%, depending on where we're at in the cycle." — Craig Smiddy (CEO)
Auto-warranty book size and title outlook
Q (Charles Peters · Raymond James): He asked how large the auto warranty book could get — whether it might be $750–$800 million or more. He also asked about the title business given higher mortgage rates and how their book might perform.
A: Management said the growth is driven by auto warranty and it is progressing very well. They said on a net basis $600 million, $700 million in annual premium in the next few years isn't out of the question and could be higher. On title, they said commercial business is strong with a robust pipeline that offsets residential headwinds, there are big geographic differences, and refi is not a big part of their portfolio so higher rates don't move the needle much.
"So looking at it on a net basis, $600 million, $700 million in the next few years isn't out of the question and even higher." — Craig Smiddy (CEO)